New Jack City (1991)

Graphic violence, Drug themes

New Jack City, the definitive urban gangster film starring Wesley Snipes, Ice-T, Chris Rock, Mario Van Peebles (who also directs) and Judd Nelson, arrives on a two-disc Special Edition DVD on 2 November 2005 from Warner Home Video. Just as cool and topical today as when it premiered in 1991, New Jack City updates the gangster genre with a hip - hop twist.

The cutting-edge soundtrack, which includes tunes by Ice-T, Queen Latifah and 2 Live Crew, was the first ever to blend rap, pop and R&B and produced simultaneous chart-topping singles in all three categories.

New Jack City is the first film to bring the urban cultur e and hip -hop lifestyle into the mainstream. In his directorial debut, Mario Van Peebles (Baadasssss!) fuses elements from genre classics like Scarface, Public Enemy and The Godfather with the energy of the Harlem streets, and, in so doing, creates a modern-day crime epic with a vivid sense of authenticity.

New Jack City is both scathing and cautionary in its depiction of New York City’s crack epidemic of the ‘80s. The film is filled with breakout performances from Chris Rock, Ice-T and Wesley Snipes whose charismatic turn as Nino Brown established him as an actor to watch and earned him a Naacp Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Motion Picture. New Jack City was also nominated for three MTV Movie Awards including Best Breakthrough Performance (Ice-T) and Best Villain (Snipes).

New Jack City chronicles the rise and fall of ruthless drug lord Nino Brown. A criminal businessman with no time for pity or emotion, the flashy but severe Brown has built an empire and transformed an abandoned Harlem ap artment building into a well-defended fortress. Brown considers himself invincible but his lust for power threatens to bring about his potential downfall.

Ice-T, Judd Nelson and Mario Van Peebles are streetwise cops heading the operation against Brown, with Chris Rock also starring as a recovering coke addict who attempts to infiltrate Brown’s inner circle. Allen Payne (The Perfect Storm, “The Cosby Show”), Vanessa Williams (“Soul Food”), Bill Nunn (Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man) and Michael Michele (TV’s “Kevin Hill” and “ER”) round out the outstanding supporting cast.