American Gangster

***1/2

11/15/07
by Scott Cupper

Frank Lucas……………….Denzel Washington
Richie Roberts…………….Russell Crowe
Josh Brolin………………...Detective Trupo
Huey Lucas………………..Chiwetel Ejiofor
Mama Lucas………………Ruby Dee
Laurie Roberts…………….Carl Gugino
Eva………………………...Lymari Nadal
Dominic Cattano…………..Armand Assante
Nicky Barnes……………...Cuba Gooding, Jr.

Directed by Ridley Scott
Written by Steven Zaillian
Based on the article by Mark Jacobson

Rated R
Runtime: 2 hrs. 37 mins.


Much of the thrill of American Gangster is watching it answer the question “How?” How did Frank Lucas, a black, low-level gangster, become the most powerful man in New York City, the mafia answering to him? How was Richie Roberts, a cop who could get nothing right in life, able to bring him down?

Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) begins as an aide to Bumpy Johnson, the ruler of Harlem. Frank is a calculating man, doing Bumpy’s dirty work to be close to him. In an early scene, Bumpy is handing out turkeys on Thanksgiving. Bumpy waves Frank up, but he is content to stand in the back and observe. Later in the movie, we see Frank handing out turkeys.

This calculation serves Frank well. When Bumpy dies, the reins are not handed to Frank. He had no power before, none is granted him. He has to take it. The Vietnam War provides his means. A news report on TV about drug use in Vietnam leads to Frank’s revelation. The drugs are more pure. If he gets them from the source, they will be better and cheaper. The drug’s success is immediate. He brands the drug, calling it Blue Magic. In one of the movie’s many excellent scenes and supporting performances, Frank has to explain this concept to a buyer, played by Cuba Gooding, Jr., who is cutting it.

The purity of the drugs is not something the junkies are used to and a lot are OD’ing. The slew of deaths raises the interest of the cops, particularly Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). Russell Crowe is a rarity in Hollywood: a leading man who is a character actor. The public persona of Crowe is that of a gruff, in-control guy, but he manages to make us believe in his characters, even when they are out of their depth as Richie is. Throughout most of the movie, Richie is learning how to be in control because most of his life isn’t. He has no stable relationships and his ex-wife (Carla Gugino) is trying to prevent him from seeing their son. He can’t do the policework he loves because his fellow officers ostracized him after he found $1,000,000 in a car he was tailing and turned it in. He had to. His honesty is the only thing he has to hold on to and it compels him. The feds take note of his interest in the drug case and his reputation and offer him the chance to lead a drug taskforce.

And so the pieces are set in place. These stories are inherently fascinating, but I sensed that the filmmakers didn’t trust them or us, the audience. The movie begins at such a quick pace and maintains it for so long that it almost outstrips these stories. People have complained that it is too long. That only happens when you don’t use the time effectively. Ebert is fond of saying that no good movie is too long and no bad movie is too short. It’s true. Here’s a movie that might have felt shorter if it had been longer and taken its time. However, when the stories and pace finally synch, it is masterful.

While the movie is trying to run away with itself, the performances by the leads anchor us. I’ve already mentioned Russell Crowe, but Denzel Washington is just as good. Denzel is a leading man, infusing each of his characters with his intelligence and likability. He is no less an actor, however, and when these two finally meet, their scenes are electric. Both are able to bring all of the history of these characters to this scene and play every nuance.

Steven Zaillian’s script contains a number of excellent scenes like this one that feel like mini plays. Even a clichéd relationship like Richie and his ex-wife’s resonates. All the actors are up to the challenge. Denzel and Chiwetel Ejiofor as Frank’s younger brother Huey have a scene about the outfit Huey is wearing that is as good as anything DeNiro and Pesci did in Casino. Ruby Dee is Frank’s mother. For most of the movie, it seems she is there for name recognition only until a scene where she confronts Frank. It is fierce and I hope people remember her when it comes time for nominations. All I could think watching it was, “She’s still got it.” And Josh Brolin as a crooked cop has the best reaction shot of the year.

Even with all of these wonderful scenes, they aren’t enough. While American Gangster understands the family component that is vital to organized crime movies, it doesn’t trust how far it can involve us. With Nicholas Pileggi (writer of Goodfellas and Casino) on board as a producer and these movies as fine examples, and with The Godfather: Part II demonstrating that a movie can leave a storyline for more than 2 minutes at a time and hold our interest, this movie could have been much more. Steven Zaillian’s script may be to blame for the pace issues, but it’s Ridley Scott’s job as director to see this and fix it. It’s incredibly frustrating that he didn’t. With most Ridley Scott movies, I feel like he just missed making a good movie. Here, he just misses making a great movie, which is all the more heartbreaking.