American Gangster (film)
American Gangster is a 2007 crime film written by Steve Zaillian and directed by Ridley Scott. The film stars Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. Washington portrays Frank Lucas, a real-life heroin kingpin from Harlem who smuggled heroin into the US on American service planes returning from the Vietnam War. Crowe portrays Richie Roberts, a detective attempting to bring down Lucas' drug empire. Filming was done on location in New York City. American Gangster was released in the US and Canada on November 2, 2007.
Tagline
: There are two sides to the American dream.
Director Ridley Scott
produced television commercials from the 1960s to the 1980s, which entailed visits
to New York City in the same time period in which the film's story took place.
The director sought to downplay a "Beatles" atmosphere to the film and
to instead create a shabbier atmosphere. Scott described his perspective of the
setting, "Harlem was really, really shabby, beautiful brownstones falling
apart." Production and costume design was emphasized, transforming the location
into the rundown streets of upper Manhattan from the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Denzel Washington, as Frank Lucas, went through 64 different costume changes.[
Cast
Denzel Washington - Frank Lucas
Russell Crowe - Det. Richie Roberts
Chiwetel Ejiofor - Huey Lucas
Josh
Brolin - Detective Trupo
Lymari Nadal - Eva
Ted Levine - Det. Lou Toback
Roger Guenveur Smith - Nate
John Hawkes - Det. Freddie Spearman
RZA - Moses Jones
Yul Vazquez - Alphonse Abruzzo
Malcolm Goodwin - Jimmy Zee
Ruby Dee - Mama Lucas
Ruben Santiago-Hudson
- Doc
Carla Gugino - Laurie Roberts
Skyler Fortgang
- Michael Roberts
John Ortiz - Javier J. Rivera
Cuba Gooding Jr-. Nicky Barnes
Armand Assante - Dominic Cattano
Kathleen Garrett - Mrs. Dominic Cattano
Joe
Morton - Charlie Williams
Ritchie Coster - Joey Sadano
Bari K. Willerford - Joe Louis
Idris Elba - Tango
Common - Turner Lucas
Warner Miller
- Melvin Lucas
Albert Jones - Terrence Lucas
J. Kyle
Manzay - Dexter Lucas
T.I-. Stevie Lucas (as Tip Harris)
Melissia Hill - Redtop
Quisha Saunders - Darlynn
Kevin Corrigan - Campizi
Robert Funaro - McCann
Jon Polito - Rossi
Tom O'Rourke - Banker
Robert C. Kirk - Police Captain
Tom Stearns - 2-Star General
KaDee Strickland - Sheilah - Richie's Attorney
Jon DeVries - Judge James
Racine
Jim R. Coleman - Bailiff
Lee Shepard - Laurie's
Attorney
Gavin Grazer - Mike Sobota
Linda Powell - Social Worker
Roxanne Amandez - Paramedic
Norman Reedus - Detective Norman Reilly
Pierra Francesca - Stewardess
Eddie Rouse -
Detective at Party
Maryann Urbano - Real Estate Broker
Cedric Sanders - Serviceman in Cafe #1
Jason Veasey - Serviceman in Cafe
#2
Roosevelt Davis - Army Captain
Roger Bart - U.S. Attorney
Eric Silver - White Kid
Mitchell Green -
Tango's Bodyguard
Saycon Sengbloh - Tango's Woman
Conor Romero - Tough Teenager #1
Daniel Hilt - Tough Teenager #2
Daniel
Farcher - Tough Teenager #3
David Spearman - Civilian Cleaning Staff #1
Maurice Ballard - Civilian Cleaning Staff #2
Paul Doherty - TV Newscaster
William C. Tate - Baptist Minister
George Lee Miles - Frank's Lawyer
Jason Furlani - Bailiff
Chris McKinney
- Reporter on TV
Ric Young - Chinese General
David Wayne Britton - Army
Colonel
Tommy Guiffre - Medical Examiner
Laurence
Lowry - Paramedic
Dan Moran - Army Captain
Marjorie
Johnson - Charlene
Larry Mitchell - FBI Agent
Chuck Cooper - Private Doctor
Kevin Geer - Law School Professor
Chance Kelly - MP
Hamilton Clancy - Seller
Sam
Freed - Judge
Joey Klein - Chemist
Scott Dillin - 4th Amigo
Anthony Hamilton - Funk Band Singer
Sarah Hudnut
- Assistant Prosecutor
Jeff Greene - Metal Door Worker
Tyson Hall - Drug Dealer #1
Kirt Harding - Drug Dealer #2
Bryant Pearson - Drug Dealer #3
Al Santos - Mechanic (as
Alfredo Luis Santos)
William Hudson - Dealer #1
Christopher A. Sawyer
