Review of American Gangster (2007) by Andrew M — 07 Oct 2012

Mediocre telling of a real life story that had the potential to be another â~Godfatherâ(TM), as Denzel Washington (in a compelling and nuanced performance undeserving of the sketchy script) portrays Frank Lucas, a Harlem-based gangster in the 70s who smuggles in heroin on planes returning from Vietnam and corners the market.

We also follow Russell Crowe as a detective investigating Lucas, but it takes far too long for his character to cotton on to whatâ(TM)s going on, and heâ(TM)s not a particularly interesting character himself.

And when they finally meet (much delayed), they randomly co-operate with each other to root out police corruption â" a subplot not given enough screentime up to that point â" making the long-awaited showdown an anti-climax.

A disappointingly uninvolving effort.