A day in the life of Empire Records (Empire Records (DVD))

Member Name: linzeelou

Product:	Empire Records (DVD)
Date:	09/08/09 (37 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funny characters and story

Disadvantages: None

Empire Records was released in 1995 and is a teen comedy drama. The original release was 90 minutes long but the 2003 edition is 107 minutes long. Even though the film has some major names in the cast, they weren't so big at the time and the film was pretty much a flop at the box office.

PLOT
Empire Records follows the lives of the employees and the manager of the shop of the same name. The best way to describe what the film is about is to tell you a bit about the characters. This way it wont give away too much of the plot.

Joe - Joe is the owner of Empire records. He seems to trust most of his staff and tries to help them out whenever he can.

Lucas - Joe trusts Lucas to close the shop one night, and tells him to count the money twice and put it in the safe. Unfortunately, he counts the money and takes it to a casino because he finds out Empire Records is in trouble.

A.J - A.J is the pretty boy and totally in love with Corey, and has been for ages. She doesn't know this though, and he vows to tell her on the day the film is set, at a very specific time.

Debra - Debra is the dark outside who always seems depressed and doesn't want to be friends with anyone.

Gina - Gina is the slut of the group and thinks flaunting her body will get her what she wants because she isn't all that clever. She is also best friends with Corey.

Corey - Corey is extremely clever and her dad is putting a lot of pressure on her to get into an Ivy League college. Corey is the only staff member who is looking forward to Rex Manning day.

Mark - Mark is the typical stoner who dreams of being in a band.

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
* Coyote Shivers.... Berko
* Brendan Sexton III.... Warren
* Liv Tyler.... Corey Mason
* James 'Kimo' Wills.... Eddie

MY OPINION
I don't know why this film wasn't a success when it first came out because it's amazing. Ok, so it's fairly stupid at times, but it has kind of become cult classic now. Most of the cast was semi unknown at the time but some, such as Liv Tyler, has gone on to be very successful.

I loved the way we got to see a part of each character's story throughout the day and I thought it was great how each one was really different and they all had something else going on in their lives. The film isn't all cheesy about their problems though, apart from Debra's story a little bit. The film shows teenagers real problems well and especially because the problems shown are quite diverse.

Obviously as the film is set in a record shop, the soundtrack is amazing. There aren't many scenes, if any, where there isn't some music played in the background. The only problem I have with the music is when Renée Zellweger sings near the end of the film. Her voice is attrocious and I wish they had used a voice over for her. At least you can actually tell it is her singing though.

Overall this is one of my favourite films from the 90's and I hate to hear a bad word said about it. It's very different from most films that were out at the time and that's the main thing I love about it. The story is very interesting and funny throughout and I felt each character was easy to connect with. If you liked other films like Can't hardly wait and Idle hands, then you will probably love this one.

Summary: Amazing film from the 90's!