Prince of the City

Prince of the City (1981)

Timing: 2:47 (167 min)

7.021/10
143

6.727/10
746

7.4/10
11000

All about film

Video 1

Photo 6

Actors and characters

Release date

1981-08-19

Country

United States

Production

Warner Bros. Pictures, Orion Pictures

Genre

Drama, Thriller, Crime

Budget

$8 600 000

Revenue

$8 124 257

Website

Director

Sidney Lumet

Actors

Treat Williams, Jerry Orbach, Richard Foronjy, Don Billett, Kenny Marino, Carmine Caridi, Tony Page, Norman Parker, Paul Roebling, Bob Balaban
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Burtt Harris, Jay Presson Allen

Operator

Andrzej Bartkowiak

Composer

Paul Chihara

Artist

Audition

Joy Todd

Editing

Jack Fitzstephens
All team (16)

• The film is based on the novel of the same name by Robert Daley (1978).
• Al Pacino was originally slated for the lead role, but the actor declined, believing it was too similar to the role he had already played in Sidney Lumet’s "Serpico" (1973).
• Director Brian De Palma worked on the script for a year before being replaced by Sidney Lumet. De Palma himself had planned to collaborate with screenwriter David Rabe and actor Robert De Niro.
• The character of Daniel Ciello is based on real-life New York narcotics officer Robert Leuci, who exposed 52 corrupt detectives. After leaving the police force, Leuci wrote several provocative stories about policing.
• Sidney Lumet agreed to direct with two conditions: an unknown actor in the lead role and a runtime of no less than 3 hours. While the first requirement was met, the final version of the film is only 2 hours and 47 minutes long. Another reason for Lumet's agreement was his feeling that this film would reflect the life of police officers more accurately than 'Serpico'.
• The lead actor, Treat Williams, spent a month with the narcotics department and lived with the real-life inspiration for his character, Robert Leuci, in preparation for filming.
• The film's 240-page script was written in 30 days. The film was shot in 130 different locations and consists of 126 dialogues.
• The film's budget was set at $10 million. However, director Sidney Lumet managed to shoot the film for less.
• The film features the song "Love Will Keep Us Together" performed by Captain & Tenille.
• Al Pacino was originally slated to play the lead role, but the actor declined, believing it was too similar to the role he had already played in Sidney Lumet’s “Serpico” (1973).
• Sidney Lumet agreed to direct with two conditions: an unknown actor in the lead role and a runtime of at least 3 hours. While the first requirement was met, the final version of the film is only 2 hours and 47 minutes long. Another reason for Lumet’s agreement was his belief that this film would reflect the lives of police officers more accurately than “Serpico”.