IGN.com|AskMen.com|Rotten Tomatoes|GameSpy|FilePlanet|TeamXbox|CheatsCodesGuides|GameStats|Direct2Drive|Green Pixels
RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Learn More About Rotten Tomatoes
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • The Vine
  • Forums
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches by subscribing to our Google Subscribed Links profile.
 
Movies / On DVD / Empire
Empire

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Email to a Friend
  • Add to List
  • Bookmark and Share
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon

Empire (2002)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
22 %
Tomatometer

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted: 97

Fresh: 21

Rotten:76

Average Rating: 4.4/10

Consensus: In terms of the gangster genre, Empire's story is yet another tired retread.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong violence, pervasive language, drug content and some sexuality

Runtime: 90 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release: Dec 6, 2002 Wide

Box Office: $17,504,595

Synopsis: EMPIRE, the debut film from director-writer Frank Reyes is a Latin GOODFELLAS, chronicling the rise and fall of Victor Rosa (John Leguizamo), a Puerto Rican drug-dealer working the violent streets of the South Bronx. With an eye for money... EMPIRE, the debut film from director-writer Frank Reyes is a Latin GOODFELLAS, chronicling the rise and fall of Victor Rosa (John Leguizamo), a Puerto Rican drug-dealer working the violent streets of the South Bronx. With an eye for money and a head for business, Victor dreams of one day achieving the wealth and success of a legitimate businessman. When Victor discovers that his girlfriend Carmen (Delilah Cruz) is pregnant, he jumps at the chance to give up the dangerous drug trade and joins forces with two new friends, Jack (Peter Sarsgaard)--a flashy Wall Street Investment banker, and his girlfriend Trish (Denise Richards). Jack offers Victor a new way of life and promises him access to "sure thing" investments. Eager to go legit, Victor quickly embraces Jack's standards of living. He gives up the streets of the Bronx for Jack's slick Soho loft and moves into the fast-talking, money-driven world of Wall Street. However, Carmen misses the warmth and familiarity of her roots in the South Bronx and Victor is torn between his own ambition and his desire to please her. Ultimately, he realizes too late that Jack and Trish are not all who they seem to be, and his best-laid plans begin to falter as he is forced to accept the magnitude of their betrayal. [More]

Starring: John Leguizamo, Denise Richards, Peter Sarsgaard, Ruben Blades

Starring: John Leguizamo, Denise Richards, Peter Sarsgaard, Ruben Blades, Isabella Rossellini, Sonia Braga, Treach, Fat Joe, Nestor Serrano, Delilah Cotto

Director: Frank Reyes

Director: Frank Reyes
Screenwriter: Frank Reyes
Producer: Daniel Bigel, Michael Mailer
Composer: Ruben Blades
Studio: Arenas Entertainment

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
1 - 5 of 19

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Get This Movie

  • Buy DVD
 
 
 
 
Release:

Mar 18, 2003

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Anamorphic Widescreen - 2.35:1

Interactive Features:

  • Scene Access
  • Interactive Menus

Reviews for Empire

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
Arrange By: Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
02/17/07
Minneapolis Star Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

You can take the homey out of the hood, but you can’t take the hood out of the homey.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
02/16/04
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly
Ratings Image

The leads make it watchable (plus it's always a hoot to see Denise Richards onscreen in any form)...

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
02/13/04
Scott Weinberg
eFilmCritic.com
Ratings Image

None of this finds an emotional connection, and instead we watch it predictably unfold.

Full Review Source: Mark Reviews Movies | comment Comment
08/03/03
Mark Dujsik
Mark Reviews Movies
Ratings Image

The film’s hodgepodge plot stumbles down the prototypical path of a gangster’s fall from grace with a bit of Boiler Room thrown in for good measure.

Full Review Source: State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL) | comment Comment
06/26/03
Nick Rogers
State Journal-Register (Springfield, IL)
Ratings Image

. . .this movie has a glossy coat of action movie excess while remaining heartless at its core.

Full Review Source: FilmStew.com | comment Comment
06/12/03
Charlie Brown
FilmStew.com
Ratings Image

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
05/20/03
Jim Shelby
Palo Alto Weekly
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: BlackFilm.com | comment Comment
05/13/03
Wilson Morales
BlackFilm.com
Ratings Image

Depois de capturar a imaginação do espectador com um início envolvente e promissor, a história se perde de forma irremediável, desperdiçando o imenso potencial de seus dois primeiros atos.

Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
05/07/03
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
04/27/03
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews | comment Comment
04/05/03
Andrea Chase
Killer Movie Reviews
Ratings Image

Moody, stylish tale of heroin dealer John Leguizamo facing the white-collar world is a well-shot debut from Franc Reyes.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
02/11/03
James Rocchi
Netflix
Ratings Image

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
02/09/03
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons
Ratings Image

Reyes has obviously seen Goodfellas 50 or 60 times.

Full Review Source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram | comment Comment
01/02/03
Scott Von Doviak
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Ratings Image

Yes, we're walking those mean streets again. Good thing we're taking a few unanticipated turns.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
12/23/02
Geoff Pevere
Toronto Star
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

Unfortunately, Empire is nothing more than an exhausting retread of the same cliched urban cautionary tale that waxes about rebellion and redemption.

Full Review Source: Movie Eye | comment Comment
12/16/02
Frank Ochieng
Movie Eye
Ratings Image

The film ends up being derivative of every drug-themed, drug-centered movie we've ever seen, and goes down the same dark unforgiving and predictable path as all the others did.

Full Review Source: Zap2it.com | comment Comment
12/13/02
Michael Szymanski
Zap2it.com
Ratings Image

There isn't a redeeming character to be found in Empire which makes it awfully hard to enjoy.

Full Review Source: Sun Newspapers of Cleveland | comment Comment
12/12/02
Gerry Shamray
Sun Newspapers of Cleveland
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
12/12/02
Orlando Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
all

Latest News for Empire

June 22, 2005: "Empire" Director to Remake Fritz Lang Film
Reuters beings some remake news: Director Franc Reyes (2002's "Empire") has been tapped by Fox & Regency to helm a remake of Fritz Lang's 1956 thriller... More...

December 13, 2002: What “Empire” lacks in depth it makes up for with its heart. Opens in new window
More...

See More Topics...

Related Forums for Empire

empire sucked ! The worst part is the producers knew they created garbage
by: Rockwell 4/28/03


GONY, 25th Hour, Empire, Catch Me
by: Fidelio 1/4/03


This movie looks great but....
by: Ivy Killa 12/8/02


The reason most people will go to see this movie...
by: RalphDClark 12/5/02
See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
ROTTEN: 1 48% Smart People
FRESH: 2 89% Kung Fu Panda
FRESH: 3 61% Journey to the Center …
FRESH: 4 67% The Incredible Hulk
FRESH: 5 76% Indiana Jones and the …

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
FRESH: 96 96% WALL-E
FRESH: 83 83% Tropic Thunder
FRESH: 63 63% Sisterhood of the Trav…
FRESH: 93 93% Encounters At the End …
FRESH: 88 88% Gonzo: The Life and Wo…

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Star Trek TV Trailer

Star Trek TV Trailer

Live long and watch our exclusive video!

Guillermo del Toro

Guillermo del Toro

Five favorite films with the Hellboy director. ...

Dance Flick Trailer

Dance Flick Trailer

The latest spoof from the Wayans bros.

Twilight Guide

Twilight Guide

Meet the characters of the vampire romance.

More Info

RT To Go

Get this widget! Movie Reviews

Around The Network

  • Empire at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Empire at AskMen
 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | ModCenter | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2008, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.