"Kingpin" (2003) (mini)TV mini-series

Creator:

David Mills

Release Date:

2 February 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Rule the family. Control the empire.

Plot Keywords:

Assault Rifle | Female Rear Nudity | Cocaine | Controversial | Corruption

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Yancey Arias	...	Miguel Cadena
Brian Benben	...	Dr. Heywood Klein
Bobby Cannavale	...	Chato Cadena
Angela Alvarado	...	Delia Flores (as Angela Alverado Rosa)
Shay Roundtree	...	Junie Gatling
Ruben Carbajal	...	Joey Cadena
Neko Parham	...	Shawn Williams
Sheryl Lee	...	Marlene McDillon Cadena
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Julian Acosta	...	District Attorney
Scott Adsit	...	Male Addict
Maria Conchita Alonso	...	Ariela
Anna Alvim	...	Ines
Magali Amadei
Maria Arcé	...	Elena
Richard Azurdia	...	Cook
Samuel Ball	...	Agent Patterson (as Sam Ball)
Lombardo Boyar
Maria Carmen	...	Sylvia Chapa
Elpidia Carrillo	...	Lupita
Ski Carr	...	Sylvia's boyfriend
Lou Casal	...	Mike Apitone
Jorge Cervera Jr.	...	Governor
Kevin Chamberlin	...	Cat Man
Laurie Coleman	...	Lucy
Toy Connor	...	Sharonda Clifford
Delilah Cotto	...	Gisela
Elika Crespo
Joaquim de Almeida	...	Colombian Cocaine Kingpin
Andrea De Oliveira	...	Miguel's Secretary
Hector Elias
Alex Fernandez	...	Rosales
Silvana Gallardo
Frank Gallegos	...	Cooker
Ted Garcia	...	Reporter
Chet Grissom	...	D.E.A. Agent #1
Armando Guerrero	...	Overseer (as Mando Guerrero)
Wings Hauser
Gladys Jimenez	...	Gorgeous Babe (as Gladis Jimenez)
Carol Kiernan	...	Nurse
German Leonne	...	Beggar
Deirdre Lovejoy	...	Laura's Lawyer
Rob Macie	...	Priest
Robert Maffia
William Marquez	...	Judge
Darius McCrary	...	Truck Thomas
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Rafael
Randle Mell	...	The American
Alley Mercedes	...	Ildia's daughter #1
Ana Mercedes	...	Tia Consuelo
'Big' LeRoy Mobley	...	Strip Club Bouncer
Rolando Molina	...	Bartender
Roberto Montesinos	...	Guard
Joy Demichelle Moore	...	Secretary
Alex Morris	...	Group Supervisor
Yelba Osorio	...	Carmalita Perez
Marina Palmier	...	Executive Assistant
Eduardo Palomo	...	Capt. Lazareno
Alejandro Patino	...	Crony
Aaron Paul	...	Stoner
Tim Quill	...	Drug counselor (as Tim Quill)
Raekwon
Ivet Rios	...	Maribel
Lois Robbins	...	Lisa
Gary Rodriguez	...	Krony
Lucy Rodriguez	...	Secretary
Miguel Sandoval	...	Tio Beto
Reni Santoni
Greg Serano	...	Joaquin
Pepe Serna	...	Jorge Romo
Gillian Shure	...	B-cup Woman
L. Sidney	...	Doorman
Iva Franks Singer	...	Rehab Girl
Martha Smith	...	Socialite
Pablo Soriano	...	Colonel Soliz
Sean Sweeney	...	Ellis the Engineer
Brian Tillotson	...	Redneck teen #1
Rebecca Tilney	...	Rich Woman
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Dr. Klein's lawyer
Danny Trejo	...	Manny
Jacob Vargas	...	Ernesto 'El Huevudo' Romo
Antonio Vega	...	Agent #3
Julia Vera	...	Delia's mother
Sam Vlahos	...	Bishop
Robert Wisdom	...	Rolando
Malik Yoba	...	Bobby Curtis
Sean Young	...	Lorelei Klein

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, drug content and sexuality. (all segments except Black Magic Woman - also language)

Runtime:

60 min (6 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:R (Producer's Cut) | USA:TV-14 (TV version)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Knee Deep Productions

Trivia:

Production designer Bernard Hides asked for an evergreen, leaf-bearing tree on one of the sets. Someone brought him a "Bottle Tree" (Brachychiton Populneus), an extremely common plant from Australia. Hides was asked if he was familiar with this variety and he replied that he had never seen a plant like it. Hides is a native of Australia and lived there most of his life.

Movie Connections:

References Se7en (1995)

An Excellent Series, but Where's the Rest?

As a fan of "The Sopranos," I was perhaps a little reluctant to watch "Kingpin," since I felt that nothing could really surpass "The Sopranos" in my affections. Nonetheless, a friend had bought me the miniseries DVD for my birthday, so with no other excuse at hand, I watched it.

And I loved it. There are only six episodes, each an hour long, but it took me only 'til about the second before I was hooked. The acting is excellent, and I'm left wondering why I haven't heard of or seen these actors before. Each character was sympathetic and interesting; even the ones you're probably "supposed" to hate, and it was difficult deciding who exactly to root for. I especially liked the relationship between Miguel and his brother, Chato -- one of trust and closeness instead of the deceit and backstabbing that's all too common in shows along the same lines.

Agent Flores and Miguel's wife, Marlene, were also both very appealing, as strong, independent female characters who have their own complexities and motivations, rather than being overshadowed by the male characters. And I can't forget the particularly comic relationship between the doctor played by Benben, and his "thug" friend, Junie. The show provided a number of unexpected and unique twists on an old theme.

Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the show never took off. Maybe it was too expensive to produce, maybe it didn't get enough support from NBC, or maybe (and I hope this isn't the case), it slipped because it was not a predominantly white cast; most of the characters were Hispanic/Latino. That seems a particular shame, if it is the reason "Kingpin" never succeeded, since its cast was truly talented and I would have liked to see some of those actors get a definite career boost.

Still, at least it's available to rent, and I highly recommend giving it a shot. Even if you're a hardcore "Sopranos" lover, like I am, don't let the comparison deter you! They're similar in that they're about criminal families, but they each have a very different feel and flavor, and you'll only be robbing yourself of something new to enjoy.

I just wish there were /more/ of it to enjoy!