Director: Ridley Scott
Writers: Steven Zaillian, Mark Jacobson (article)
Stars: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Josh Brolin

This review is part of the feature:

The 33 Gangster Films You Can’t Refuse

Though not the most original take on the genre, Ridley Scott’s American Gangster is still superb in several respects. The recreation of early-1970s New York is phenomenal: every setting feels meticulously crafted and fully lived-in. The cast is equally impressive, and the characters are consistently engaging.

Frank Lucas (Washington) is a special kind of incarnation of the American Dream. When his mentor, drug kingpin Bumpy Johnson dies, Lucas replaces him as Harlem’s number one drug lord. His power quickly spreads throughout the whole of New York and New Jersey and he even becomes bigger than the Italian Mafia.

Black crime boss Frank Lucas is based on a real person, and Denzel Washington plays him with chilling intensity. His counterpart is the incorruptible detective Richie Roberts, a man surrounded by colleagues on the take. Roberts is portrayed with commanding presence by Russell Crowe, who delivers a performance in fine form.

The ambitious Lucas, who viewed himself more as a businessman than a criminal, devised an ingenious and cynical method to import pure heroin into the United States: he smuggled it from Southeast Asia in the body bags of American soldiers killed in the Vietnam War! The fact that Lucas profits from his country’s pointless struggle against communism and narcotics has a great taste of irony.

American Gangster is a cops-versus-gangsters film – a bit like The Wire in movie form – and at times Scott comes impressively close to that extremely high standard. The great casting, production design and visual style alone make this a totally enjoyable experience.