Exploring Empire Records (feat. This Exists)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- If you want to hear more about Fake Movie Holidays check out This Exists - / thisexists
The long and troubled history of Empire Records.
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Movies, games, and the occasional editorial.
From A-Z list films, video games, and other overlooked goodness.
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Part of the nostalgia of this film is that 90's kids were the last generation to enjoy record stores as a teen hang out. They all but disappeared less than a decade later.
omg that's so true... that it is kinda depressing.........
I used to hang out in two stores in the 1990s, Record and Tape Traders and Of Sound Mind. You got to meet new people, share musical interests, learn about concerts and buy tickets, see live music performances and meet bands. There is way more musical access today online, but the coolness of that experience is lost.
They were the last generation of ANY offline hang out.
I have one nearby a girl took me there on a date. It's more of a coffee shop that happens to also sell records but there is always people there.
Not quite…they didn’t really die out until the early 2010’s…there were still FYE’s and WhereHouse around 2010 or so and even Tower Records stuck around into the late 2000’s
I worked in a record store from 2004 - 2008. At the interview, the manager said, "Hey, you know, working here isn't like that movie Empire Records." Funny enough, it actually was a lot like it, though. I miss that place.
lol 😂
"My name's not fucking Warren!" Best line in the whole movie.
I thought his name was Warren...
One of the greatest movies of our generation. "Damn the man! Save the Empire!"
One of the most awful movies. Unfortunately, I watch it every time it's on.
Sad commentary on your generation.
@@pretorious700 ok boomer
I’m not a 90s kid(born 2003) but I love this movie more than anything and movies like this I was introduced to this by my grandpa he saw this movie playing on tv and we watched it and it stuck with me ever since now I try to rewatch it any time I can
Always enjoyed Empire Records, they really need to release that director's cut.
They did. It sucked, and now you can't get the old version. It just a damn shame cause everything they added just ended up as filler
@@prosaically_challenged8986 I disagree but dats coo
i LOOOOOOVVVEEDDD this movie. probably watched atleast once a week in high school. even did AJs rooftop monologue for drama class. This movie defined my teenage years.
This was a great video. I'm disappointed to hear about all the changes made to the movie and would absolutely love to watch the director's cut.
It's on sale somewhere. My sister has it.
this is one of the funnest movies ever. I think the best scene is at the end when eddie and mark are sitting on the sidewalk talking about henry rollins, primus, misfits and the pixies. I just ordered the regular Blu-ray and dvd remix editions last night on amazon, can't wait to see them again.
I wrote a paper in my college film appreciation class back in ‘98 about Empire. Everyone was writing about what you’d expect people would be writing about. But I had been so moved by this movie I had to get it on paper that this wasn’t just any movie. It was the anthem of my generation a snapshot of the moment. I wish I still had it. I remember thinking “My professor is seriously going to hate this but here goes nothing”.
I feel happy to know my feeling was shared by so many. I just recently watched this with my daughter and it brought back so much deep nostalgia I could almost feel me going back to the feeling of being a senior in high school. The music, the record store, the fashion just everything building up to a virtual time machine. So glad she enjoyed it too. Best soundtrack of that time.
How did your paper go over?
the only thing I remember about that movie is Liv Tyler and the movie soundtrack. I still listen to the song Bright as Yellow.
This will forever go down as one of my favorite movies. I rented it on VHS all the time, I love the DVD with the deleted scenes. I tell a lot of my younger coworkers they need to see it.
the studios make me sick, the living embodiment of a forgone conclusion, afraid something will fail, and so take away all the tools that may assure it's success, then say, "see how we were right?"
I was born in 1980 and this movie just spoke to me. I don't remember if I saw it on HBO or if I my friends at the local rental store just had it playing regularly (Which is how i found Austin Power) but after I saw the movie the first time, I loved it.
It continues to be one of my favorite movies to this day and I hope they release the Directors Cut some day!
Thanks for the video and giving back some of my youthful memories back.
I wanna see the director's cut :)
I had no idea that this bombed. I remember that a lot of the people i was with had seen it. And Edwyn Collin's Girl like You was so recognizable because of this movie, I thought.
Good film, regardless.
Same, all my friends and I loved it. Probably helped that a few of us spent a decent amount of time at the local punk record shop.
Great retrospective on Empire Records. At the time when I first saw this film , there were a lot of comparisons to CLERKS: being that it was a "Day in the Life of Retail Employees"-- Great music great movie. That GWAR bit with Mark (or was it MARC?) was one of my favorites.
