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Movies / On DVD / City of Ghosts
City of Ghosts

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City of Ghosts (2003)

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Reviews Counted:66

Fresh:31

Rotten:35

Average Rating:5.5/10

Consensus: Atmospheric, but that's about it.

Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Jimmy Cremmins (Matt Dillon) has been working as a front man for a bogus insurance company set up by his longtime mentor, Marvin (James Caan). In the aftermath of a disastrous hurricane, claims... Jimmy Cremmins (Matt Dillon) has been working as a front man for a bogus insurance company set up by his longtime mentor, Marvin (James Caan). In the aftermath of a disastrous hurricane, claims against their fabricated coverage come pouring in. With Marvin living as an expatriate in Southeast Asia, Jimmy is forced to face the subsequent chaos and investigation on his own. He decides instead to flee and re-group with Marvin in Asia, against Marvin's wishes.

After a short stay in Bangkok, Jimmy goes to Cambodia in search of Marvin. During his pursuit he finds himself a stranger in the mysterious and often hostile environs of Southeast Asia. With the aid of the duplicitous Kaspar (Stellan Skarsgård), another of Marvin's business associates, Jimmy eventually finds Marvin, who attempts to convince Jimmy to join him in his latest venture, the development of a large scale casino with a Cambodian ex-general. But Cambodia is another world - one in which the rules are different, a world where violence isn't merely a threat but a reality - and even the savvy Marvin ends up in over his head.

As Jimmy finds himself drawn further down a darkening path of deception, it also becomes his path of self-discovery.

United Artists, Mainline Productions, and Banyan Tree present, in association with Kintop Pictures, the byzantine drama City of Ghosts. The writing/directing debut of actor Matt Dillon, City of Ghosts stars Dillon, James Caan, Natascha McElhone, Gerard Depardieu, and Stellan Skarsgård. Written by Dillon & Barry Gifford, the film was produced by Willi Baer, Michael Cerenzie, and Deepak Nayar with line producer Rony Yakov and co-producers J.B. Meyer & Olivier Granier. The talented production team includes music by Tyler Bates, production design by David Brisbin, editing by Howard E. Smith, and cinematography by Jim Denault. [More]

Starring: Matt Dillon, James Caan, Natascha McElhone, Gerard Depardieu

Starring: Matt Dillon, James Caan, Natascha McElhone, Gerard Depardieu, Stellan Skarsgaard, Shawn Andrews

Director: Matt Dillon

Director: Matt Dillon
Screenwriter: Barry Gifford, Matt Dillon
Producer: Willi Baer, Michael Cerenzie, Deepak Nayar
Composer: Tyler Bates
Studio: MGM/UA

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for City of Ghosts

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
12/30/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

can be criticised of many things, but wasting locations and local talent is not one of them

Full Review Source: Draxblog Movie Reviews | comment Comment
09/16/05
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
Draxblog Movie Reviews

The surprise is not necessarily that Dillon has a unique voice, but rather that the voice is so bizarrely dark and uninhibitedly exotic.

Full Review Source: Bangitout.com | comment Comment
12/27/04
Jordan Hiller
Jordan Hiller
Bangitout.com

Shows some promise in that it wants to say something, but there are plenty of forgettable moments to go along with it.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
08/22/04
Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell
Apollo Guide

There's nothing interesting about this half-baked noir plot...

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
10/27/03
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

The movie fairly oozes with atmosphere, and its cast contains enough colorful characters to make Casablanca blush.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
10/16/03
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

Matt Dillon is a hero worried about his karma

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
10/16/03
Marcy Dermansky
Marcy Dermansky
About.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
10/09/03
Orlando Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Longtime actor, first-time director Matt Dillon relates an urgency and passion behind the camera, intent on telling us one story while showing us another.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
07/31/03
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
07/22/03
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

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Full Review Source: eye WEEKLY | comment Comment
07/08/03
Jason Anderson
Jason Anderson
eye WEEKLY
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
07/02/03
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Dillon is so eager to show the duality of Cambodia, the grace and the grime, that he sacrifices major story elements to do so.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
07/02/03
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

There is so much to admire in Matt Dillon's City of Ghosts that the feeling left over after watching it is an unsettling sense of disappointment and unfairness.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
06/28/03
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post

Though 'City of Ghosts' can't match its models, it takes us close enough to Greeneland to be a worthy homage and an impressive, though flawed, debut...well worth a look.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
06/18/03
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

While it won't be remembered as great cinema, it is actually a tight piece of film noir.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
06/14/03
Gary Dowell
Gary Dowell
Dallas Morning News

A bit of exotic neo-noir, clunky in parts and long, but often engaging and artfully atmospheric as well.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
06/13/03
Kim Morgan
Kim Morgan
Oregonian
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Dallas Observer | comment Comment
06/13/03
Bill Gallo
Bill Gallo
Dallas Observer

While the film is not short on ideas or implications, none of them is fully developed, leaving us little but atmosphere and warm whiskey to drink in.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
06/05/03
Terry Lawson
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press
 
 
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