American Gangster is based on the true story of Frank Lucas. Denzel Washington plays this larger than life Harlem gangster from the early 1970s that takes control of Harlem’s underworld by importing heroin directly from Bangkok using U.S. military planes from Vietnam for transportation. His product “Blue Magic” puts Lucas directly in the crosshairs of detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). The two academy award-winning actors play cat and mouse wonderfully together. Both characters are interesting and audiences are not completely sure which side of the law they are on.
The main problem with the film come from Ridley Scott’s inability to maintain an engaging pace. The film falls flat at times and it seems like he is too reserved. Maybe he is trying to be historically accurate as he can, but there seems to be lost moments from time to time. American Gangster successfully captures a unique part of American history that has been ignore and/or forgotten by most.
WORD COUNT: 160
Adam’s Grade: B
Chuck’s Grade: B
Tags: American Gangster, Denzel Washington, Frank Lucas, Ridley Scott, Russell Crowe, Steve Zaillian
Source:
http://fastforwardfilmreviews.com/2012/10/31/american-gangster/