AMERICAN GANGSTER Film Review - 25/2/08

With this latest film about ganglord Frank Lucas from Director Ridley Scott showing some nasty heroin needle action and"based on a true story" we get Denzel Washington & Russell Crowe beating the crap out of each other in the acting stakes as we get a vision of them rising through their respective ranks until they eventually meet up. Setting himself up as the latest drugs baron Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) fights against Det. Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) in obtaining heroin direct from the source and using the US Army to do it. Unfortunately the film runs out of steam within the first 20 minutes or so as the dull plodding direction stretches out the events for what seems to be all of history and ends up with it's obvious denouement. Having seen the trailer I expected to be in for a quality 3-hour gangster drama and just came out feeling "Who cares?" So it seems that even the Great Ridley can occasionally turn out the odd pedestrian clunker.

Now also available on DVD...