Customer Reviews

Harlem Globetrotter - By: L. Davidson, 28 Sep 2008
"American Gangster" is an entertaining film based on a true story about how a black New York gangster,played by Denzil Washington, who controls a large drug empire is brought to justice by a determined, incorruptable cop played by Russell Crowe. Washington builds his trade upon exclusive access to a South East Asian source & links with the US military who assist with his shipments. His rise seemingly goes unnoticed until he falls under the attention of Crowe's team. It is refreshing to watch a non Italian mafia based gangster film & Crowe & Washington act their leading roles well, although at times Washington seems to lack the nastiness & menace one might expect to findin a ruthless drug lord.The film is gripping to watch & the plot develops well building to a dramatic climax. There are a few brutal scenes , but overall "American Gangster" is a good quality ,intelligent drama.

---

Wow! - By: Eagle Wizard, 05 Aug 2008
Simply outstanding film. Brilliantly acted, not only by Denzel Washington & Russel Crowe, but some excellent support, particualryin Josh Brolin. An amazing story, a real must for any film fan.

---

Over Hyped and Terrible - By: Mr. P. M. Cameron, 29 Jul 2008
For those expecting a filmin the Mafia footprints of Goodfellas, Casino & The Godfather trilogy prepare to be bitterly disappointed. A disjointed film with poor character development, stilted dialogue & unbelievable manufactured plots. For example how does Lucas have Army connectionsin Vietnam who are happy to ship huge amounts of heroin without any questions or visible financial inducements? How can he just call up these contacts at the drop of a hat from a phonebooth without any reference to the time differences? These silly scenes just add to the overall mish mash quality of the film. Add to this overly dark cinematography & hard to hear dialogue, that needs constant adjustment to the volume & brightness & that leads to heavier & heavier use of the rewind button to actually grasp what is being said.

Ridley Scott - go & have a lie down & wonder where it all went wrong.........

---

american gangster- rubbish - By: shalimardenim, 23 Jul 2008
I got this video via a recommendation, was disappointed, thought it was very slow, & only started to get interesting about half an hour before the end, to sum it up a load of rubbish,only consolation, i got it for a fiver from amazon, & didnt pay full price.

---

The Heat In Harlem - By: Charles Vasey, 12 Jul 2008
Based on the true story of Frank Lucas this rise-and-fall movie suffers from following a formula that we think of as fictional. But truth is not stranger than, it is pretty much exactly the same as, fiction.

Our hero, the driver of a dead Harlem gangster, finds an ingenious way to exploit the Vietnam War to import better quality drugs cheaper. Samuel Smiles would have been proud of him. He then uses his family to run the business as if North Carolina was a province of the mezzogiorno. He deals with crooked cops & fellow gangstersin one of two ways; he makes a deal or he clips them. Behind the scenes is Russell Crowe the incorruptible ex-cop & now a fed who works to bring down Frank.

So far it sounds like Serpico meets The French Connection & The Godfather, & one wonders how much these fictional treatments were affected by the real events portrayedin this film. The result is a competent gritty crime film but one that yields few surprises.