Three Fractured Families In A '70's Big Apple Gangster's Cop
Crime Land
PopcornReel.com Movie Review: "American Gangster"
By Omar P.L. Moore/November 2, 2007
Confrontation and compromise: Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas, and Russell
Crowe as Det. Richie Roberts, in Ridley Scott's exciting epic crime drama
"American Gangster", which opened across the U.S. and Canada today. (Photos: Frank Connor/Universal Pictures)
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Ridley Scott's methodical and riveting "American Gangster" is a
spectacular exercise in subtlety and family code. Crime is the large
engine, corruption is the specific motor and consequences always drive the end
result in three families that undergo painful fractures over a 20-year-period.
The film, based on the true story of Frank Lucas, the 1970's Harlem drug king
pin and business magnate as chronicled in "The Return Of Superfly", an article
by New York Magazine's Marc Jacobson, juxtaposes Mr. Lucas's emergence
from under the tutelage of feared gangster boss Bumpy Johnson and the development of
his savvy and business
sense, drug-trading acumen and family loyalty with the fractured nuclear family
of Newark, New Jersey Police Detective Richie Roberts, a man so honest and
committed to his job that in real life he turned in $987,000 in unmarked bills
to his precinct, earning him the scorn of other cops who could no longer trust
him.
"American Gangster" is a crime drama so seductive you can't take your eyes off
it. Every moment is spent paying attention to every word, every image,
every sound. Steven Zaillian's new screenplay, which had been worked and
re-worked in the past by other writers for a version of the film that was
eventually scrapped -- a film that Mr. Washington and another Oscar-winner,
Benicio Del Toro were to star in -- is excellently structured in character,
nuance, tone and pace, giving an impressive canvas to at least a dozen major
players without ever confusing the audience. Mr. Scott captures the mood
of Harlem, the streets of Bangkok, the taste of North Carolina and the flavor of
family in this film of immense scope. The music, soul classics from Bobby
Womack ("Across 110th Street"), and songs such as "Do You Feel Me", sung so
brilliantly with heat and passion by Anthony Hamilton, punctuate this stirring
motion picture, including the original score music of Marc Streitenfeld.
Family is so deeply woven into the film's fabric; Roberts (Crowe) is struggling
for custody of his son from his estranged wife Laurie (Carla Gugino); Lucas (Washington) is struggling
to keep a crime family together as well as his extended family intact. It
is a Herculean exercise, and even Lucas's deliberate and exacting methods
sometimes aren't enough. His unassuming mother (Ruby Dee) never questions
her son's intentions or burgeoning wealth because she simply doesn't want to.
His wife Eva (the beautiful Lymari Nadal) says little and loves him in the toughest of times, but
the walls of justice, however flawed, are converging upon them. Just as
complex, Roberts breaks moral rules in his own life, but his work life is intact
to a fault and his fiber as a character and real-life person are impeccable, and
Mr. Zaillian's script renders him especially well. The script contains
many humorous lines amidst the very serious effects of highly-addictive drugs,
especially heroin.
Harris Savides's ("The Game") sterling cinematography captures the arc from 1968
through 1991 and the mostly color-drained and unsaturated visions lend a stark
seediness and cold, brooding melancholy to all that swirls around the major
players in this drama. The scenes in Bangkok look lurid and reek of vice.
The scenes in a drug-making headquarters are of detail in two tones: bleak and icy.
Intense
imagery of drugs and drug paraphernalia, including one heartbreaking moment that
will make the audience's collective heart drop, are all on display, and Mr.
Scott and company take extra special care not to glamorize the drug culture and
the street life. And they succeed in that endeavor. "American
Gangster" isn't trying to replicate the aura of larger-than-life figures like
Paul Muni in "Scarface", or Al Pacino in "Scarface" (1982), or James Cagney in
"White Heat" ("top of the world, ma!"), but the charisma, supreme cool and
volatility that Frank Lucas via Mr. Washington exhibits subtly suggests every
bit of the characters those aforementioned screen legends played, even as Lucas
admonishes his brother Huey (Chiwetel Ejiofor) for being "the loudest person in
the room". "American Gangster" simply looks at the largess of these flawed men's
excesses, particularly those of Lucas and Roberts, excesses which both help and
hurt them.
Mr. Scott's film and his astute direction of it, has a documentary feel to it without
calling attention to itself. Despite the different locales, the editing by Pietro Scalia ("The 11th Hour") never feels disjointed or choppy.
A family to be reckoned with: Mr. Washington (left center, in suit) leads his
brothers, including Common (far left) and Mr. Washington's "Inside Man" co-star
Chiwetel Ejiofor (beige sweater), in Ridley Scott's "American Gangster".
