A Fine Film but Fails to Enter "Gangster Movie Royalty"

Rating: 8/10 (23 October 2016)

Director Ridley Scott's Output is Inconsistent. He has made some Great Award Winning Films and a Substantial Number that are Not.
The Gangster Genre has its Modern Era Royalty..."The Godfathers" (1972-90)..."Scarface" (1983)..."Goodfellas" (1990)..."Donnie Brasco" (1997)... etc. and the Director Knocks on the Castle Door with this Epic, but some say that He was Denied Entry.
The Film is Rich with 1970's Culture, has Two Powerhouse Leads (Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe), a Budget to Kill for ($100 million), a Fine and Respected Screen Writer (Steven Zaillian), and a Sprawl of Characters and Locations. It Looks Great, has an Enormous Running Time (157/176 min), and Gangster Culture is almost Always Box-Office Booty when done on this Level.
It's a Good Movie, with its Attention to Detail Rewarding, the Big Cast List is Populated with A-List Character Actors, and the Story is True Life Legend. Professional comes to Mind when the Movie Unreels. But it somehow lacks the Spark of the New that the Kings of the Genre have in Common.
While it Fails to Ignite, it does Blow By some of its more Mediocre Contemporaries. However, the Film is too Conventional in a Category that is so Common, so Ingrained in American Culture, it takes more than just Professionalism to make it Rise to the Top.
"American Gangster" is Not one of the Director's Least Inspired Projects, it's Better than quite a few of His Recent Films. There is much to See here and while it didn't make it into the "Gangster Court" of the Truly Greats of the Genre, it's No "Fugazi" Either.