Great work on your channel, BTW: I found you within this last month, and I'm really impressed with how your channel as grown and matured into what it is currently. That old intro was great, but I can see why you went with a 7 second intro-- way more polished and gets people watching your content much quicker.
I look forward to future content!
~ Jace
+Jacemachine Gaming Empire Records was totally me in my teens (kind of a mix of Mark and AJ) but Clerks was me in my 20s. (so much so I had the nickname Dante for a while)
Thanks! I've been working hard to make the show as high quality as it can be, glad to see its paying off. :)
+Jacemachine Gaming
I agree. I just recently found this channel as well. They started putting some of the content on the Escapist and then I came here to see more. Really enjoyed what I've seen so far. Keep up the good work! :)
+GoodBadFlicks Good work, Cecil. I may see "Records" (ironic that Colin Hanks has put out a documentary on the now-late retail chain "Tower Records"). Personally, I think "Clerks" and "Kids" were the ultimate films for 90s teens. Better them than "Clueless" (yeesh).
As for Moyle, this isn't the first time a film of his was taken away from him and edited. "Times Square" (which I recommended to you some emails ago to look at) tells the story of two teenage girls, a wild orphan rock star wannabe and a shy poet who's the kid of a politician who wants to clean up Times Square (the film came out in 1980). The girls run away from a mental hospital and become underground celebrities, with the help of a midnight radio shock jock. I saw it twice on the local NBC station in NYC and loved it.
Moyle got sacked after the film was done, due to his fights with producer Roger Stigwood, who wanted to cash in on the punk/new wave rock trend at the time. TS bombed, but like "Records", gained a cult following, especially among lesbian fans, since there was a hint of romance between the two lead characters.
It was on DVD, but it's out of print. I recommended buying a used copy at a cheap price. Cool performances by Robin Johnson (should have had a big career, but she signed a contract with Stigwood that hurt her) as rocker Nicky; Trini Alvarado (The Frighteners) as sensitive Pamela and the now-sadly ailing Tim Curry (Legend, Rocky Horror Picture Show)
as shock jock Johnny LaGuardia.
If you see the film, check out an early appearance by the late Elizabeth Pena (Batteries Not Included).
+Roy Phillips Thanks for mentioning Times Square - I will check it out.
I'm a huge fan of Empire and Clerks and I always felt like Clerks was just the more real version to some degree. You know, everything is a little bleaker, you don't feel like being there, etc. Whereas Empire is that job where you spend half the day dancing with your friends then throw a party in the streets at the end of the day.
After watching this episode like six times, the wife and I finally stumbled upon a copy of the blu-ray while out and about yesterday. We gave it a watch last night, and it was way better than I expected it to be. There were definitely parts that were very 90's cliche, but there were far more moments of genuine emotion and great storytelling. I couldn't agree with you more though, we need the Director's Cut!
You are the best reviewer on YT.
Your name is Jasper, lol.
+Jasper Morgan Thank you!
This movie always felt like a Disney version of what it was like to grow up in the 90s. They used to play it on cable constantly, I never could take it seriously but it's cool that other people are apparently digging it.
This was a great review! I love this movie. I'm starting to see a pattern lately. Most of the stuff that was from the 90s is somehow coming back. Like the whole culture in general. And I hope it does.
I love the channel "This Exists!" Good on you for the shout out!
I loved this movie as a teen. 137 is still my lucky number. (If you know, you know) And "what's with today, today?" I still say. It's one of the most quotable movies ever. Lucas is a God. Not the whole couch. But then I was 19 and worked at Tower Records In Woodland Hills and I was like Holy shit Empire Records is actually spot on! And it took another two years after it went out of business for me to learn that the writer of the film was a Tower Records employee. I felt so stupid then. Like of course. SHOPLIFTER!!!! Empire records open till midnight... Midnight!!! I can go on.
Absolutely the MOST quotable movie ever.
Haha reading this comment seriously is like watching a trailer with all the quotes you put in, I dig it man clever is my bag, much like this flick.
It's too bad Warner Bros. dropped the ball with film and tampered with it beyond belief. I still love it, and hope that a complete edition is released someday. Also, due to such studio tampering, critics who said that Allan Moyle didn't do as good of a job with this film as he did "Pump Up the Volume" could discover that wasn't his fault.
