page_title: New Jack City
section_title: Reception
hierarchical_section_title: New Jack City / Reception
caption_attribution_description: English: Graham Court in harlem
context_page_description: New Jack City is a 1991 American action crime film based upon an original story and screenplay by Thomas Lee Wright and Barry Michael Cooper, and directed by Mario Van Peebles. This is the latter's directorial debut, and Van Peebles also co-stars in the film. The film stars Wesley Snipes, Ice-T, Allen Payne, Chris Rock, Mario Van Peebles, and Judd Nelson. The film was released in the United States on March 8, 1991.
  Wesley Snipes plays Nino Brown, a rising drug-lord in New York City during the crack epidemic. Ice-T plays Scotty Appleton, a detective who vows to stop Nino's criminal activity by going undercover to work for Nino's gang.
context_section_description: New Jack City received a favorable reception by film critics for its cast, storyline, and soundtrack.  Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three and a half stars out of four, writing:
  Truffaut once said it was impossible to make an anti-war movie, because the war sequences would inevitably be exciting and get the audience involved on one side or the other. It is almost as difficult to make an anti-drug movie, since the lifestyle and money of the drug dealers looks like fun, at least until they're killed. This movie pulls off that tricky achievement. Nino, who looks at the dead body of Scarface and laughs, does not get the last laugh.
  Time Out London described the film as "a superior example of what used to be called blaxploitation."
  The film initially premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 17, 1991, before being released nationally on March 8, 1991. The film, produced with an estimated $8,000,000 budget, grossed $7,039,622 during its opening weekend. It became the highest-grossing independent film of 1991, grossing a total of $47,624,253 domestically. The film holds a 77% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 30 reviews.
  American Film Institute Lists
  AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Thrills - Nominated
  AFI's 10 Top 10 - Nominated Gangster Film
caption: Harlem's real life Graham Court, known in the film as the "Carter".
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