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Synopsis:
American Gangster is the story of Frank Lucas (Denzel
Washington), one of the most notorious heroin dealers
ever. Lucas engineered the biggest drug dealer cou in
history when he attempted to cut out the middleman and
buy heroin directly from the fields in South America.
This made him a very rich and wanted man. Richie
Roberts (Russell Crowe) is a clean cop, nearly
unheard of in 70s, on a mission to eliminate
drug trafficking from the streets of New York
and New Jersey.
The Freak's
Rating: A- : As mentioned in my previous post, my friend Nate & I
were lucky enough to be able to attend a VIP party on
November 1st. Somehow Wehrenberg Theaters was able to
convince Universal and Dreamworks to allow them to
screen Bee Movie & American Gangster the night before
they were released. After hearing this we had a decision
to make. Was it to be the most anticipated animated film
or the most anticipated crime drama? For me, this was
easy. American Gangster wins that debate 95 times out of
100.
The film
does a good job of drawing parallels of motivation
while emphasizing polar opposite family values in some
situations.
 American
Gangster follows the lives of these men for a decade,
leaving no element of the inner morality of each
unaccounted for. It is wonderful to watch the
character development in this film. Watching the real
life implications this story had on the people
involved is fascinating. Keep an eye out for Josh
Brolin (yes, of Goonies fame), who does an amazing job
as a slimeball narcotics detective. It is a gritty
crime drama and never fails to disappoint. With a
running time of nearly three hours, it is an
investment, but one you'll hardly notice go by. There
are a few holes in the screenplay including some not
so subtle similarities of New Jack City and The
Godfather, but overall it is well written. The
cinematography has all the grit it needs and directing
is wonderful as always from Ridley Scott. This is a
great start to what is sure to be an excellent Oscar
season and I can't imagine multiple nods not coming to
this wonderful picture.
Joyce's Rating: A : I loved this movie! I think my favorite theme
in movies are "true life" stories. I love it when the bad guy gets his
comeuppance! Denzel and Russell gave magnificent performances. (But they always
do)
Eric's Rating: A : I loved this
movie! I left the theater with a smile. It has surprising moments (one in
particular) that took me off guard. What's so interesting about the underbelly
of society, I'm not sure but this gives you a window in.
Nate's
Rating - For the
movie American Gangster, I'd give it an
A-. It wants to be an A+, and tries to be
an A+, but there were a few scenes that
could have been cut, the script needed a
little tightening in spots, and I thought
Washington's acting was good, but not
great. Crowe's acting was fine, but I
didn't think the role really challenged
him. Ridley Scott's directing was great
for most of it, but I wanted to be able to
follow the action better during the
movie's climax. Still, A- is pretty good,
and I'd recommend it.
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