Empire Records, an independent store, is about to be sold to a franchise store. Lucas (Rory Cochrane) attempts to save the store by taking a gamble with the store's money, but ends up making thing worse when he loses it all. Joe (Anthony LaPaglia), the owner, has to fix everything before it's too late, and they also have to deal with Rex Manning (Maxwell Caulfield), a spoiler has-been rock star. The employees of Empire Records such as Corey (Liv Tyler), A.J (Johnny Withworth), Debra (Robin Tunney), Mark (Ethan Embry), Berko (Coyote Shivers), Eddie (Kimo Wills) and Gina (Renee Zellwegger) also deal with problems amongst themselves, like love and life. Not to mention a juvenile thief (Brendan Sexton) who is envious with their job. Follow the entertainment of the mad confusion as young adults try to figure out life. 

It's been 10 years, and I still love this movie. So what if the plot seems ridiculous and predictable? That's why it's so fun, man -- there's no work place like this in reality. If there is such a thing, I'd sign up immediately. This film doesn't really try to be anything prolific about teen life; instead is a honest comedy about a group of odd characters trying to set their lives on course. The jokes are perfectly timed; just before it seems to drop the ball and go flat, it quickly catches it and your attention is brought back. It does dive deep into the sentimentality, but it fits perfectly and it works to its advantage. Its also great to see a lot of actors at the beginning of their career before they became big. Renee Zellweger, Liv Tyler and Anthony LaPaglia give good honest performances. All the performances are actually good, everyone gave their character an honest and unique personality, they seemed like real people and you could identify and relate to them. Of course, I'm so in love with Rory Cochrane and Coyote Shivers -- they are the epitome of the missunderstood bad boys. Whoo-hoo!

One of the strong points about this movie is of course the music; GREAT soundtracks with many different collaborations and genres of music. So many memorable music, and my favorites are "Till I Hear It From You" by Gin Blossoms, and also "A Girl Like You" by Edwyn Collins. I think the music has the most influence for this film, you will feel energetic and nostalgic. If you like humor, witty dialogue, and a plot line based on your outlook of this decade of the 90s, then Empire Records is for you. The characters are submerged in their overdramatic romantic escapades, but their main prerogative in the film is to prevent a large corporation from buying out their independent record store. Are there films that spark that kind of activist spirit in the world today? Hardly. Moral of the story; never ever sell out, no matter how bad thing turns out.

Ratings: 8/10