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American Gangster,
2007, 157 minutes, Rated R
By Ramona Prioleau
I
believe this drug business is gonna destroy us in the
years to come. I mean, it's not like gambling or liquor, even women,
which is something that most people want nowadays and it's forbidden
to them by the pezza novante of the church. Even the police
departments that have helped us in the past with gambling and other
things, are gonna refuse to help us when it comes to narcotics….
Don Vito Corleone, The Godfather
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To
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Vito Corleone got it half right. The operation of an illegal drug
enterprise attracts special attention and, through murder or arrest, it
will be destroyed. But in the mean time, there are officials so corrupt
that they will turn a blind eye to narcotics trafficking as long as the
death peddling dealers pay well and pay often.
MORE >>>
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Offer from MOSAEC Sponsor
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In American Gangster, director Ridley Scott
explores a period in New York City history when the cops were
robbers and strange bedfellows with the criminals that they swore to
apprehend. Scott’s tale of crooked cops and criminals is centered in
Harlem.
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It’s the 1970’s, war rages in Vietnam and on the
streets of Harlem. Similar to the war in the Orient, Harlem’s battle
is about turf; kind killing kind; and the influence of outsiders
determined to support their financial interests. Unlike Vietnam,
where the war was purportedly fought to contain the spread of
Communism, the rage in Harlem was about the proliferation of heroin.
Frank Lucas, the man partly responsible for the widespread
distribution of hundreds of kilograms of the powder and for
body-bagging untold thousands, is the callous business man and
benevolent family man at the core of Scott’s magnificently crafted
epic morality tale of two men who zealously pursue their goals.
Starring Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas and
Russell Crowe as Richie Roberts, the pit-bull detective
investigating Lucas’ operation, American Gangster is as much about
the narc as it is about the pusher man. Pulling from actual events
in the lives of Lucas and Roberts, Steven Zaillian (Schindler's
List) wrote a brilliantly edgy screenplay that captures the
conflicted duality of men that do good in one instance, but break
hearts and obliterate souls in another.
The parallel tale of the two men, each with his
own sense of honor and disgrace, progresses swiftly through an era
during which Lucas builds his drug empire on the souls of black
folks. Lucas does so not because of some unidentified puppeteer; he
does it for the third of the seven deadly sins – greed.
Lucas, a former enforcer for the legendary Harlem
racketeer Bumpy Johnson, decides he wants dollars rather than
pennies upon his mentor’s demise. To achieve his goal, Lucas
masterminds an illegal drug import and distribution scheme that
devastates Harlem and nearby communities, turning prom kings and
queens into fiends. Bypassing La Cosa Nostra and the French
Connection, Lucas drags his ass into the jungle, connects with a
Chinese general turned poppy processor and brokers a deal to
secretly ship heroin in the coffins of dead servicemen with the help
of his Vietnam-stationed cousin. Lucas imports so much heroin from
the Far East that he expands his enterprise and begins wholesaling
to the mafia.
By circumventing the usual supply channels and the
associated markup, Lucas amasses a fortune, which he shares freely
with his kin. Although a man who welcomes and aids his family as long as
they are true, Lucas attacks business with a cold-heartedness that
will make the strongest knees quiver. But when one’s business yields
millions and many want a piece of the action, a kind heart begets an
early grave.
Roberts, a by-the-book detective that becomes a
pariah among his peers because of his refusal to violate the law,
assembles a squad of untouchables that is charged with thwarting
drug traffic. An unassuming man, Roberts has a knack for pissing
people off whether it’s because of his professional ideals or his
personal dysfunction. And while Roberts and Lucas are on a green
paper chase – Lucas to acquire it and Roberts to uncover it –
neither is inclined to relent.
The comparative structure of the film, where the
lives of the two men unfold in stark contrast, makes American
Gangster an engaging cinematic experience. But with this film, Scott
does more than weave a narrative of one man that doggedly follows
the rule of law and another who fervently adheres to the code of the
street. Into his engrossing film of corrupt bureaucracies and
illicit drug distribution, Scott smartly incorporates heart
wrenching montages of the death and destruction that the unrepentant
Lucas wrought.
Washington is extraordinary as the charismatic,
unflinchingly ruthless and dope peddling family man. But as the
philandering flatfoot that blindly upholds the law to the
consternation of his compatriots, Crowe is superb. Although
Washington’s and Crowe’s performances anchor American Gangster, the
film’s ensemble cast delivers equally stellar performances. Chief
among them is Cuba Gooding, Jr. whose performance as the flamboyant
kingpin Nicky Barnes is worthy of a film all his own. Ruby Dee (Mama
Lucas), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Huey Lucas), Josh Brolin (Detective Trupo),
Roger Guenveur Smith (Nate), Carla Gugino (Laurie Roberts) and John
Ortiz (Javier Rivera) also warrant special mention.