This and Reality Bites are the most 90’s thing EVER!!!
Happy Rex Manning Day!!!!
4:55 the special recipe line was brilliant. Obviously anybody in the know knows it is not extra sugar...
one of the best movies out there featuring gwar (RIP odorus)
Thank you for such a fascinating video on the history of one of my favourite films! I saw Empire Records for the first time in the late 90's when I was 10. One of the older girls at school brought one of those original and apparently rare VHS tapes to watch during exam week, it was tradition or something to pass this gem down. I remember it being a big deal for me because it was the first "R" rated movie I ever saw. Since then it's been one of my favourites.
Didn't realize how much of a cult following it had until recently and ever since I've been dressing up as Corey Mason every Rex Manning Day. Someone always notices! It's awesome that this film is not being forgotten. Damn the man, save the Empire!
Empire Records is rated PG-13
Thanks for covering this. "Empire Records" is one of my all-time favorites. I still quote it to this day.
This movie remains my favourite movie of all time. I remember discovering it because of the soundtrack. I went to my local indie music store, where all of the staff knew teen me by name, and being directed to check it out. It was the greatest soundtrack for a movie I'd never even heard of. I looked into it and discovered it was on PPV and asked the couple I babysat for to tape it for me. Changed my life. I'd loved Maxwell Caulfield since Grease 2, so I'd immediately laughed when he came on screen. Hell, I was born at 1:37 (an excellent time!). It's a damn shame the studio never understood it - they really were the Mitch of this debacle.
Warner needs to get their shit together and release the REAL Directors Cut. Maybe Shout! Factory can get their hands on it and do a full on 25th anniversary edition in 2020, complete with commentaries, featurettes and the original cut of the film. I, like most people, discovered "Empire Records" on VHS back in the mid to late 90's. It's been one of my favorite films TO THIS DAY, because when you watch it now, it does have a "time capsule" kind of feel. Back when you could still browse PHYSICAL merchandise vs. browsing stores online. The whole "Damn the man, Save the Empire", is almost a battle cry at this point...
The precursor to high fidelity I saw after, the plot makes a lot of sense. The 90's seems to be about individuality despite corporate control and agendas in movies way more than music so exploring this in movies here alluded to what has become of
Long live the 90’s.
My sister brought this one home in about 96, 97. Right when she was about 15 and I 17. We used to watch it together up into our mid 20's, when life pulled us in separate directions. Haven't seen it since then, but I would love very much to watch it with her again. Just have to drive a few hours to get to her place first. Worth it.
This movie, Singles, and Indian Summer are time capsules for my generation and the ensemble casts of each work together to make films that are much greater than the sum of their parts.
I was 12 when this came out, I seen the remix fan edition a couple years back, hated it!
Any plans to do a retrospective on The Monster Squad???? Hands down one of my favorite movies as a kid!
+Matty H Yes :)
GoodBadFlicks I second that!! Why? Because Wolfman has nards, thats why!!
Singles represented 90's culture and music so well.
i love this movie! can you please do Cant Hardly Wait (1998)?
Sounds like they wanted the movie to fail.
Your research into topics never ceases to amaze me. Bravo.
I can’t say I’m really a fan of Empire Records, but in watching this video my longing to return to the 90s has only increased. I turned 8 in 1990 and I wish I could go back and relive every day of that decade as an adult to savor all that was memorable about it.
you should do the doom generation. that's another 90s teen cult film that you can't tell if it's bad or good
Doom Generation is on the list!
It's Great. Nowhere is a dark universe version of something like Cluless, or even Beverly Hills 90210.
It was bad. The only redeeming value was seeing Rose McGowan at that age nude.
great analysis as always, greetings from germany
+DaveThe Spy Thanks!
idk how this was a collab but you guys are both great so great!
LOL. At the beginning I didn't read Empire records but Vampire record. I am still disappointed for not getting "if breakfast club was about being teens in 80s, vampire record was about vampires in 90s" line.
Empire Records is one of my all time fav movies! Pump Up the Volume is great too
The second half for sure felt like it had missing parts. I feel the bit about warren shooting up the store was too rushed and I would've loved more context on corey and ginas relationship. Also the mock funeral lacked depth. But all the dialogue felt really natural, the acting was amazing, and the overall vibe was very tight knit.
I love this movie and miss the 90's alternative teen movies so much!
