Now, I am sure you are curious to know what I thought of the movie. You do, don't you? Of course you do!
Let me start by saying that the film is good, not great. There seemed to be a lock of any real substance or depth. American Gangster is a fascinating story of true crime, after going through a Hollywood filter. As I sat in the theater, letting the images wash over me, I was completely engrossed by the story that was unfolding before me but when I left I felt a little unsatisfied.
There is an interesting contrast between the lives of Lucas and Roberts. Both of them have worked hard for everything they have earned, however their lives appear to be greatly at odds beyond the simplistic explanation of being on different sides of the law. Lucas is portrayed as a strong family man who puts equal effort into his work and his family, always making sure to take care of his family, and taking his mother to church every Sunday. At the same time, he is the ultimate professional and quite ruthless at protecting it. Then there is Richie Roberts, when it comes to work, he is as straight as they come, evidenced by his turning in nearly $1 million in cash that was seized. You see, the "normal" thing to do would be to keep it, maybe split it with the guys. When it comes to business ethics, the two see eye to eye, save for the legality of said business. The difference lies in the home lives of the respective individuals. Richie is going through a messy divorce, he is never around for his son, and just makes due.
It was interesting to see how Lucas began as a driver/debt collector for Harlem's boss Bumpy Johnson, and following Bumpy's death takes it upon himself to take the lessons learned under years of Bumpy guidance and step up. He forges a new path for himself and in turn it pays off, allowing him to become the boss noone expected to to ever see.
Likewise it was interesting to watch Richie Roberts go about his routine. When he isn't chasing down leads or going to court for his divorce hearings, he is at night school studying to become a lawyer. He may be a little rough around the edges and not quite cut out for family life, but he has a tenacious belief in law and order, never backing down and going that extra mile to uncover the big picture.
Overall, the film is interesting. It has a definite sense of style, even if that sense of style is to believe it has a style. Does that make sense? It is aware of its attempts to be stylish. It is because of this self-awareness that the picture falters. It wants to be an important movie, but it fails to inject the character depth needed. Yes, the performances were strong and the story interesting, but I feel as if the surface has barely been scratched on what it could have been.
Bottomline. Yes, see this movie. Denzel and Crowe give very good, if deja vu-inducing performances. The cinematography and direction are good. There is an illusion of depth, but it is just an entertaining half character study. The Oscar buzz is sitl there, though I doubt it is completely deserving of it. Still, you could do much worse in movie choice for the weekend. One last note, I did like the ending, it was not what I expected.
Recommended.
1 comments:
American Gangster reminds me yet again what a versatile actor Russel Crowe is… plus Ridley Scott deftly leads us into loving the bad guy and disliking the good guy only to flip that around by the end of the movie... very clever.
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