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A screaming man doused in gasoline. A match flares up. The body ignites. Two gunshots explode as the macabre scene climaxes. A palpable hush ensnares the grisly carnage. Holding the smoking gun is Frank Lucas. Stoic and cold, Denzel Washington portrays the notorious gangster with chilling conviction. American Gangster is the true story of the Harlem heroin kingpin’s ascension to power and subsequent fall to one resolute narc, Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). It’s the visceral, maligned version of the American Dream — a little bloodier than F. Scott Fitzgerald imagined it. A dedicated family man and righteous church-goer, Lucas created a multi-billion dollar enterprise by transporting heroin through the coffins of Vietnam soldiers — hypocrisy at its finest. As Lucas goes about his “bid-ness.” Roberts is desperately nipping at his patent-leather heals. An elaborate game of cat and mouse punctuated with occasional violence.
Ridley Scott proves again that his directorial prowess isn’t stalemated in genre conventions. Engaging, albeit snail-paced, this police procedural lacks Scorsese’s visual pizzazz and Coppola’s operatic staging. Its gritty portrayal of the freewheeling ‘70s harkens touchstones like Seprico, The French Connection and Goodfellas albeit without the nihilism that made the latter entries so compelling.
Treading the indistinguishable line between cops and robbers, American Gangster plays like subdued Michael Mann — as if Scott was trepidatious about tackling an authentic crime drama and then salvaging his apprehensions in methodical pacing and comfortable casting (Crowe). It’s unfortunate because the exchanges between Washington and Crowe are superb ... even if nobody gets hit with a phone.
Just like Fitzgerald’s Gatsby, Lucas desired the American Dream but succumbed to corruption. Unlike Jay Gatz, he did it with heroin, ho’s and hustlin’. Gatsby wore pink. Lucas’ suits weren’t bad either. Then again, Lucas spouts unintentionally hilarious proclamations like “Frank Lucas don’t run from nobody!” Except maybe the grammar teacher.
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