Tulsa King
2022
Original language: English
- crime
- drama
- comedy
The story
New York mafia capo Dwight "The General" Manfredi is released from prison after 25 years and exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight slowly builds a crew.
What it’s like
Wide, sun-bleached Oklahoma: long establishing shots of strip malls, dusty highways, red-dirt fields and big-sky horizons under hard midday light, with the warm amber of evening bars and the cool blue of motel rooms. The camera is mostly steady and unhurried, letting Stallone's heavy-lidded stillness and the slow, deliberate movements of a man out of step with his surroundings fill the frame. The score leans on country-tinged guitar and easygoing Americana punctuated by sudden stings of tension. The vibe is wry, sun-baked and quietly restless, a dramedy with a neo-western edge that suits a lazy weekend binge, a long drive, or late-night viewing with a drink. Pacing is conversational and episodic, with comedy arising from culture clash between old-school New York code and small-town bewilderment, while the emotional arc follows an ageing, displaced man patiently rebuilding loyalty and purpose from scratch. Violence is present and occasionally sudden, mostly brief shootings and beatings, with some profanity and crude humour; it is not gory or lingering. For viewers who like crime drama with a sense of humour, the mob-meets-heartland setting, and a gruff, wounded protagonist who never quite stops being dangerous.
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