- Dealer #2
Dylan Gallagher - Casket Loader
Jehan-Pierre Vassau - Narc
Officer #1
Dawn Douglas - Narc Officer #2 (as Dawn A. Douglas)
Robbie Neigeborn - Cop in Narc Headquarters
Clinton Lowe - Man Arrested
in Elevator
Wilhelm Lewis - Head Wedding Photographer
James Hunter - Deacon #1
Neville White - Deacon #2
Lonnie Gaetano - Prison Guard
Jeff Mantel - Officer Walsh
Serena Joan
Springle - The Proctor
Ron Piretti - Judge
Nino Del
Buono - Announcer
Arthur Mercante - Referee (as Arthur M. Mercante)
Panama Redd - Policeman
Robert Wiggins - Piano Player
Fab 5 Freddy - Smalls Patron
Jonah Denizard - Store Manager
Steve McAuliff
- Mounted Policeman
Joseph Ferrante - Gangster at Funeral
Mark A. Keeton - Rock Star - Ali / Frazier Match
Jerrod Paige - Muhammad Ali (uncredited)
Philippe Vonlanthen -
Skeet Shoot Handler
Clarence Williams III - Bumpy Johnson
Ray Wineteer - Photographer
Plot
Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson, a disciplined and intelligent black gangster, runs much of Harlem and imparts his wisdom onto his former driver turned right-hand man, Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington). When Johnson dies of a heart attack in 1968, at an electronics store. Frank dislikes the new, flashy gangsters and decides to take control. To gain money and power, he travels to Southeast Asia, and with the help of his cousin who is an Army Senior NCO, strikes a deal with a Thai general who supplies him with pure heroin. Frank then has the drugs transported back to America via military service planes, hidden in the coffins of seven dead U.S. soldiers from the Vietnam War.
Frank’s unique drug supply enables him to sell potent drugs (“Blue Magic” heroin) at low prices. He quickly makes a fortune and buys several nightclubs and apartments. He moves his family from North Carolina to New Jersey, where he purchases a large estate for his humble mother. His five brothers are enlisted as his lieutenants in the NYC drug trade – forming “The Country Boys,” who work together to traffic and sell dope on Harlem streets. During his rise, Frank meets and falls in love with Eva, a Puerto Rican beauty queen. Through his discipline, organization, and willingness to kill those in his way, Frank quickly rises to the top of the Harlem drug and crime scene.
Meanwhile, Newark, New Jersey detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) is juggling a failing marriage, late-night law school classes, and his police career. When Richie and his partner, Javier Rivera, discover nearly $1 million in unmarked bills in a car, Richie resists temptation and turns the money in. His rare honest ways make him a hated member of his precinct, causing his partner to be exiled from the force, while Richie's rampant womanizing behavior leads his wife to seek a divorce and custody of their son. After his exiled partner dies from overdosing on Blue Magic, Richie's honesty catches him a break when his superior Captain Lou Toback (Ted Levine) puts him in charge of a newly created task force to stop drug trafficking in Essex County, New Jersey and New York City. Richie handpicks honest cops and gets to work on finding who is supplying Blue Magic.
As Frank's business prospers, he makes a point of operating quietly and dressing with a modest conservatism both as a sign of strength and to avoid attracting the attention of the law. However, Frank disregards this habit for his wife for one ostentatious night out, attending a Muhammad Ali boxing match with several known mobsters in a gaudy fur coat and hat, and with a ring-side seat. As it happens, Roberts is on duty observing the event and sees this unknown, but obviously wealthy, person associating with high-level criminals, as well as having better seats than the Italian mafia. Robert becomes suspicious, and he begins to investigate this unknown (to him) figure in New York organized crime.