The memorable supporting players in "American Gangster" are wide
and numerous. Cuba Gooding, Jr. is solid and underplayed as Harlem's famed
real-life gangster Nicky Barnes, equally as ruthless but far more flamboyant
than Lucas -- rivals who uneasily co-exist. Mr. Gooding's full-on facial
presence is largely hidden from view, except for one scene where his Barnes --
once dubbed "Mr. Untouchable" on the cover of The New York Times Magazine
in the 1970's (a documentary film on Mr. Barnes with that title is scheduled to open
this month) -- is uncovered and convincing enough not to be laughed off the
screen. (Note that in 1991, Wesley Snipes played Nino Brown, a character
in Mario Van Peebles' "New Jack City" that apparently was loosely based upon the
real Nicky Barnes.) Josh Brolin is outstanding as New York City Police
Detective Trupo, a corrupt Special Investigations Unit Narcotics Officer, whose
unit -- exactly 75% of its officers -- would end up being indicted and
prosecuted to conviction for drug shakedowns in New York in the 1970's, a decade
of chaos and consternation in that city's history. Mr. Brolin's look
reminds one of the look that Nick Nolte sported so superbly in Sidney Lumet's
highly-underrated crime drama "Q&A". Mr. Brolin's character is a
bad-to-the-bone hard seed and possesses a charisma that is cheeky, cocky and
dangerous. His scenes with Mr. Washington crackle with a live-wire tension
that is palpable, specifically in one of the most memorable gilt-edged exchanges
in the film. Mr. Brolin appears destined for an Oscar nomination for his
work here. Armand Assante, also an alum from "Q&A", is affable and
charming as Don Cattano, a rival crime boss from the Italian mob who wines,
dines and highly respects Lucas. John Ortiz (hypnotic in last year's
"Miami Vice") is feral and wide-eyed as Roberts's troubled and disillusioned
Newark cop partner Javy Rivera. Ruben Santiago-Hudson is also memorable as
Lucas's driver and chief bodyguard, as is Joe Morton. (And those familiar
with hip-hop and deejays will easily recognize Fab 5 Freddy, who also was a
consulting producer on the film. For the record, Oscar-winning producer Brian Grazer
produced "American Gangster".)
Audience members looking for an utterance of the n-word in "American Gangster"
from a black character won't find it at all -- and the word is uttered only once
in the entire film, which is commendable. (Some viewers may find the lack
of utterance of the offending word unbelievable, however -- perhaps the notion
of being used to Hollywood films that portray black crime figures relentlessly
using the offensive language has become so commonplace that hardly anyone notices
anymore when the word is said.)
Both the real-life Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts were significant consultants
to Mr. Scott during filming. Mr. Washington reportedly spent lots of time
with Mr. Lucas and purchased a Rolls Royce for the real-life former drug-dealing
magnate.
Mr. Washington and Mr. Crowe, who worked together in 1995 in the ill-fated
science-fiction thriller "Virtuosity", share two scenes in Mr. Scott's film, but they don't come until
more than two hours into a film which runs for a total of two hours and 37
minutes. The wait is worth it, for their meeting is moving, exciting,
pulsating -- and thankfully, not a shouting contest. A grand confrontation
between the world's best actor and one not very far behind in Mr. Crowe, echoes
the great meeting between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in Michael Mann's "Heat"
-- Mr. Washington and Mr. Crowe are two veteran acting stalwarts who are far too smart to undercut each other
and more than smart enough to powerfully convey their feelings in understated
tones and overwhelming subtleties. In close-ups you can see Mr. Crowe's
eyeballs dart intently as he speaks. Mr. Washington plays the scene as a
fearless fighter and his words ring and writhe so deeply with pain, chilling
defiance and emotion, and he retains an amazing composure at the same time.
That's acting par excellence. Mr. Washington was paid twice in
salary for this film (once for the version that was never filmed, the other time
for Mr. Scott's edition) and his Frank Lucas is a mix of fun, fear,
ruthlessness, charm and love. The dual salary payment pays off not just
for Mr. Washington but also for the audience. Initially a role that the actor
was reluctant to play because of the negativity of Mr. Lucas's drug-dealing
gangster-land exploits, Mr. Washington gamely takes it on, molding Lucas into a
complex and honorable figure. Lucas's moral code is razor sharp, and even
when he does the wrong thing he does it with integrity, confidence and loyalty,
right up to the very end, when his sense of justice is fierce, vengeful and
righteous.
While most will want to dart out of the theater when the end credits arrive, it
would be wise for all to stay in their seats, as Mr. Washington delivers a final
parting shot at the very conclusion of the end credits.
Not to be missed, "American Gangster" will be nominated for best picture and
best actor for Denzel Washington, with a supporting nod for Josh Brolin. Russell Crowe could also find himself
nominated, but his "3:10 To Yuma" performance is even more nuanced and subtle
and will most likely be the one that Oscar voters remember.
"American Gangster" is rated R by the Motion Picture
Association of America for violence, pervasive drug content and language, (full
frontal) nudity and sexuality. The film opened everywhere across North
America today. The film's duration is two hours and 37 minutes --
and worth every single minute of your time.
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