I loved this film when I was a teenager, haven't seen it for years though.
i miss record stores so much. we had record and tape traders. who else?!
xoxo love from Maryland
@a girl named brett I worked at Tower Records in Rockville, MD. Empire Records was the most popular movie amongst the employees, because that movie was our daily life.
DAMN THE MAN
Pretty sure that Zellweger and Cochrane met during the filming of Dazed and Confused, which was long before Love And A .45
'We mustn't dwell... no, not today. We can't. Not on Rex Manning day!'
My friends and I used to watch this as part of a ridiculous 90's movie night with But I'm A Cheerleader and Jawbreaker, equally cult classic-y teen movies. I'm so glad you did an exploring video on this though, cause i've always loved this movie but had no idea about the studio problems or the limited release. Seriously half of my movie knowledge comes from this channel.
+SocialyAwkwardSophie :)
My friends and I adored this movie when we were teens. I still can recall Gina's burn on Debra when they are ripping up the Music Town paper word for word.
It's amazing that studios can still exist, despite the endless bonehead decisions they seem to make over and over and over.
eddieboyky most movie makers don't have enough money to fund their own movies, so like it or not, they need studios
You need to do an "Exploring High Fidelity" the soundtrack is amazing!
Among things, I was one of the rare people who got to see this movie in one of those 87 theaters, opening weekend! Also, one of my best friends now was an actor who had a very minor part cut entirely from the movie!
Considering how executives meddle in everything, it's amazing that movies get made at all.
Damn the man, save the empire takes on a lot more meaning knowing this about the movie. One of the best!
Hell yeah. This is one of my favorite movies. The extra sugar line about the brownies always confused me because he was clearly hallucinating after eating them.
I was a teenager when this movie came out. It’s been so long ago that I have to wear reading glasses to watch this video.
I just rewatched this on Prime where they have the Remix Special Fan edition but it *does* include the scene with Rex Manning giving the goodbye line from The Who but doesn't include Rex meeting Berko. So I'm confused about what version it is.
I always loved this movie and wondered a few things about it, you helped clear up a few questions. here is to hoping that they release the directors cut.
Only reason I remember this movie was from Gin Blossoms. Movie didn't do anything for me, but I still like the song. :p Not surprised it was hacked up from the original design. Seems par for the course.
Damn the man, save the empire!
Great look into a great film*
*despite the studio screwing with it.
The deleted scene of the band getting arrested wasn't staged. Several people called the cops over a noise violation. The scene was filmed around 2 in the morning. They also didn't have a permit for the large group in the streets or playing on the roof. They ignored the cops requests and were arrested. The director started the cameras back up after the cops shut them off. That is why in the theatrical version there is a pull back shot on the roof. The original ending had the dialogue delivered at the concert.
Could you elaborate on your source for this awesome info? I'm hoping the director's real version get released one day. I bought the film on TH-cam a few months ago, but only recently began noticing the subtle differences between the version I recently saw and the film version I first saw. The Remixed version feels exactly halfway to the Director's Cut we all deserve. Cheers mate.
I believe it was mentioned in the commentary on one of the versions or one of the behind-the -scenes videos on one of the discs. I've seen the original, fan version, and the alleged-directors cut (that the director disputes is his version).
When I saw this movie, I basicly said "It's CLERKS. The movie is basicly CLERKS."
I'd completely forgotten about Pump Up the Volume. I don't remember if it was any good, but now I'm curious to check it out. My biggest problem with Empire Records was I didn't give a crap about any of the characters. It felt like the typical collection of "types" who would never be friendly in real life.
I love this movie! Ever since my friend showed me this as a kid as he thought I was exactly like Mark, I make sure I have a copy ready to watch!
This is one of those movies I loved as a teenager but now I cringe from embarrassment
Don't be embarrassed. The entire 90s was a single long, drawn-out cringe from the perspective of anyone younger than 30 living during that window. It's mostly hormones, I'm fairly certain.
I grew up in the 90s and I also worked in the village (and on Long Island) at an independent record store, so I have a fondness for this film, but I also saw it more as what Hollywood thinks working at a little record store would be like. High Fidelity, on the other hand, was perfection on celluloid. I can't tell you the hours we spent making random lists (best to worst, top 10s- w/o being aware of the book) or creating bizarre games (in store frisbee- had to bounce it off 3 walls and catch it!) or, my favorite part captured in HF, putting on an obscure artist and knowing that you will be flooded by requests for the album two minutes in (you're welcome Life of Agony). So Empire Records will always be the John Hughes version of working in a record store, but High Fidelity is the David Fincher of the lot.
of course now I need to see the Director's version.
