American Gangster (2007)

Denzel Washington as a Classy, Neo-mafia Drug King is enough to get Hollywood studios salivating to commission 3 to 4 different versions at once but truthfully, we know the audience (yes, you reading!) you just love a bit of “based on a true story” montage and so, American Gangster was able to premiere in 2007.

The “based on true events” story is set in Harlem, New York with Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) setting his drug operations to run from war-torn Vietnam to America. The twist is, Frank Lucas learnt the trick of the trade from the Italian Mafia Families due to his previous employments and this meant his own family were kept close as they ran their billion-dollar drug empire...

As any good Gangster films goes, “there is no success without enemies” ...

Frank Lucas visiting his business partner, Dominic Cattano over a friendly game of clay shooting

The stand out feature from the script is the contrasting characters between Frank Lucas and Detective Ritchie Roberts (Russell Crowe), like fire and water- Maybe this was exaggerated for that effect.

A word of warning - do not get sucked into the movie’s Hollywood prowess, please remember that Frank Lucas was the direct cause of so much suffering in New York. Take it as a dramatised truth.

The aesthetics of the movie was clear, and the era was well set (60s - 70s) and clever product placements of “modern technologies” such as microwaves, really emphasised on that.

The game is up, Frank Lucas stares down Detective Ritchie Roberts before being arrested

A decade on, this film is one that can be watched over and over again with the main attraction being Denzel Washington’s portrayal on screen.

8/10

American Gangster (2007) is available on:

-Netflix Streaming Service

-DVD/Blu-ray (for bonus content) purchase via HMV, https://store.hmv.com/film-tv/blu-ray/american-gangster