{ "id": "ep52gxvkzs", "slug": "night-falls-on-manhattan", "title": "Night Falls on Manhattan", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": 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"geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films.crime-dramas-and-gangster-films", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000: Crime dramas and gangster films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films.crime-dramas-and-gangster-films", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery", "label": "Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films", "label": "1990s films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films.crime-dramas-and-gangster-films", "label": "Crime dramas and gangster films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films.crime-dramas-and-gangster-films" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Night Falls on Manhattan is Sidney Lumet's 1997 crime drama, adapted from Robert Daley's novel Tainted Evidence, starring Andy Garcia as a New York DA uncovering police corruption that may implicate his father.", "snippet": "Night Falls on Manhattan is Sidney Lumet's 1997 crime drama, adapted from Robert Daley's novel Tainted Evidence, starring Andy Garcia as a New York DA uncovering police corruption that may implicate his father.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.crime-thriller-mystery.1990s-films.crime-dramas-and-gangster-films", "markdown": "# Night Falls on Manhattan\n\n**Night Falls on Manhattan** is a 1997 American crime drama directed and written by [Sidney Lumet](https://www.edgepedia.org/sidney-lumet), adapted from Robert Daley's 1993 novel *Tainted Evidence*, about a newly elected New York district attorney drawn into a police corruption investigation that may implicate his own father.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) It stars Andy Garcia as Sean Casey, with [Richard Dreyfuss](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-dreyfuss), Lena Olin, Ian Holm, and [James Gandolfini](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-gandolfini) in supporting roles.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) The film was produced by Spelling Films and distributed by Paramount Pictures, opened in Los Angeles and New York on May 16, 1997, and runs 114 minutes.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Director and writer | Sidney Lumet, screenplay from Robert Daley's 1993 novel *Tainted Evidence*[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN) |\n| Lead cast | Andy Garcia (Sean Casey), Richard Dreyfuss (Sam Vigoda), Lena Olin (Peggy Lindstrom), Ian Holm (Liam Casey), James Gandolfini (Joey Allegretto)[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) |\n| Release | May 16, 1997 (Los Angeles and New York openings); R rating; 114 minutes[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN) |\n| Production | Spelling Films; distribution by Paramount Pictures; producers Thom Mount and Josh Kramer[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN) |\n| Key crew | Cinematographer David Watkin, editor Sam O'Steen, music by Mark Isham, production designer Philip Rosenberg[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN) |\n| Reception | 71% Tomatometer from 31 reviews and 65% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes; Metascore 60; US gross $9.9 million[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) |\n| Home media | DVD released October 14, 1997; later Blu-ray editions from Amazon and Arrow Video[4](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan/3949/where-to-watch/) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nSean Casey (Andy Garcia) is an idealistic assistant district attorney, formerly a policeman, who is unexpectedly chosen to prosecute drug dealer Jordan Washington (Shiek Mahmud-Bey) for the killing of policemen.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) • [6](https://www.paramountmovies.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan) Washington's lawyer, Sam Vigoda (Richard Dreyfuss), claims there is a police cover-up protecting his client.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) Casey wins the trial and soon becomes county district attorney, but he then finds evidence that corruption in the police force may be real, and that it could involve his father, Liam ([Ian Holm](https://www.edgepedia.org/ian-holm)), a police officer who is critically wounded in a stakeout, and his father's partner.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) • [7](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan/cast/2000343950/) Vowing to follow the clues wherever they lead, Casey is forced to question his faith in the law, his loyalty to loved ones, and his place in a system where, as Paramount's synopsis puts it, justice is the ultimate con.[6](https://www.paramountmovies.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan)\n\n## Origins and production\n\nThe screenplay, dated July 27, 1995 as a Final Draft, was written by Lumet from Robert Daley's 1993 novel *Tainted Evidence*, and the film also draws on the true story of the criminal Larry Davis.[8](https://www.royalbooks.com/pages/books/162444/sidney-lumet-richard-dreyfuss-james-gandolfini-andy-garcia-lena-olin-robert-daley-screenwriter/night-falls-on-manhattan-original-screenplay-for-the-1996-film) It was set and shot on location in Manhattan.[8](https://www.royalbooks.com/pages/books/162444/sidney-lumet-richard-dreyfuss-james-gandolfini-andy-garcia-lena-olin-robert-daley-screenwriter/night-falls-on-manhattan-original-screenplay-for-the-1996-film) Spelling Films produced the picture, with copyright registered to Spelling Films, Inc. on July 25, 1997, and [Paramount Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/paramount-pictures) handled distribution.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN)\n\n**A recurring Lumet subject.** The film belongs to a line of Lumet pictures about systemic police corruption in New York. A study of the director's New York films counts four returns to the New York Police Department: *Serpico* (1974), *[Prince of the City](https://www.edgepedia.org/prince-of-the-city)* (1981), *[Q & A](https://www.edgepedia.org/q-and-a-1990-film)* (1990), and *Night Falls on Manhattan* (1997).[9](https://elcv.art.br/santoandre/biblioteca/_em_ingles/film_and_cinema_eBooks_collection/Street%20Smart%20-%20The%20New%20York%20of%20Lumet%20Allen%20Scorsese%20and%20Lee.pdf) The French Cinémathèque's retrospective notes that in this film the hero describes a world that is more \"gray\" than \"black and white,\" and that Lumet's later work sets ethical demands against ethnic and tribal loyalty, a law of blood that begins with the responsibility of long-admired fathers who suddenly fail.[10](https://www.cinematheque.fr/cycle/sidney-lumet-225.html)\n\n## Cast\n\nAndy Garcia leads the cast as Sean Casey, with Ian Holm as his father Liam, a New York police officer, and James Gandolfini as Liam's partner Joey Allegretto.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) • [7](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan/cast/2000343950/) Richard Dreyfuss plays defense attorney Sam Vigoda and [Lena Olin](https://www.edgepedia.org/lena-olin) plays Peggy Lindstrom.