Empire City
Jul 01, 1985 | IMDB 9
89 min Watch NowDocumentary, History
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.
MOVIE COMMENTS
SIMILAR MOVIES
The Special Relationship
Torn: The Israel-Palestine Poster War on New York City Streets
La badil
Refugees through time
Sahara, the last province
Candle in the Wave
Tatort Ostsee - Wer sprengte die Nord Stream-Pipelines?
Hitler's 9/11
Inside Job
Plunder: The Crime of Our Time
We Were Once Kids
New Hyperion or Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood
Have You Seen the Land of the Red?
Dear Juhee
Cuba, A Paradise on the Brink
Stockholm Syndrome
Thaidina, music in the desert
Carterland
President
Googie
SIMILAR MOVIES
The Special Relationship
IMDB 6.4 | May , 2010
A dramatisation that follows Tony Blair's journey from political understudy waiting in the wings of the world arena to accomplished prime minister standing confidently in the spotlight of centre stage. It is a story about relationships, between two powerful men (Blair and Bill Clinton), two powerful couples, and husbands and wives.Torn: The Israel-Palestine Poster War on New York City Streets
IMDB 8 | Sep , 2025
After Hamas kidnapped 251 people from Israel on October 7, and as Israel’s war in Gaza unfolded, a conflict thousands of miles away erupted on New York’s walls. TORN captures the emotional fallout of the now-iconic “KIDNAPPED” poster campaign - a grassroots act of solidarity that quickly became a flashpoint, igniting fierce confrontations between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian New Yorkers. Through the voices of artists, activists, and hostage families, the film unpacks the motivations behind those putting up and tearing down the posters, exposing a complex proxy war fought in stickers, slogans, and torn paper. By revealing how a distant war fractured daily life in one of the world’s most diverse cities, the film forces a reckoning with identity, free speech, and empathy in an age of polarization.La badil
IMDB 0 | Nov , 2012
La Badil (No Other Choice), was filmed undercover in the Moroccan controlled territories of Western Sahara, on the eve of the second anniversary of the 2010 uprisings at Gdeim Izik that heralded the start of the Arab Spring. It sheds new light on the decades long conflict and the Sahrawi people's struggle for self-determination.Refugees through time
IMDB 0 | Jan , 2013
This is the story of my father, my mother, my grandfather and my grandmother ... it is the story of all the saharaui people ... but I do not want it to be the story of my life.Sahara, the last province
IMDB 0 | Jan , 2013
Sahara is the last Spanish province and must be decolonized, but this has been a very long and painful process for a nation that doesn’t exceeds one million inhabitantsCandle in the Wave
IMDB 0 | Apr , 2017
Project 1 _ Hong Hyung-sook The children who are enthusiastically painting and cutting a doll. What stories will be told at the Square? - Project 10 _ Kim Jeong-geun The janitorial worker from the Busan Subway Station, Kim Young-ja talks about how she hopes to see a clean world, just like how she cleans everywhere in the subway.Tatort Ostsee - Wer sprengte die Nord Stream-Pipelines?
IMDB 9 | Sep , 2023
A year has passed since the attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines, and it is still unclear what actually happened at the bottom of the Baltic Sea at that time. ARD, Süddeutsche Zeitung, and DIE ZEIT have joined forces for a large-scale investigation and set out to find the alleged perpetrators. An investigation into one of the most spectacular criminal cases of our time, an attack of historic proportions.Hitler's 9/11
IMDB 0 | Jan , 2013
Adolf Hitler's Nazi megalomania knew no limits. The most daring of his plans World War II involved German fighter planes crashing into Manhattan's skyscrapers as living bombs, like the Japanese kamikazes. Hitler understood the huge symbolic power of Manhattan's skyscrapers. He believed suicide bombing would have a devastating psychological impact on the American people and the U.S. war effort.Inside Job
IMDB 7.7 | Oct , 2010
A film that exposes the shocking truth behind the economic crisis of 2008. The global financial meltdown, at a cost of over $20 trillion, resulted in millions of people losing their homes and jobs. Through extensive research and interviews with major financial insiders, politicians and journalists, Inside Job traces the rise of a rogue industry and unveils the corrosive relationships which have corrupted politics, regulation and academia.Plunder: The Crime of Our Time
IMDB 6 | Jan , 2009
Plunder: The Crime of Our Time is a hard-hitting investigative film by Danny Schechter. The "News Dissector" explores how the financial crisis was built on a foundation of criminal activity uncovering the connection between the collapse of the housing market and the economic catastrophe that followed.We Were Once Kids
IMDB 7.6 | Jun , 2021
In the early nineties, before the massive gentrification of many of New York's then slums, several young people from very disparate backgrounds left their broken homes and ventured onto the brutal streets of the city. United by their love of skateboarding, they formed a family and built a unique lifestyle that eventually inspired Kids, a groundbreaking and outrageous film directed by photographer Larry Clark and released in 1995.New Hyperion or Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood
IMDB 0 | Apr , 1992
From the behavior, discourse, and appearance of individual actors, Vachek composes, in the form of a mosaic, a broad and many-layered film-argument about Czechoslovak democracy in the period of its rebirth, all administered with the director’s inimitable point of view.Have You Seen the Land of the Red?
