Empire Records
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| Empire Records | |
|---|---|
 Empire Records DVD cover |
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| Directed by | Allan Moyle |
| Produced by | Tony Ludwig, Arnon Milchan, Michael G. Nathanson, Alan Riche |
| Written by | Carol Heikkinen |
| Starring | Anthony LaPaglia Maxwell Caulfield Debi Mazar Liv Tyler |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | September 22, 1995 (limited) |
| Running time | 90 min. (original) 107 min (2003 edition) |
| Language | English |
| Budget | N/A |
| IMDb profile | |
Empire Records is a 1995 dramedy about a group of record store employees. The film is directed by Allan Moyle and stars Anthony LaPaglia, Maxwell Caulfield and Debi Mazar.
Tagline: Open til Midnight.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
The events of the film take place within a single day. Empire Records, an independently owned record shop, is about to be sold to the Music Town corporation by its owner to become another run-of-the-mill chain store. Lucas (played by Rory Cochrane) attempts to save the day by taking a gamble with the store's sales proceeds, but ends up making things worse when he loses it all. Rex Manning (Maxwell Caulfield), an arrogant singer, shows up for an in-store promotional appearance that day, and a local teenager (Brendan Sexton III) attempts to steal merchandise. The employees, who see Empire as a second home and their coworkers as something of a second family, are also experiencing difficulties in their personal lives and relationships with one another. Upon learning of the store's looming fate, the employees and their boss, Joe Reaves (Anthony LaPaglia), band together to save it.
[edit] Reaction and cult status
Something of a slice-of-life teen dramedy, the film did poorly at the box office and received generally poor reviews, but attracted and has maintained a devoted cult following since its release, mainly among young adults who first saw the film as adolescents. Numerous web shrines have been created in the film's honor, and a special edit was released on DVD in 2003, after many years of petitioning from fans wanting the deleted scenes to be made available.
[edit] Trivia
- A reference is made to the rock band The Who when Rex tells the kids to fade away. (In the 2003 edition this line is not used. It is replaced with alternate take featuring a more reflective Rex Manning stating "You know what, maybe you're right.")
- Many of the stars would later go on to appear in Jerry Bruckheimer's CBS crime dramas. Rory Cochrane would star as Tim Speedle on CSI: Miami, Anthony LaPaglia would star as Jack Malone in Without a Trace and Johnny Whitworth would land a guest appearance on Cold Case and then a recurring role on CSI: Miami, though he made his appearances years after Cochrane had already left the show. Debi Mazar would also guest star on CSI: Miami.
[edit] Main cast
- Anthony LaPaglia .... Joe Reaves
- Maxwell Caulfield .... Rex Manning
- Debi Mazar .... Jane
- Rory Cochrane .... Lucas
- Johnny Whitworth .... A.J.
- Robin Tunney .... Debra
- Renée Zellweger .... Gina
- Ethan Embry .... Mark (as Ethan Randall)
- Coyote Shivers .... Berko
- Brendan Sexton III .... Warren (as Brendan Sexton)
- Liv Tyler .... Corey Mason
- James 'Kimo' Wills .... Eddie
- Ben Bode .... Mitchell Beck
- Gary Bolen .... Croupier
- Kimber Sissons .... Woman at Craps Table (as Kimber Monroe).
- Tobey Maguire .... Andre (scenes deleted)
[edit] External links
