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Empire Records
Empire Records DVD cover
Directed by	Allan Moyle
Produced by	Tony Ludwig, Arnon Milchan, Michael G. Nathanson, Alan Riche
Written by	Carol Heikkinen
Starring	Anthony LaPaglia Maxwell Caulfield Debi Mazar Liv Tyler
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	September 22, 1995 (limited)
Running time	90 min. (original) 107 min (2003 edition)
Language	English
Budget	N/A
IMDb profile

Empire Records is a 1995 dramedy about a group of record store employees. The film is directed by Allan Moyle and stars Anthony LaPaglia, Maxwell Caulfield and Debi Mazar.

Tagline: Open til Midnight.

Contents 1 Plot summary 2 Reaction and cult status 3 Trivia 4 Original Soundtrack 5 Main cast 6 External links

The events of the film take place within a single day. Empire Records, an independently owned record shop, is about to be sold to the Music Town corporation by its owner to become another run-of-the-mill chain store. Lucas (played by Rory Cochrane) attempts to save the day by taking a gamble with the store's sales proceeds, but ends up making things worse when he loses it all. Rex Manning (Maxwell Caulfield), an arrogant singer, shows up for an in-store promotional appearance that day, and a local teenager (Brendan Sexton III) attempts to steal merchandise. The employees, who see Empire as a second home and their coworkers as something of a second family, are also experiencing difficulties in their personal lives and relationships with one another. Upon learning of the store's looming fate, the employees and their boss, Joe Reaves (Anthony LaPaglia), band together to save it.

Something of a slice-of-life teen dramedy, the film did poorly at the box office and received generally poor reviews, but attracted and has maintained a devoted cult following since its release, mainly among young adults who first saw the film as adolescents. Numerous web shrines have been created in the film's honor, and a special edit was released on DVD in 2003, after many years of petitioning from fans wanting the deleted scenes to be made available.

• A reference is made to the rock band The Who when Rex tells the kids to fade away. (In the 2003 edition this line is not used. It is replaced with alternate take featuring a more reflective Rex Manning stating "You know what, maybe you're right.")
• Many of the stars would later go on to appear in Jerry Bruckheimer's CBS crime dramas. Rory Cochrane would star as Tim Speedle on CSI: Miami, Anthony LaPaglia would star as Jack Malone in Without a Trace and Johnny Whitworth would land a guest appearance on Cold Case and then a recurring role on CSI: Miami, though he made his appearances years after Cochrane had already left the show. Debi Mazar would also guest star on CSI: Miami.
• The movie proved to be a stepping stone for two cast members. Liv Tyler went on to make her breakthrough in Bernardo Bertolucci's 1996 film Stealing Beauty and has appeared in numerous well known (and high budget) films since, including The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Renée Zellweger became famous for her role in Jerry Maguire and subsequent roles in Bridget Jones's Diary, Cold Mountain, and Chicago.
• Tobey Maguire, who later became famous for his role in Spider-Man and its sequel, has a small part in the movie.
• A sign by the register that says "Have a nice daze" shows the logo for Dazed and Confused (1993). Rory Cochrane, who plays Lucas, played Slater in Dazed and Confused.
• Robin Tunney's character has a horizontal suicide-attempt scar on her wrist. In The Craft, her character bears vertical suicide-attempt scars.
• The movie was originally filmed as two days but was cut and fit to one.
• A DVD version released in 2003 entitled "Empire Records Remix, the Fan Edition" featured a new edit of the film with scenes never seen before, along with new deleted scenes, special features, and more.
• At the time this movie was made, Coyote Shivers was married to Bebe Buell, which made him the step-father of co-star Liv Tyler.
• Warren, played by Brendan Sexton III, was supposed to have a sister, but like Tobey Maguire, her scenes (and ultimately her character) were deleted from the final cut of the film.
• The movie was written by a former employee of Tower Records store #166 (Christown Mall) in Phoenix, Arizona. When the film was released and for a long time afterward, a number of her former coworkers still working cited anecdotes and other elements of the film that related to the store. This store closed in early 2005, ten years after the film's release.

1. "Till I Hear It From You" by Gin Blossoms
2. "Liar" by The Cranberries
3. "A Girl Like You" by Edwyn Collins
4. "Free" by The Martinis
5. "Crazy Life" by Toad the Wet Sprocket
6. "Bright As Yellow" by The Innocence Mission
7. "Circle of Friends" by Better Than Ezra
8. "I Don't Wanna Live Today" by Ape Hangers
9. "Whole Lotta Trouble" by Cracker
10. "Ready, Steady, Go" by The Meices
11. "What You Are" by Drill
12. "Nice Overalls" by Lustre
13. "Here It Comes Again" by Please
14. "The Ballad of El Goodo" by Evan Dando
15. "Sugarhigh" by Coyote Shivers

The version of the song Sugarhigh that appears in the movie differs significantly from the one included on the soundtrack. The main differences are that the movie version has additional lyrics and chorus vocals provided by Renée Zellweger and it is musically one semitone lower than the cd version .

• Anthony LaPaglia .... Joe Reaves
• Maxwell Caulfield .... Rex Manning
• Debi Mazar .... Jane
• Rory Cochrane .... Lucas
• Johnny Whitworth .... A.J.
• Robin Tunney .... Debra
• Renée Zellweger .... Gina
• Ethan Embry .... Mark (as Ethan Randall)
• Coyote Shivers .... Berko
• Brendan Sexton III .... Warren (as Brendan Sexton)
• Liv Tyler .... Corey Mason
• James 'Kimo' Wills .... Eddie
• Ben Bode .... Mitchell Beck
• Gary Bolen .... Croupier
• Kimber Sissons .... Woman at Craps Table (as Kimber Monroe)
• Tobey Maguire .... Andre (scenes deleted)

• Empire Records at the Internet Movie Database
• Empire Records at Rotten Tomatoes