Classic Acting

Rating: Null/10 (25 February 2008)

American Gangster (2007)
**** (out of 4)
Set in the 1970s, a detective (Russell Crowe) tries to bring down a notorious heroin kingpin (Denzel Washington). 2009 will mark the 100th anniversary of the first gangster film and I'm not sure if one small sub-genre has given us more great films. This is an incredibly little picture that packs quite a punch with its violence, moral lessons and storytelling. The film clocks in twenty-minutes short of the three hour mark but there's not a single second that comes off boring and there's not a single second where something great isn't going on. We've seen the rise of gangsters before but director Scott does a terrific job at making it feel fresh and new. The cinematography is terrific, the soundtrack great and the film has an authentic feel throughout. What really makes the film special is the screenplay takes time to look at Crowe and Washington outside their jobs. We see how the two men work but we also get to see how the two of them deal with stuff in their personal lives. The film takes its time telling the story but this is a big praise because we get to see more than one dimensional characters. Both Washington and Crowe deliver great performances and I might even go as far as to say it's the best of both of their careers. Both come with that calm and cool grace that most actors try for but fail at delivering but that's not the case with these two. How neither of them got an Oscar nomination is beyond me but I think time will be very friendly to both of them. Another strong aspect is the supporting cast, which includes Ruby Dee, Josh Brolin, Ted Levine, Cuba Gooding, Jr. and a terrific Armand Assante. There's a lot of intense dialogue from start to finish and near the end with get a classic shootout but the best moments of the film might take place at the very end when Washington and Crowe finally share the screen together. For the most part the film is very fast paced but it slows down at the very end when the two stars come together and their little chat gives one a lot to think about what they've seen.