M
November 2007
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MoQuotable(s) |
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To listen, you will need the Windows Media Player which can
be downloaded for free from
Windows
Media.
Rationale?
- Windows Media File
Brian Grazer (October
20, 2007)
- Windows Media File
Steven Zaillian (October
20, 2007)
Any Pressures from the
Powers that be to Squash this Telling of the Dirty Little Secret of US
Drug Distribution?
- Windows Media File
Ridley Scott (October
20,
2007)
Hesitant to Play Another
Dark Character?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
Observations of Corruption?
- Windows Media File
Russell Crowe (October
20, 2007)
Observations of
Yesterday's Gangster?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20, 2007)
Why are Rappers Vilified
and Actors Praised for Gangsterism?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington &
Russell Crowe (October 20,
2007)
Understand Frank Lucas'
Duality?
- Windows Media File
RZA (October 23,
2007)
Does American Gangster Glorify
Frank Lucas?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington &
Russell Crowe (October 20,
2007)
- Windows Media File
RZA (October 20,
2007)
- Windows Media File
Steven Zaillian (October
20,
2007)
Violent, Yet Benevolent Gangsters?
- Windows Media File
Ruby Dee (October 20,
2007)
Balancing Morality of
Characters?
- Windows Media File
Russell Crowe (October
20, 2007)
Lucas a Sociopath?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
Lucas Remorse About
Addicting/Killing Thousands?
- Windows Media File
Ridley Scott (October
20,
2007)
Awareness of Nicky
Barnes?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
Naked City, Godfather,
Goodfellas, Prince of the City... Where Does American Gangster Fit
Within the NY Gangster Genre?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
The New American Gangster?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
Daily Inspiration?
- Windows Media File
Denzel Washington (October
20,
2007)
- Windows Media File
Russell Crowe (October
20,
2007)
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Genre(s) |
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Crime, Drama, Thriller
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Writer(s) |
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Steven Zaillian
(screenplay) & Mark Jacobson (article)
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Michael Costigan |
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Executive Producer |
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Brian Grazer |
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Producer |
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Branko Lustig |
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Executive Producer |
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Nicholas Pileggi |
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Executive Producer |
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Ridley Scott |
... |
Producer |
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Kehela
Sherwood |
... |
Executive Producer |
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James
Whitaker |
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Executive Producer |
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Steven
Zaillian |
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Executive Producer |
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Denzel Washington |
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Frank Lucas |
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Russell Crowe |
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Richie Roberts |
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Chiwetel Ejiofor
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Huey Lucas |
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Josh Brolin |
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Detective Trupo |
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Lymari Nadal |
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Eva |
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Ted Levine |
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Lou Toback |
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Roger Guenveur Smith |
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Nate |
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Clarence Williams III |
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Bumpy Johnson |
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RZA |
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Moses Jones |
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Ruby Dee |
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Mama Lucas |
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Ruben Santiago-Hudson |
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Doc |
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Carla Gugino |
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Laurie Roberts |
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John Ortiz |
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Javier J. Rivera |
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Cuba Gooding Jr. |
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Nicky Barnes |
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Armand Assante |
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Dominic Cattano |
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Joe Morton |
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Charlie Williams |
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Idris Elba |
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Tango |
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Common |
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Turner Lucas |
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T.I. |
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Stevie Lucas |
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Harris Savides |
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Cinematographer |
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Pietro Scalia |
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Editor(s) |
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Marc Streitenfeld |
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Music |
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Avy Kaufman |
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Casting |
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Janty Yates |
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Costume
Design |
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Distributor |
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Universal Pictures (USA)
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Filming
Location(s) |
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Briarcliff Manor,
New York, USA
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New York City, New
York, USA
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Old Westbury, Long
Island, New York, USA
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New Windsor, New
York, USA
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Thailand
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DVD
Extras |
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2-Disc Unrated Extended Edition
Disc 1
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Unrated Extended Version – 18
additional minutes of never-before-seen footage and an alternate
ending
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Original Theatrical Version
Including Commentary with Director Ridley Scott and Writer
Steven Zaillian
Disc 2
3-Disc Collector’s Edition
Includes Above Bonus
Features PLUS
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BET Special- The Making of
American Gangster
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Dateline NBC: American
Gangster First Look
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Digital Copy of the Unrated
Extended Movie For Your PC
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