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American Gangster
2007 157 min United States of America R 18+
★8.2
Drama, Crime
Director: Ridley Scott
Trailers
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Description
Loosely based on the criminal career of Frank Lucas, a gangster from La Grange, North Carolina, who smuggled heroin into the United States on American service planes returning from the Vietnam War, before being detained by a task force led by Newark Detective Richie Roberts.
Budget:
$100M
US Gross:
$130.16M
Worldwide:
$269.76M
Starring
Denzel Washington
Actor
Russell Crowe
Actor
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Actor
Awards
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2008
— Best Supporting Actress
BAFTA 2008
— Best Original Score
MTV Movie & TV Awards 2008
— Best Villain
BAFTA 2008
— Best Cinematography
MTV Movie & TV Awards 2008
— Best Actor
Academy Awards 2008
— Best Supporting Actress
Academy Awards 2008
— Best Production Design
Golden Globe 2008
— Best Picture (Drama)
BAFTA 2008
— Best Film Editing
Golden Globe 2008
— Best Director
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2008
— Best Supporting Actress
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2008
— Best Cast Ensemble
BAFTA 2008
— Best Original Screenplay
BAFTA 2008
— Best Picture
Key opinion
American Gangster is widely regarded as a high-quality, professionally crafted crime drama anchored by powerful performances from Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. While some viewers criticize its lack of innovative narrative tropes or occasionally uneven character development, most find it to be a compelling and visually immersive look at 1970s New York.
| Acting | Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe anchor the film with commanding, nuanced performances that effectively sustain the dual-protagonist narrative. | |
| Direction | Ridley Scott provides precise, atmospheric direction that successfully transports the audience to a tangible 1970s New York setting. | |
| Screenplay | The script offers a solid, well-paced structure that keeps the audience engaged throughout its extended runtime. | |
| Pacing | The film's pacing is polarizing, as some viewers appreciate the deliberate, contemplative tempo while others find the nearly three-hour duration to be sluggish or lacking in epic scope. | |
| Originality | Opinions on the film's originality are divided; some praise its fresh perspective on the rise of an organization, while others dismiss it as a conventional, formulaic addition to the genre that relies too heavily on existing tropes. | |
| Emotion | The portrayal of the leads creates emotional conflict, as some viewers feel the film provides a balanced character study, while others argue it dangerously idealizes the criminal protagonist at the expense of a clear moral center. |