Gangster américain

It's 1968 Harlem. Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) is the right hand man to Robin Hood gangster Bumpy Johnson. When Bumpy dies, Frank tries to take over. He becomes a powerful gangster importing heroin directly from the South East Asian jungle source. Detective Trupo (Josh Brolin) leads a group of corrupt cops reselling seized drugs back on the street. Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) is a rough and tumble honest cop who tracks down the source for the heroine which killed his partner. Meanwhile Lucas faces against mob boss Dominic Cattano (Armand Assante) and Trupo.

It's a vast interconnected crime drama with deep complex well-written characters played by some of the best actors around. It's gritty and dark with good flashes of the Ridley Scott style. It references the French Connection. It doesn't have quite the immediate realism of the documentary style movie. However, Scott is able to meticulously recreate it. Both Washington and Crowe are powerful in their separate sides of the story.

American Gangster is one of the best movies i've recently seen and it is a pleasure to watch even if you are not a gangster movies fan. The story is more captivating than i expected i must say, following Frank Lucas(Denzel Washington) - the afro-American drug lord who raised above all, even the Italian mafia - and Richie Roberts(Russel Crowe), the honest cop in a city full of corruption, sort of Frank Serpico but with less guts.

Denzel Washington delivers a marvelous performance of a man calm and patient yet heart-stopping ferocious at some points, fearless and ambitious but likable as always. His performances are always incredible, he's a great actor, the greatest afro-American actor of all time i dare to say, it's simply a pleasure to watch him in any role.

Russel Crowe delivers a good performance, he's one of the actors that never disappoint in my opinion and i think there's a great chemistry between them (Washington and Crowe) even though few scenes bring them face to face. Richie Roberts is in danger for being one of the few cops that actually do their jobs and refuse to take bribe so i think there's a big resemblance between Richie Roberts and Frank Serpico (Al Pacino 1973).

Cuba Gooding Jr. could have gotten a bigger part, or more scenes because he's a very talented actor and he proved himself many times that he's more than capable of delivering excellent performances.

The drama is less than expected but the movie is very well paced and it never gets boring even if it lasts more than two hours. Everything fits perfectly and there is an excellent antithetical presentation of the wealthy life of Frank Lucas opposite to the lives that he's drugs ruin every day, every hour, every minute...

I strongly recommend to gangster movies fans, actually to those viewers who enjoy good movies because this movie is above average and you will enjoy every second of it.

Scott managed to weave two stories together into an epic crime drama. Washington rules the screen with each scene he's in and Crowe is solid, if not spectacular. Other than those two, this film is much more about the story that it is the characters. Still, this film is highly entertaining if not a bit lengthy.

In 1968, the loyal driver, bouncer and collector Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) witnesses the death of his boss and mentor Bumpy Johnson (Clarence Williams III) and finds that Harlem lost its leadership. Frank decides to import heroin direct from the source in Bangkok, establishing a logistic of transportation using the US military airplanes from Vietnam to USA. The quality of his product associated to the trade mark "Blue Magic" and the lower prices bring Frank Lucas to the position of number one distributor of heroin in USA. Meanwhile, in the Essex County, the incorruptible detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) that is studying for the Bar Examination is invited to join and head a Federal Investigation Force of Narcotics, seeking the leaders of the dealers in North America.

"American Gangster" is a gangster movie based on the story of the powerful drug dealer Frank Lucas in times of Vietnam War, showing the absolute corruption in the police and the saga of an obstinate honest detective. The direction of Ridley Scott gives an adequate pace to the plot, supported by a magnificent cast leaded by Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. In spite of being a good film, the IMDb User Rating Top 250: #210 is overrated. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Gangster" ("The Gangster")

Excellent crime-drama.

The story of Frank Lucas, the man who built a massive drug empire largely from scratch, and Richie Roberts, the outcast cop who took him down. Shows Lucas' rise to power, through ingenuity, business sense and plain ruthlessness and how he managed to fly under the police's (and many other people's) radar for so long. Also shows how the cops eventually pinpointed him as the drug kingpin they were after, their investigations and how they eventually got him.

Great storytelling from director Ridley Scott. He builds the details, and shows the history of the two protagonists, in parallel for a while. Then he builds the tension as everything comes together. In the end you have a great no-pretence, gritty, almost old-fashioned film noir gangster movie.

Great work by Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe in the lead roles. Good supporting cast too.

On the negative side, there are a few sub-plots and scenes which seem unnecessary (eg the Cuba Gooding angle). In addition, there are some turns of events that seem implausible, especially towards the end (eg Roberts as both cop and prosecutor). This doesn't take too much away from quality of the movie though.