IMDB 0 | Apr , 2026
Nicknamed the ‘heart of conservatives,’ Gyeongsangbuk-do (North Gyeongsang Province) is the conservative stronghold of Korean politics, having not elected a single liberal Democratic Party member to the National Assembly in the past 30 years. From the 2022 local elections to the 2024 general election, TV-writer-turned-filmmaker Hong Youngah documents the uphill battle of Democratic Party candidates, clad in signature blue jackets, in this ‘land of the red.’Dear Juhee
IMDB 0 | Apr , 2026
After recovering from leukemia, Jang Juhee, who once dreamed of becoming a filmmaker, begins working at a center for independent living for people with disabilities. There, she meets documentary director Bu Seongpil, disabled and bedridden Seon Cheol-gyu, and In-sook, who lost a family member in the Sewol ferry tragedy. Shaped by childhood memories of domestic violence and years of illness-induced isolation, Jang’s gaze and inner world begin to expand through these individuals.Cuba, A Paradise on the Brink
IMDB 8 | Oct , 2017
Will Cubans be able to safeguard their heritage of pristine Nature and preserved ecological treasures under this new era, as they are facing the combined pressure of money and tourism? What policies can be implemented to maintain the island’s spectacular wilderness?Stockholm Syndrome
IMDB 0 | Jun , 2021
Stockholm Syndrome chronicles the meteoric rise of contemporary trendsetter A$AP Rocky, capturing the exuberance of youth and urgency of hip-hop in equal parts, before taking a detour into darkness. With amazing access, the film reveals Rocky’s experience with the inequities of the Swedish judicial system and the dangers of stardom and scapegoating through a series of twists and turns, ultimately paralleling the need for prison reform in our own backyard. Directed by The Architects, the film blends archival footage with contemporary interviews, animation, and electrifying live concert footage to tell the astonishing story of how one of rap’s biggest superstars became embroiled in an international incident, leading to an unexpected political awakening.Thaidina, music in the desert
IMDB 0 | Jan , 2009
A documentary that shows the current state of territorial limbo in which the Sahrawi people live through the gaze of those who arrive and leave, those who resist, of the occupiers and the occupieds; a multifaceted view of what is behind the facts.Carterland
IMDB 0 | Apr , 2021
In their feature film debut, CARTERLAND, the Pattiz Brothers examine the tragic, yet inspiring story of America's most misunderstood president. While leading the nation through a series of unprecedented crises, Jimmy Carter also confronted climate change and championed social justice at home and abroad. This groundbreaking film draws on archival footage, experts, and insiders to reveal how Carter's selfless leadership and moral integrity ultimately cost him the presidency.President
IMDB 10 | Nov , 2019
This documentary celebrates the life of former President Kim Dae-joong, who fought for democracy in South Korea and peace in the Korean Peninsula. It marks the 10th anniversary of his passing and covers his challenging journey, from his childhood on an island to his imprisonment, exile, near-death experiences, and ultimately becoming the president.Googie
IMDB 0 | Feb , 2026
Googie architecture was one of the most visually exuberant and culturally formative design movements of the mid-20th century, yet it remains widely misunderstood. Defined by bold angles, sweeping rooflines, neon signage, and a sense of space-age optimism, Googie transformed everyday buildings into roadside spectacle. Coffee shops, bowling alleys, car washes, banks, and churches were designed not just for function, but to captivate motorists cruising by. Rooted in Los Angeles, the movement drew inspiration from visionary architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and John Lautner, while firms like Armet & Davis brought futuristic flair to the commercial landscape. Though many original structures have been lost, preservationists now champion Googie as a serious architectural expression—one that captured the aspirations of postwar America and reshaped the visual identity of the modern city.