American Gangster

Watch: American Gangster

11/2/20072h 37m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ There are two sides to the American dream. ~

Overview:

Loosely based on the criminal career of Frank Lucas, a gangster from La Grange, North Carolina, who smuggled heroin into the United States on American service planes returning from the Vietnam War, before being detained by a task force led by Newark Detective Richie Roberts.

Director:

Ridley Scott

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$100,000,000.00

Revenue:

$269,755,430.00

Key words:

new york city
vietnam
drug smuggling
society
gangster
drug trafficking
heroin
junkie
ghetto
nightclub
ambition
rise and fall
cop
organized crime
drug dealing
police corruption
wedding
police detective
family
surveillance
bribery
law enforcement
aftercreditsstinger
dishonesty
1960s
provocative
factual
violence
suspenseful
intense
brisk

Cast

Denzel Washington

~ as ~

Frank Lucas

Russell Crowe

~ as ~

Richie Roberts

Josh Brolin

~ as ~

Detective Trupo

Chiwetel Ejiofor

~ as ~

Huey Lucas

Cuba Gooding Jr.

~ as ~

Nicky Barnes

Lymari Nadal

~ as ~

Eva

Ted Levine

~ as ~

Lou Toback

Armand Assante

~ as ~

Dominic Cattano

John Ortiz

~ as ~

Javier J. Rivera

John Hawkes

~ as ~

Freddie Spearman

View full cast & crew

Reviews (4)

AG
Andres Gomez
Written 9 year(s) ago
6
Quite a disappointed since it is really as much as you expect, but nothing new.

Washington and Russell perform really well, so, as a characters movie, it works. It doesn't work at all as a biopic. Too much Hollywood on it.
r96sk
Written 4 year(s) ago
9
A thoroughly entertaining 157 minutes!

'American Gangster' delivers in every area it needs to. Enthralling premise, immaculate music, phenomenal casting and great pacing. I was surprised slightly with how it finishes, but it's far and away from a disappointing/underwhelming conclusion.

Not much really needs to be said about Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. They're exactly how you'd expect them to be, outstanding! Washington is fantastic as Frank, while Crowe is superb as Richie. You have to wait a while for their proper screen time together, but it's worth the time it takes.

Away from the leads, you have a load of recognizable faces - I was literally that Rick Dalton meme for the first 45-60 mins! Chiwetel Ejiofor (Huey) and Josh Brolin (Trupo) have sizeable roles, though there's also appearances from Carla Gugino (Laurie), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Nicky), Idris Elba (Tango) and Norman Reedus (Norman). Excellent casting, that!

I was expecting slow moments due to the run time, but there aren't any - at least in my opinion. As noted, the way it ends is a tad differently to how I would've predicted, but I still enjoyed it alongside the rest of the it.

It might not be accurate on the real life Frank Lucas, but all that truly matters is does it excel as a film? Yes it does. Highly recommend!
CinemaSerf
Written 2 year(s) ago
7
Denzel Washington is on top-form here as he takes on the role of the unscrupulous and devious heroine importer "Lucas" in this superior crime drama. Following the death of his boss, he spots an opening in New York's drugs market which he deftly exploits by importing top grade product directly from Thailand and he sells his "Blue Magic" cut-rate to an increasingly willing population. Largely insulated from risk by his very profitable links with organised crime, it falls to "Richie Roberts" (Russell Crowe) to head up a narcotics task force charged with stopping this lucrative trade that has made "Lucas" one of America's most wanted. It has to be said that his method of importation is extremely shrewd, and as the narrative unfolds we discover that this is not just a tale of drug smuggling, but of police corruption, violence, addiction and brutality and director Ridley Scott gets the best from both his stars - especially a terrifically plausible Crowe. There are strong contributions from a superb Ruby Lee as his mother and from Josh Brolin as the dodgy cop "Trupo" and an ensemble cast that keep this well scripted, paced and scored drama moving along in a characterful and interesting fashion. Certainly one of Scott and Washington's better efforts, and though long it flows well and passes just over 2½ hours compellingly.
Andre Gonzales
Written 2 year(s) ago
6
Love gangster movies. Denzel Washington's one of the best to ever do it.