Empire City

Jul 1, 1985

1h 29m

★ 9.0

The City That Never Sleeps

Overview

A film essay contrasting the modern metropolis with its "golden age" from 1830-1930, with the participation of some of New York's leading political and cultural figures. Made at a time when the city was experiencing unprecedented real estate development on the one hand and unforeseen displacement of population and deterioration on the other. Empire City is the story of two New Yorks. The film explores the precarious coexistence of the service-based midtown Manhattan corporate headquarters with the peripheral New York of undereducated minorities living in increasing alienation.

Genres

Documentary

History

Production Companies

Michael Blackwood Productions

Empire City Trailers

Cast

Self

Donald Trump

Self

Ed Koch

Self

Jane Jacobs

Self

Elia Kazan

Self

Norman Mailer

Self

Arthur Miller

Self - Narrator (voice)

Jason Robards

Welcome to a different kind of drag race! As NYC emerges from the chaos of 2020, Marti Cummings (they/them), an audacious and big-hearted drag queen, goes all out in a historic bid to become a City Councilperson. It’s one of the most hotly contested Council races in years, and Marti’s strongest competitor is Shaun Abreu, a tenants’ lawyer with deep roots in the district’s Latinx community. As these first-timers race to do the most good for their Upper Manhattan neighbors, they offer very different visions for Democratic politics – one in a suit and tie, the other in combat boots and floral print. As this immersive documentary reveals, Marti’s passion inspires queer activists and allies to change the political system. Their campaign becomes a community of its own, especially for Marti’s non-binary peers who have never before seen themselves represented.

9.0

The Secret History of ISIS

May 17, 2016

Recently released top secret files from the early 2000's expose the lies told to the American people by senior US government in this PBS documentary, which outlines the real creators of ISIS.

No Image

9.0

Under den gamle Fane

Oct 12, 1932

Dramatization of the time around the first Danish Social Democrats and the Battle of Fælleden. A social blockbuster produced for AOF.

6.7

Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing

Oct 27, 2006

Shut Up and Sing is a documentary about the country band from Texas called the Dixie Chicks and how one tiny comment against President Bush dropped their number one hit off the charts and caused fans to hate them, destroy their CD’s, and protest at their concerts. A film about freedom of speech gone out of control and the three girls lives that were forever changed by a small anti-Bush comment

No Image

0.0

Un tout petit pays

Dec 3, 2019

No overview available.

0.0

I Don’t Have the Codes

Sep 22, 2025

This is the story of an ordinary man transformed by history. A simple baker from Besançon who became a political symbol of resistance. That of a France that knows how much it needs others to grow. Of working classes rejecting the siren calls of populism. He says: "I was nothing and I became a monster" to express the vertigo of his transformation. And so the baker entered politics, visited the United States in the footsteps of Martin Luther King, brought aid to the Ukrainians, and ran for legislative elections. Fearless. Fighting with all his heart. It is this inspiring, touching, and funny human epic that Pedro da Fonseca's camera followed closely, capturing his doubts, his hesitations, and his emotions.

6.8

Shine a Light

Apr 4, 2008

Martin Scorsese’s electrifying concert documentary captures The Rolling Stones live at New York’s Beacon Theatre during their A Bigger Bang tour. Filmed over two nights in 2006 with an all-star team of cinematographers, the film combines dynamic performances with archival footage and rare glimpses behind the scenes, offering a vibrant portrait of the band’s enduring energy and legacy.

6.8

The Apprentice

Oct 9, 2024

A young Donald Trump, eager to make his name as a hungry scion of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, comes under the spell of Roy Cohn, the cutthroat attorney who would help create the Donald Trump we know today. Cohn sees in Trump the perfect protégé—someone with raw ambition, a hunger for success, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to win.

8.0

The Fall of the I-Hotel

Jun 15, 1983

The Fall of the I-Hotel brings to life the battle for housing in San Francisco. The brutal eviction of the International Hotel's tenants culminated a decade of spirited resistance to the razing of Manilatown. The Fall of the I-Hotel works on several levels. It not only documents the struggle to save the I-Hotel, but also gives an overview of Filipino American history.

4.0

Tales of the American

Nov 30, 2017

Seemayer Studios presents a new documentary about the American Hotel in downtown Los Angeles and the Arts District that surrounds it. Since 1979, the American Hotel has been the beating heart of a rich community of artists who began moving into the deserted factory buildings between Alameda and the Los Angeles River.

No Image

0.0

The Farmer-Labor Movement: A Minnesota Story

Nov 10, 2022

Documentary about the history of the progressive Farmer-Labor movement in Minnesota from 1915 to 1944, when the party merged with the Democrats to form the DFL, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

No Image

0.0

Die Menschenfischer

Oct 19, 2004

No overview available.

7.5

Serpico

Dec 18, 1973

New York cop Frank Serpico blows the whistle on the rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.

6.8

This Is the Bowery

May 31, 1941

In this somewhat whitewashed documentary on Manhattan's Bowery a newcomer to the area takes his first step toward redemption after a meal, bed, and inspiring talk.

5.9

The Capote Tapes

Sep 10, 2021

A portrait of the brilliant American writer Truman Capote (1924-84) and the New York high society of his time.

4.8

La marche gaie

Jan 1, 1980

A short documentary about the October 14 1979 March For Lesbian And Gay Rights in Washington D.C.

6.0

Game of Assassins

Dec 8, 2013

Game of Assassins is about General Tu Jia who trains a trio of young assassins to seek revenge against villainous King of Wei. And one of the assassins succumbs to the dark side for temptation of wealth and power.

7.0

Globe Trekker: Chinatown

Apr 2, 2007

In this special edition of Globe Trekker Chinatown, Lavinia Tan, Justine Shapiro and Megan McCormick travel worldwide to explore the magic and mystery of Chinatowns across the globe. Lavinia Tan begins the journey in Malaysia and Singapore where overseas traders led the earliest migrations of Chinese people. The journey continues from there to the United States, where Justine Shapiro visits San Francisco. Megan McCormick explores New York s Lower East Side, home to the largest Chinatown in the Western Hemisphere. After a short trip to London s Soho district, Lavinia Tan ends this journey with a visit to Hong Kong exploring the world famous film industry and the 21st century migration of Chinese back to their homeland.

6.8

The Sixth Side of the Pentagon

Aug 26, 1968

Chris Marker and François Reichenbach document the massive anti–Vietnam War protest held in Washington, D.C., on October 21, 1967, where more than 100,000 demonstrators gathered at the Lincoln Memorial before marching on the Pentagon. Filmed amid the crowd, the short captures the tension, idealism, and growing radicalism of the American peace movement.