+Cyril If I may ask, what record store on LI did you work in?
Record Stop, Ronkonkoma and RS Shoreham (I was more involved with Shoreham, which later left RS and became Decade Records, and that's when I got involved with the store in the city)
Love your videos. May i suggest you do a list of your favorite youtube channels?
+trickpixel good idea! I'll look into it
Simpler times the 90s. Nostalgia at the max.
I bought the soundtrack and was so bummed that most of the songs I wanted wasn't on it. Finally an explanation
Damn, Warner Bros did a drive by on the movie. Knowing that, it makes the film's story and the line "damn the man!" even more special.
Always particularly enjoyed the cameo by Gwar.
Yo luving the new editing man. Been a fan since 2012, definitely great to see some grow in there craft like this !!!!
Empire was great, however from my time in the 90s the film kids captured the time better.
Great job as always
LOVE this movie for a lot of reasons.
I always wondered why I never heard anything about this movie until well after it was out on video - I was born in 1985 so I was a little young for it when it first came out, but I was pretty big into movies in the 90s and watched a ton of them as a kid (including ones I wasn't allowed to watch while I was over at my friends' houses) and this one wasn't exactly ubiquitous - it's great though - studio suits are idiots and prove it CONSTANTLY
I love Empire Records sooooo much and yeah the sound track slaps
wow, another film butchered by studio executives who dont really get it...
really good review.
very informative and awesome as always
The studio shouldn't haven't changed it so much and should've given it the advertising it deserves. But it's still one of my favorite movies 💙I also kinda like the fact that not a lot of people knows about it... So it's like our little secret 💙💙
"She looked too cute to be depressed." Why are there so many stupid people in positions of power?
It's a 90 minute movie, not a 300 page book. Thus, "she depressed" needs to be made continually obvious.
Ethan Embry looked a little old to be playing a teen in this film, & yet 3 years later, he would play a teen again, in Can't Hardly Wait, lmao!! Warner Brothers's shoddy treatment & BS limited release of Empire Records, is why I don't remember any of the ad campaigns for this film, when it came out. I actually discovered it years later, in my highschool years, & I loved it! It perfectly captured the essence of hoe awesome it was to be a teen in the 90s! Also, it's an amazing time capsule, of the amazing memories, people from my generation, & older generations have of just hanging out at record stores. Man, those were the days!!
"Oh next year is it's 30th anniversary " sobs
Matt Damon aging meme
Everyone was all excited about Now & Then being on Netflix. Meanwhile, I was just sitting over in the corner, by myself, saying "So is Empire Records."
I just watched it now and I feel like this would've worked better as a tv show.
Very, very informative. I never knew that about its theatrical release. That's just asanine of the studio. I can't see this film NOT making its money back via a proper theatrical run and solid marketing campaign. I only really discovered the movie within the last decade, and I never found it to be a GREAT film, just an okay one. It's thoroughly enjoyable, but yeah, a lot of that content which was chopped out sounds like it would've added the heartfelt nuance it needed.
Not being more than a passive fan of it I only own the remixed version believing it was the cut the fans demanded. I might grab the Blu-Ray someday for the theatrical cut, but it's been on cable recently. Great work on this video!
I know this is old, but they played the gin blossoms video all day (when MTV played videos) and my sisters and I found a showing before it left theaters. When I talked about it no one knew wth I was talking about
I grew up in the 90s and this movie was my spirit animal
I love Empire Records!!! GWAR making a cameo was awesome!!!!
Well, Sinead O'Rebellion. Shock me, shock me, shock me with that deviant behavior!
God, that is so clever. You know, I swear you get smarter the shorter your skirt gets.
If they would have met somewhere in the middle. Could have made lots of money, stayed rated R and be super cheesy... it's still tragic 😭
I love this movie and have been wanting to add it to my film collection but the blu-ray is so damn expensive. I've only ever been able to watch it when it happens to be on TV.
Any film that uses Throwing Muses in it's soundtrack deserves your attention.
Loved the Gwar scene the most.
Loved this movie back in the days. It really made some impact on me
Its funny to this that both Roy Cochrane aka Lucas and Johnny Whitworth aka AJ, went on to appear in CSI Miami though not together.