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) Ron Leibman appears as Morgenstern, Colm Feore as Elihu Harrison, Shiek Mahmud-Bey as Jordan Washington, and [Dominic Chianese](https://www.edgepedia.org/dominic-chianese) as Judge Impelliteri.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) • [7](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan/cast/2000343950/) [Paul Guilfoyle](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-guilfoyle) plays McGovern.[7](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan/cast/2000343950/)\n\n## Reception\n\n**Critical scores.** The film holds a 71% Tomatometer from 31 reviews and a 65% Popcornmeter from more than 1,000 audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, and a Metascore of 60 based on 19 reviews.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) • [11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/criticreviews/) On IMDb it rates 6.7/10 from about 9,600 users.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/) Its US gross was $9.9 million.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan)\n\nReviewers divided over whether the film matched Lumet's earlier corruption dramas. Roger Ebert rated it 3.5 out of 4, observing that the story follows people clinging to whatever principles they can while operating in an imperfect world, and that although some characters behave badly, it lacks villains of the conventional movie kind; he added that the picture draws on a novel by Robert Daley, a New York author whose work explores the gray zone separating right from wrong.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) • [12](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/night-falls-on-manhattan-1997) Mike Clark of USA Today also gave 3.5 out of 4, calling it the maker's best since *Running on Empty* (1988) and possibly *The Verdict* (1982).[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan) Janet Maslin of The New York Times scored it 60 and found it oddly listless, writing that it does not often live up to the doomy eloquence of its title.[11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/criticreviews/) Peter Stack of the [San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-chronicle), also at 50, wrote that despite solid performances the film fails to deliver the passion of Lumet classics such as *Serpico* and *Prince of the City*.[11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/criticreviews/) Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader, at 80, called it an old-fashioned melodrama, the same movie about police corruption and a cultural crisis of morality that Lumet had been making since the 1970s.[11](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/criticreviews/) James Bowman, writing in May 1997 for the Ethics & Public Policy Center, judged the film a failure despite its talent, finding the protagonist too shallow a character and his rapid rise to district attorney a further weakening.[13](https://eppc.org/publication/night-falls-on-manhattan/) Robin Dougherty in Salon argued that the police-corruption genre Lumet helped invent had, by 1997, been absorbed into television such as *NYPD Blue*, leaving the director's treatment feeling generic, though she found the first act powerful, particularly a stakeout scene pairing Holm's vulnerability with Gandolfini's enthusiasm.[14](https://www.salon.com/1997/06/16/night/)\n\n## Availability\n\nThe film was released on DVD on October 14, 1997.[4](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan/3949/where-to-watch/) As of late 2026 listings, in the United States it streams free on Hoopla, rents for $3.99 on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home, and sells digitally from $9.99 on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, YouTube, and Google Play Movies; Blu-ray editions are sold through Amazon and Arrow Video.[4](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan/3949/where-to-watch/) • [5](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan) It is not on subscription streaming services in the US or UK, though in Canada it streams on Super Channel Plus, Super Channel Amazon Channel, and fuboTV.[15](https://www.flickfinder.net/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan-1997-46027)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Night Falls on Manhattan (1997), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/61316-NIGHT-FALLS-ON-MANHATTAN)\n2. [Night Falls on Manhattan, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_falls_on_manhattan)\n3. [Night Falls on Manhattan (1996), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/)\n4. [Night Falls on Manhattan: Where to Watch, Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan/3949/where-to-watch/)\n5. [Night Falls on Manhattan streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan)\n6. [Night Falls On Manhattan, Paramount Movies](https://www.paramountmovies.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan)\n7. [Night Falls on Manhattan: Full Cast & Crew, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/night-falls-on-manhattan/cast/2000343950/)\n8. [Night Falls on Manhattan: Original screenplay for the 1996 film, Royal Books](https://www.royalbooks.com/pages/books/162444/sidney-lumet-richard-dreyfuss-james-gandolfini-andy-garcia-lena-olin-robert-daley-screenwriter/night-falls-on-manhattan-original-screenplay-for-the-1996-film)\n9. [Street Smart: The New York of Lumet, Allen, Scorsese, and Lee](https://elcv.art.br/santoandre/biblioteca/_em_ingles/film_and_cinema_eBooks_collection/Street%20Smart%20-%20The%20New%20York%20of%20Lumet%20Allen%20Scorsese%20and%20Lee.pdf)\n10. [Rétrospective Sidney Lumet, La Cinémathèque française](https://www.cinematheque.fr/cycle/sidney-lumet-225.html)\n11. [Night Falls on Manhattan (1996): Metacritic reviews, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119783/criticreviews/)\n12. [Night Falls On Manhattan movie review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/night-falls-on-manhattan-1997)\n13. [Night Falls on Manhattan, Ethics & Public Policy Center (James Bowman, May 1997)](https://eppc.org/publication/night-falls-on-manhattan/)\n14. [Night Falls on Manhattan, Salon (Robin Dougherty, June 16, 1997)](https://www.salon.com/1997/06/16/night/)\n15. [Where to watch Night Falls on Manhattan (1997), FlickFinder](https://www.flickfinder.net/movie/night-falls-on-manhattan-1997-46027)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works) › 1990s films › Crime dramas and gangster films*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Night Falls on Manhattan\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Night Falls on Manhattan](https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan](https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Night Falls on Manhattan\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/night-falls-on-manhattan. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Night Falls on Manhattan is Sidney Lumet's 1997 crime drama, adapted from Robert Daley's novel Tainted Evidence, starring Andy Garcia as a New York DA uncovering police corruption that may implicate his father." }