Night Falls on Manhattan (1996)

A newly elected District attorney finds himself in the middle of a police corruption investigation that may involve his father and his partner.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Robert Daley (novel), Sidney Lumet (screenplay)

Stars:

Andy Garcia, Ian Holm, Lena Olin

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Andy Garcia	...	Sean Casey
Ian Holm	...	Liam Casey
James Gandolfini	...	Joey Allegretto
Lena Olin	...	Peggy Lindstrom
Shiek Mahmud-Bey	...	Jordan Washington
Colm Feore	...	Elihu Harrison
Ron Leibman	...	Morgenstern
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Sam Vigoda
Dominic Chianese	...	Judge Impelliteri
Paul Guilfoyle	...	McGovern
Bonnie Rose	...	Instructor
Norman Matlock	...	Detective
Sidney Armus	...	Judge
James Murtaugh	...	Man in Asylum (as Jim Murtaugh)
Melba Martinez	...	Legal Aid Attorney

Storyline

Sean Casey is the newest member of the district attorneys office and he is close to uncovering a police scandal that might involve his father Liam, who works for the NYPD. Then his father is critically wounded in a stake-out, Sean is chosen to prosecute the case.

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Plot Keywords:

corruption | district attorney | justice | lawyer | internal affairs | 

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Taglines:

In a city of nine million people is there room for one honest man?

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 May 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Nacht über Manhattan

Filming Locations:

Marietta, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$2,933,255 (USA) (16 May 1997)

Gross:

$9,881,286 (USA) (8 August 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Spelling Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min 118 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Richard Dreyfuss's role is loosely based on the career of the late celebrity attorney William Kunstler.

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Connections

References The Oprah Winfrey Show (1986)

User Reviews

If you want clean hands, become a priest

Fascinating story of politics and justice in New York, or anywhere else for that matter. Most don't realize that on 3% of murder cases ever see a jury; most are plea bargained. But, there are those, like the one depicted here, that are essential, not for justice, but for the political ambitions of the DA and Mayor.

Sidney Lumet (Find Me Guilty, Dog Day Afternoon) likes working with ethical questions, and he did a good job here in presenting a world that is not black and white, but gray.

I generally do not like Andy Garcia (Ocean's Eleven, The Godfather Part III) or Ron Leibman (Zorro, the Gay Blade), but that may be because of their politics off the screen. It affects my judgment. I have to say that they both gave interesting performances that made this film worth watch. But, there were a lot of good stars in this film: Sir Ian Holm (Chariots of First) as Garcia's father, James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano) as a corrupt cop and Holm's partner, Richard Dreyfuss (Mr. Holland's Opus, The Goodbye Girl, Jaws) as a liberal lawyer, Colm Feore (Bon Cop, Bad Cop, The Red Violin, Chicago) as an ADA that wants the top job, and Lena Olin (Enemies: A Love Story, Chocolat, "Alias") as the love interest.

Very good acting throughout and a compelling story.