The Super
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRod Daniel
Written bySam Simon
Produced byRichard E. Frazier
Charles Gordon
Starring
CinematographyBruce Surtees
Edited byJack Hofstra
Music byMiles Goodman
Production
company
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release date
October 4, 1991
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$22 million[1]
Box office$11,000,863 (USA)[1]

The Super is a 1991 American comedy film directed by Rod Daniel and starring Joe Pesci as a New York City slum landlord sentenced to live in one of his own buildings until it is brought up to code. Screenwriter Nora Ephron co-scripted the story with Sam Simon.[2] The Super is the last film in which Vincent Gardenia appeared.

Plot

Louie Kritski is a heartless slumlord who was born into money, thanks to his ruthless father, "Big Lou", also a slumlord. However, the tables turn on Louie when he's threatened with prison for his failure to keep his New York City slum up to code. The judge gives him another option, which he accepts: he must live in a vacant apartment of one of his own shoddy run-down apartment blocks until he brings it up to livable standards.

The sentence is an effective house arrest; Louie is not allowed to leave the apartment except for routine exercise, grocery shopping, medical emergencies or business relating to building repairs. In addition, Louie is not authorized to make any changes to the apartment he has been assigned unless all other apartments had the same upgrade beforehand. At first Louie is adamant that not one repair will be carried out and will wait until his father pulls strings. However, Louie has a change of heart after meeting and getting to know the building's residents, including a small-time hustler named Marlon, and a struggling street boy named Tito.

Over time, Louie grows more sympathetic with their problems and makes amends for his greediness through actions such as donating space heaters to the tenants to help them cope with the winter. Unfortunately, Big Lou is the owner of the property in title, and he resists his son's entreaties to spend money to improve the tenements. When Louie confronts Big Lou, who is about to set fire to his own tenement, all the residents appear on the roof to back up Louie. The film ends with Louie's building completely refurbished, Marlon becoming the new super, and all the tenants gathered outside to see Louie off with a gift: his Corvette—which had been completely stripped of its parts shortly after he first arrived—fully restored. A grateful Louie drives away as a large man appears and angrily demands to know who stole his car; all the tenants point in the direction in which Louie drove off in.

Cast

According to Rod Daniel, Chevy Chase was originally considered for the lead role.[2]

Production

The Super had a $22 million production budget.

Exteriors were filmed on location, at 533 East 11th Street, in the East Village, Manhattan, built in 1920 with 6 stories and 14 units.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]

Reception

The Super was a box-office failure, only grossing $11,000,863 domestically in its release.[1] It was also widely panned by critics in its theatrical release. On Rotten Tomatoes it has an approval rating of 0% based on nine reviews.[11] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "B−" on scale of A+ to F.[12]

Roger Ebert gave the film 2 out of 4.[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

Kenny Blank, who played Tito, was nominated for a Young Artist Award in 1992 in the category 'Best Young Actor Co-starring in a Motion Picture'.

References

  1. 1 2 3
    • "The Super (1991)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
    • "Domestic Box Office For 1991". Box Office Mojo.
    • "Top-Grossing Movies of 1991". The Numbers.
  2. 1 2 Borrelli, Christopher (27 September 2011). "'Teen Wolf' director's brutally honest commentary". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  3. ↑ "The Super - Film Locations". on the set of new york .com. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  4. ↑ Ferrara, Eric (February 24, 2017). "East Village Movie Locations". Lower East Side History Project.
  5. ↑ "533 East 11th St. in East Village". streeteasy.com.
  6. ↑ "A 'Super' East 11th Street". evgrieve.com.
  7. ↑ "East 11th Street lot prepped for the Mary Spink Apartments". evgrieve.com.
  8. ↑ "533 E 11th St, New York". ClustrMaps.com.
  9. ↑ "533 E 11th St, New York, NY 10009 - Owner, Sales, Taxes". propertyshark.com.
  10. ↑ Reich v Bliss. New York Supreme Court. 1911. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  11. ↑ "The Super". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Cinemascore". Archived from the original on 2018-12-20.
  13. ↑ "The Super movie review & film summary (1991)". Roger Ebert.
  14. ↑ "The Super". catalog.afi.com AFI Catalog.
  15. ↑ "The Super". tcmdb.
  16. ↑ "THERE'S NOTHING "SUPER' ABOUT IT". Tampa Bay Times.
  17. ↑ Collins, Glenn (January 7, 1991). "Challenges and Rewards of Filming in New York" – via NYTimes.com.
  18. ↑ "The Super (1991)". BFI. Archived from the original on May 14, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Movie Review: The Super". austinchronicle.com.
  20. ↑ "The Super Film Locations". onthesetofnewyork.com.
  21. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (1991-10-04). "MOVIE REVIEW : Joe Pesci Is Super in 'The Super'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
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