With an all-star cast that includes three Academy Award winners (Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe and Cuba Gooding Jr.) and a tale equipped with action and a true-life drama, American Gangster has been one of the most heavily hyped films for the kick off of the holiday movie season. The film has all of the ingredients for a movie classic and box-office gold – but somehow the final product fails to measure up to a decent movie.
American Gangster attempts to chronicle the life of Frank Lucas. Played by Denzel Washington, Lucas served as chauffeur for legendary underworld boss Ellsworth “Bumpy” Johnson. He then decides to appoint himself as heir to the thrown as king of Harlem crime after the untimely passing of his boss and proceeds to act accordingly.
Crowe co-stars as cop Richie Roberts, who is on a mission to bring down the illegal drug industry in New York City in the late 1960’s.
The supporting cast of American Gangster includes legendary actress Ruby Dee, legend in waiting Chiwetel Ejiofor, Idris Elba and rappers turned actors Common, T.I. and RZA. It’s overflowing with exceptional talent.
But poor direction from Ridley Scott and screenwriter Steve Zallian’s shallow character presentations that lie within a poorly developed script don’t allow an opportunity for actors to shine or audiences to connect with the film.
Washington and Crowe are intense and make the most of their roles despite the shortcomings of the screenplay, but other cast members are given nothing of substance or depth to work with. Dee and Rza manage to wade through the murky film to stand out.
The story-within-a-story type of format attempts to illustrate the plights of the antagonists and protagonists, but blurs the line between the villains and the heroes. Family crises, love stories and character friction are piled on top for what can be assumed as added effect.
American Gangster’s buffet of plots create more confusion, and the attempt to be fast-paced feels more like the film is running in place – and in circles.
Within the first five minutes of the film, audiences will probably be aware of the fact that they will have to hurry up and wait as they are poorly transitioned into overlapping themes, emotions and ideas that don’t quite coincide.
While American Gangster conveys many things, it never quite reveals what audiences come to see. More than likely, the majority of moviegoers are going into American Gangster to figure out how Frank Lucas was able to successfully catapult himself from the lowly status of driver to the top of the entire crime industry – including the Mafia. It is alluded to, and suggested – but never truly revealed. Most of the inquiries regarding the rise to power of Frank Lucas are left unanswered.
Instead of creating a story and sticking to it, the minds behind American Gangster made the mistake of trying to make the film all things to all people. While being tossed back and forth somewhere in the midst of the true story, crime saga, cop drama and black cinematic masterpiece combinations, audiences will be lost in the shuffle.
American Gangster opens in theatres tomorrow (Friday, November 2). The film is rated R with a running time of 157 minutes.