The Young Americans (1993)

Experienced New York Police Detective John Harris is sent to London to help a local task force investigate a series of gangster killings organized by a new player in town, an American. Harris uses a teen wronged by gangsters to get to him.

Director:

Danny Cannon

Writers:

Danny Cannon, David Hilton

Stars:

Harvey Keitel, Iain Glen, John Wood

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harvey Keitel	...	John Harris
Iain Glen	...	Edward Foster
John Wood	...	Richard Donnelly
Terence Rigby	...	Sidney Callow
Keith Allen	...	Jack Doyle
Craig Kelly	...	Christian O'Neill
Thandie Newton	...	Rachael Stevens
Viggo Mortensen	...	Carl Frazer
Dave Duffy	...	Louis Carnegie
Geoffrey McGivern	...	Brian Carver
Nigel Clauzel	...	Lionel Stevens
Huggy Leaver	...	Mark Byrne
Dig Wayne	...	Gary Washington
Christopher Adamson	...	Billy Cohen (as Chris Adamson)
James Duggan	...	Dermot O'Neill

Storyline

The London police is having trouble with organized crime commited by juvenile delinquents. Their leader is an American who is an expert at turning young men into ruthless gangsters. American cop John Harris is asked to help the London police to break up the organization.

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Plot Keywords:

male with earring | police | gangster | killing | police siren | 

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Taglines:

America has London's soul, now she's selling it!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK France

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 October 1993 (UK)

Also Known As:

Young Americans

Filming Locations:

Jacob Street Studios, Jacob Street, Bermondsey, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Live Entertainment, PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, StudioCanal

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Was one of many films released in the early 1990s that was criticized by the UK Government for glamorizing youth violence.

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Goofs

When the Molotov cocktail is thrown through the windshield of the vehicle with the two cops inside, you can easily see, by the way it breaks, that the windshield is not made of safety glass. All vehicle windshields have been made of safety glass for decades.

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Connections

Referenced in Nobody Does It Better: The Music of James Bond (1997)

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Soundtracks

Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury
(remix by Joe Nicolo)
Written by M. Franti
Performed by Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy

User Reviews

Effective, decent action thriller

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

With everyone talking about how youth crime and violence has skyrocketed almost to the same level as the States in Britain, this action thriller from over fifteen years ago now looks like a grim prediction from back then, with Harvey Keitel's hardened detective flying over to help stem the drugs/murder problem whilst pursuing a villain he was originally after in the States who he now believes has started to prowl around Europe.

The film manages a consistently gritty, raw atmosphere, fitting in tone with the story it's telling. Keitel is perfectly cast in the lead role, whilst as the villain in an early role Viggo Mortensen shows potential. Unfortunately, a melodramatic, hammy tendency in parts of the script, as well as an unconvincing turn from Keith Allen as a shady club owner, stop it achieving it's full potential. Still, it's a decent enough effort, forgettable but effective while it lasts. ***