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American Gangster (2007)
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Reviews Counted:56
Fresh:30
Rotten:26
Average Rating:2.8/10
Consensus: American Gangster is a gritty and entertaining throwback to classic gangster films, with its lead performers firing on all cylinders.
Rated: 18 [See Full Rating] for violence, pervasive drug content and language, nudity and sexuality.
Runtime: 2 hrs 38 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:16-11-2007
Synopsis: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott team to tell the true juggernaut success story of a cult figure from the streets of 1970s Harlem in American Gangster. Nobody used... Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott team to tell the true juggernaut success story of a cult figure from the streets of 1970s Harlem in American Gangster. Nobody used to notice Frank Lucas (OscarŽ winner Washington), the quiet driver to one of the inner city's leading black crime bosses. But when his boss suddenly dies, Frank exploits the opening in the power structure to build his own empire and create his own version of the American Dream. Through ingenuity and a strict business ethic, he comes to rule the inner-city drug trade, flooding the streets with a purer product at a better price. Lucas outplays all of the leading crime syndicates and becomes not only one of the city's mainline corrupters, but part of its circle of legit civic superstars. Richie Roberts (OscarŽ winner Crowe) is an outcast cop close enough to the streets to feel a shift of control in the drug underworld. Roberts believes someone is climbing the rungs above the known Mafia families and starts to suspect that a black power player has come from nowhere to dominate the scene. Both Lucas and Roberts share a rigorous ethical code that sets them apart from their own colleagues, making them lone figures on opposite sides of the law. The destinies of these two men will become intertwined as they approach a confrontation where only one of them can come out on top. Washington (Training Day) and Crowe (Gladiator) lead a spectacular cast of accomplished and rising stars--Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Josh Brolin, Ted Levine, Armand Assante, John Ortiz, John Hawkes, RZA, Common and T.I.--in this blistering tale of a true American entrepreneur directed by OscarŽ nominee Ridley Scott (Gladiator) and produced by Academy AwardŽ winner Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind) and Scott from a screenplay by Academy AwardŽ winner Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List). -- © Universal Pictures [More]
Starring: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Josh Brolin, Chjwetel Ejiofor
Starring: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Josh Brolin, Chjwetel Ejiofor, Carla Gugino, Ted Levine, John Hawkes, RZA, Ruby Dee, Cuba Gooding, Armand Assante, John Ortiz, Common, T.I.
Director: Ridley Scott
Director: Ridley Scott
Screenwriter: Steve Zallian
Producer: Brian Grazer, Ridley Scott
Composer: Marc Streitenfeld
Studio: Universal Pictures
Reviews for American Gangster
With the exceptional extras piled on, the unrated-extended DVD let's you judge drug lord Lucas for yourself.
Steven Zallian (Gangs of New York) tackles the screenplay, which is based on an article by Mark Jacobson, and creates a captivating story with an otherwise basic premise.
Feels like an overextended gangsta rap video, given its periodic graphic displays of gratuitous violence and its repeated resort to topless women as props carefully-positioned for purposes of titillation.
Latest News for American Gangster
August 16, 2008:
ByAnyMediaNecessary.com: The equal opportunity bone crunching pits real life black druglord kingpin Lucas (a grinning, scary Denzel) and Crowe's womanizing, eager beaver Jewish NYPD crime buster in an ethnically diverse, cat and mouse go at it. ![]()
More...
August 16, 2008:
ByAnyMediaNecessary.com: The equal opportunity bone crunching pits real life black druglord kingpin Lucas (a grinning, scary Denzel) and Crowe's womanizing, eager beaver Jewish NYPD crime buster in an ethnically diverse, cat and mouse go at it. ![]()
More...
July 07, 2008:
American Gangster Sequel Coming? ![]()
Is Universal filming American Gangster 2 in Puerto Rico? More...
May 06, 2008:
2008 MTV Movie Award Nominations Announced
It's almost time to hand out some golden popcorn -- the nominations for the 2008 MTV Movie Awards have been announced! More...
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