You’re somebody or you ain’t nobody.
Hitting a bit of a hump this Wednesday? We feel ya. Deciding what to do/watch/eat somehow becomes incredibly difficult in the middle of the working week. Don’t ask us why, just be thankful that it only happens once a week. Anyway, today we’re taking the hassle out of one of those things (no we’re not popping over to cook you a Duck à l’orange), we’ve made an executive decision and decided that you’ll be watching Ridley Scott’s American Gangster tonight.
The biographical crime-thriller which follows the rise and fall of real-life Harlem drug smuggler Frank Lucas and the detective who bought him down, Richie Roberts (Russel Crowe), was released back in 2007 and is widely regarded as one of the best gangster/mafia films of the 21st century. It’s a long ride (nearly three hours!) but it’s got that Scarface how-will-he-get-taken-down energy, that keeps us watching until the final scene.
Need some more convincing as to why you oughta be dealing yourself some big lines of ‘Blue Magic’ tonight? Catch five reasons why you’re watching it tonight below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BV_nssS6Zkg
It’s all true.
The movie is made all the more impressive by the fact it’s all true… only it isn’t. One of the major discrepancies is the fact that Frank Lucas was not the intelligent, sophisticated criminal that Denzel portrays him as. According to Judge Sterling Johns Jr., who assisted in Lucas’ arrest and trial, the film is “one percent reality and ninety-nine percent Hollywood.” Still, Lucas’ rags to riches story (he claimed he was at a time grossing a million dollars a day) is bloody enthralling.
Rusty’s accent.
Do shit accents annoy you in films? Me too. Russell Crowe doing Richie Roberts’ (who is a Bronx native) accent is pretty damn patchy. Buuuuuut, you can make a drinking game out of every time you hear his Aussie twang and get yourself pretty dang sloshed. Silver linings, ey?
This scene.
Is there a better way to establish your violent dominance over a town than to execute a rival gangster in the street? Not sure if it’s appropriate to have a favourite movie kills list, but if I had one, this would be right up there:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXCMz340CRg
The supporting cast.
Some pretty familiar faces help carry the load in this film that you might have missed when you first watched it. Namely, Josh Brolin as the corrupt Detective Trupo, Idris Elba as Tango, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Huey, Cuba Gooding Jr. as Nicky Barnes, plus rappers The RZA and Common each appear on opposing sides of the thin blue line. Nothing elevates a film like a powerful bench,
The threads.
Sometimes when I watch this movie I find myself overlooking the brutal murders and abhorrent behaviour simply because the styling is so fucking good. I’m not talking about the fur coats, but more of the button-up casual wear, hunting jackets and mustard suits. My god, feast your eyes.
