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Reviewed by Coach Patton
©D. Patton, All Rights Reserved

Directed by Ridley Scott
Screenplay by Steven Zaillian
From an article "The Return of Superfly"by Mark Jacobson

Running Length: 2:37 Rated: R (Violence, profanity, nudity, drug use, sexual situations)

PLOT: Based on the life of drug-kingpin-turned-informant, Frank Lucas, who grew up in segregated North Carolina where he watched as his cousin was shot by the Klan for looking at a white girl. He eventually made his way to Harlem where he became a heroin kingpin by traveling to Asia's Golden Triangle to make connections, shipping heroin back to the US in the coffins of soldiers killed in Vietnam. He soon made upwards of one million dollars a day in drug sales. Lucas was shadowed by lawman Richie Roberts, who finally helped bring the kingpin to justice. The two then worked together to expose the crooked cops and foreign nationals who made importing heroin so easy

Cast: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Brolin, Lymari Nadal, RZA, Ted Levine, Ruby Dee, Armand Assante, Carla Gugino

American Gangster is the real-life, New-York-City-crime chronicle of the rise and fall of charismatic inner-city drug kingpin Frank Lucas, played by Denzel Washington.

A devoted family man -- but a murderous drug lord, born and raised in North Carolina, Lucas rose from the streets of Harlem to the height of criminal power in the late '60s and early '70s. Most notoriously, he smuggled heroin into the United States inside the coffins of slain American soldiers returning from Vietnam, a "product" branded Blue Magic, which the entrepreneur, cutting out the middle man, trumpeted as twice as good as that of the competition (the Mafia) and half as expensive.

Meanwhile, on the film's parallel police-procedural track, Russell Crowe plays ex-Marine Richie Roberts, the driven, tenacious New Jersey cop.

Incorruptible on the job, but a womanizing husband and an absentee father, he is assigned by the feds to investigate Lucas with anti-narcotics operatives of his own choosing, on an undercover basis. This is to the consternation of Josh Brolin, who plays the head of New York's blatantly corrupt anti-drug task force, the Special Investigations Unit (who pretty much chews up the scenery when doing so).

Given that the film stars two powerhouse Oscar-winning actors, it's almost astonishingly colorless. When the collision course finally plays out, and Washington and Crowe, neither electrifying but both efficient in their roles, finally appear together -- as the sociopathic overachiever is confronted by the intrepid bulldog -- we're grateful for the duo's performing skill and style.

But their “ Superfly-meets-Serpico” scene also serves to remind us of what all that preceded it has lacked. For all the time that we've spent with the two central characters, we haven't really gotten to know them very well at all.

While the decision to focus on a black gangster isn't original, the way in which Frank is developed is unique, and that's the primary reason the film works. Characters whose personalities mix so many contradictory and volatile elements are always the most interesting - that's what has made Michael Corleone one of the all-time best screen gangsters, and there's more than a little of this in Frank. As in Training Day and Malcolm X, where he portrayed less-than-perfect individuals, Washington rules the screen. His portrayal is one of many things that elevates this film to the level of being consistently entertaining and occasionally compelling.

Veteran director Ridley Scott ( Alien , Thelma & Louise , Gladiator , Black Hawk Down ) lacks his usual glossy command: he's barely at the middle of his game. Perhaps that's because he has chosen to focus on character rather than action, but he's done so without dipping very far beneath the surface.

And even though the script by Steven Zaillian (based on Mark Jacobson's New York Magazine article, "The Return of Superfly," but festooned with considerable dramatic license) acknowledges the damage that Lucas's empire causes, it still glorifies his exploits not to excess but to an uncomfortable degree.

We exit wishing the ironic turn of events in the last reel, which depicts a new relationship for this pair of movers and shakers, had been the focus of the film, rather than an anticlimactic throwaway.

American Gangster is compelling in the same way that many mob-related motion pictures are compelling, but it fails to achieve the greatness that the best of them attain. The problem with American Gangster may be that it tries too hard to provide balance between the protagonist and the antagonist but never really achieves it. While the story is rarely dull and there's plenty of material to fill up the more than 2 1/2 hour running time, there's an overall absence of dramatic tension. Ridley Scott rarely creates an uninteresting motion picture, and this is no exception, but American Gangster will not go down as one of the respected director's best efforts. Or at least that’s How It Seemed from Where I Sat.

What’s it worth?
For film buffs -- matinee price at your local cinema.
For the average viewer --- this will view nicely on your home TV (via cable or DVD).

Roll credits

American Gangster
Director: Ridley Scott
Screenplay: Steven Zaillian
From an article "The Return of Superfly"by Mark Jacobson
Cinematography: Harris Savides
Music: Marc Streitenfeld

CAST
Denzel Washington --as-- Frank Lucas
Russell Crowe --as-- Richie Roberts
Chiwetel Ejiofor --as-- Huey Lucas
Josh Brolin --as-- Detective Trupo
Lymari Nadal --as-- Eva
Ted Levine --as-- Lou Toback
Roger Guenveur Smith --as-- Nate
Clarence Williams III –as-- Elmore "Bumpy" Johnson

FADE TO BLACK
In The Name Of Truth, Justice and In the Service of A Higher Good, I Remain Your Friend, Movie Reviewer and Spiritual Advisor, Coach Patton

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