American Gangster

To compare “American Gangster” with “The Godfather” is to mislead and create expectations that will cause disappointment. “American Gangster” is not “The Godfather;” however, it has enough going for it that it can stand on its own merit. Based on fact, this compelling story follows two men, drug-lord Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) and Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), the persistent cop who chases him down, their lives never intersecting until Lucas’s possible drug involvement comes to Robert’s attention.

Frank Lucas quietly establishes his place at the top in the Harlem drug trade in the 1970s by going to Thailand, negotiating with key heroin producers, and shipping the pure drug to the US in coffins of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. Lucas endeavors to be a new kind of gangster, modeling his ‘business’ after a CEO and wearing conservative business suites. Yet under the surface, there’s a seething coil of violence that explodes without warning. Washington is perfect as a man who can espouse loyalty and family in one moment and shoot a man in the head the next.

Roberts is an honest cop, established early in the movie when he turns in almost a million in cash rather than keep it. And Like Serpico, Roberts becomes a pariah among cops. When he is assigned to lead a drug task force to bring down the men at the top, Roberts tackles the job with determination. Crowe plays Roberts with an unwavering, single-mindedness, his thick shoulders hunched, his squinty gaze locked on the prize. He is a worthy opponent.

Director Ridley Scott has crafted a detailed story of a man responsible for affecting the lives of hundreds, maybe thousands, of people. And although Lucas’s life was glamorous – he knew athletes, movie stars, and politicians by name, you also see the sleazy side of drug use – the overdoses, the addiction, the broken families. You see the rise and fall of a man who deserves his fate. (11/4/07)