By Chris Howell
Take two Oscar-winning actors, add a dynamic script and blend with a highly-acclaimed, award-winning director and you have the recipe for a blockbuster. Universal Pictures followed this recipe and the result is “American Gangster,” the new movie starring Denzel Washington.
Washington plays drug kingpin Frank Lucas, who supplied heroin to Harlem and surrounding New York City neighborhoods during the 1960s and 70s. The movie chronicles Lucas’ rise to power and reign as king of Harlem as well as his decline, his eventual arrest and incarceration.
The movie is directed by Ridley Scott, who has directed many popular films over the last ten years including “G.I. Jane,” “Gladiator” and “Hannibal.” Scott uses cinema verite techniques like quick jump cuts and shaky, hand-held camera movements to make the movie seem as if it were taking place in front of you, which is a good technique as this is a true story.
Washington won his first Oscar for his role as a crooked cop in “Training Day” and does some of his best acting when playing the bad guy. In “American Gangster,” Washington plays Lucas as a ruthless, no-nonsense businessman.
The drug dealer’s main adversary, aside from other Harlem dealers, is Detective Richie Roberts, a police officer from Newark investigating Lucas’ drug ring. Roberts, played by Russell Crowe, will eventually arrest the big man. Crowe’s character is a great foil to Washington’s. Det. Roberts is a fiery, by-the-books cop who
tows the moral line in all situations.
In addition to busting Lucas’ drug ring, Roberts faces many other challenges. His moral views on how to be a police officer are not shared by many other cops working on the investigation. They’re are all corrupt; rather than try to find evidence and put Lucas and other criminals away, they steal drug money and leave the bad guys on the street.
All the characters work together to bring out the central theme of the movie, which is the American Dream. Lucas is the prime example. He starts with nothing and works his way up to become a multi-millionaire with more power in Harlem than the mafia, at a time when African Americans barely had any opportunities. Corrupt police officers convey the same message by taking their piece of the action; it’s all right to do whatever is necessary to get ahead. Roberts shares a similar dream, but just won’t resort to violence or corruption in order to achieve it.
Overall, this movie was put together well. Perhaps because it is so dialogue-driven, it is not as violent as you might expect. The hardest scenes to watch are those that depict addicts injecting Lucas’ heroin into their arms. There are few really gory scenes. The movie does a good job of showing the rise and fall of one of the most notorious American gangsters of the past 50 years.
“American Gangster” would have benefited from more action, but other than that, it’s as good as advertised.
In rating the movie, I’ll use guns, one of Frank Lucas’ main negotiating tools. Out of a possible five, “American Gangster” receives four.
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