Even as Frank realizes he has exposed himself to police scrutiny, he must make deals with the Italian mafia and fend off corrupt NYC detectives, such as Det. Trupo (Josh Brolin), who extort and threaten him. Trupo's dislike of Frank is capped when his prized 350 Shelby Mustang is bombed before his eyes. He must also contend with local crime figure Nicky Barnes (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), who is taking some of Frank's product, diluting it himself, and selling it under Frank's "brand" name. Unidentified assassins try to kill Frank’s wife, further destabilizing him and worsening his unsteady marriage. Things finally turn to the worst when Frank sees the U.S. Military vacating Vietnam, which in turn cuts off his primary heroin transportation.
Richie catches another break when his men witness the driver of one of Frank’s top soldiers shooting a woman. They use the driver’s bad predicament to get him to wear a wire. The wire allows Richie and his task force to discover when a plane carrying drugs is landing. Meanwhile, Trupo leads his band of police officers to Frank's mother's mansion where they take Frank's emergency cash supply. When the plane lands, Richie and his men follow the drugs into Newark's projects and obtain a warrant. A huge group of police and detectives attack the drug apartments en masse and a large shootout occurs. Frank is at church when the bust goes down, but he is arrested after the service ends. Frank and Richie finally meet, and Frank’s attempts to bully Richie are unsuccessful.
With no other options, Frank decides to provide names of numerous other criminals, including his and Richie’s common enemies: corrupt NYC detectives. Numerous corrupt cops are arrested; a distraught Trupo kills himself to avoid arrest. Richie, having passed the Bar Exam, prosecutes Frank, but he leaves the prosecutor's office after the Lucas trial. The first client he takes after becoming a defense attorney is Frank. Because of his cooperation, Frank receives a relatively light sentence of 15 years rather than the original 70. At the film’s end, he steps out of jail to the sounds and era of the 1990s, significantly older and out of place.
Soundtrack
American Gangster
Soundtrack
by Various Artists
Released November 6, 2007
Recorded April–May 2007
Genre Soundtrack
Length 45:29
Label Roc-A-Fella, Def Jam
Professional
reviews
All Music Guide link
Between April and May 2007, composer
Marc Streitenfeld recorded the musical score for American Gangster by using an
80-piece orchestra recorded in sections as well as acoustic pre-records, performed
by Streitenfeld himself. The official soundtrack for American Gangster was released
by Def Jam Recordings and has songs by artists including Bobby Womack, The Staple
Singers and Sam & Dave.
Denzel Washington originally pressed for film producer Brian Grazer to have Jay-Z compile a soundtrack for the film, but Grazer and director Ridley Scott resisted because they wanted an authentic 1970s feel to the film. An older Jay-Z song, "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)", was included in the film's trailer. Instead of directly recording for the film, Jay-Z released an album inspired by the film, similarly titled American Gangster, in conjunction with the release of the film.
Track listing
"Do
You Feel Me" – 3:56
Performed by Anthony Hamilton
"Why
Don't We Do It in the Road?" – 3:46
Performed by Lowell Fulson
"No
Shoes" – 2:24
Performed by John Lee Hooker
"Across 110th
Street" – 3:47
Performed by Bobby Womack
"Stone Cold"
– 4:06
Performed by Anthony Hamilton
"Hold On I'm Comin'"
– 2:31
Performed by Sam & Dave
"I'll Take You There"
– 4:34
Performed by The Staple Singers
"Can't Truss It"
– 4:39
Performed by Public Enemy
"Checkin' Up on My Baby"
– 2:12
Performed by Hank Shocklee
"Club Jam" – 3:10
Performed by Hank Shocklee
"Railroad" – 2:20
Performed
by Hank Shocklee
"Nicky Barnes" – 3:11
Performed by Hank
Shocklee
"Hundred Percent Pur" – 2:13
Performed by Marc
Streitenfeld
"Frank Lucas" – 2:40
Performed by Marc Streitenfeld
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