First 40 minutes was like watching a USA special. I won't ruin anything with spoilers. But there were really no highs, no lows, movie progressed with the same type of flow up until the last 15 minutes. The best part of Frank Lucas life, the most interesting, is his come up from his teen years on... THEY GAVE YOU NONE OF THAT... Frank Lucas has stories for days... they gave you absolutely none of that, and what they did give you was historically innaccurate and completely changed... No background in the beginning, and they rushed the ending... they gave no history, and left you with a few notes at the end... The family history and how much insight they gave on them was little to none.. Also, for a movie that stuck basically based on real life (using real names, characters and events) it was off in many ways such as the transport of drugs, his sentencing, his level of fame, his wife, and how long it took him to actually start snitching.. (in the movie they act as if he got bagged and before trial began he just ratted heads out, when in reality it was well over a year and after he was already sentenced to 70 years that he began snitching) etc, also when bumpy johnson dies, in real life he dies in a club, in the movie he dies in a store... also the story he gives about how cops shot his cousin in the head with a shotgun, that was incorrect as well cause according to Lucas it happened in south carolina when he was 6 and it was the KKK RZA was cool... TI and Common were non existent.. I'm not sure if the guy in real life who Russel Crowe played had an australian accent or whatever russel crowe has, but they could not have picked a worse guy to play a NY / NJ cop being that his accent was dreadfully misportrayed / horribly acted... I could not be happier I didnt waste my dough on this flick, but rather watched a DVD quality version of it at home while blazing an el with my girl. We Own the night > American Gangster
Wow I finally hear someone echo my own disappointment with this movie. It was way overhyped if you ask me. It was so boring I wouldn't watch it again.
I agree with it being a disappointment. Though did you see Hoodlum? That movie was a prequel to american gangster and it was more entertaining i thought. It has lawrence fishburn as the main character, playing bumpy johnson who was in american gangster.
when i saw the trailer for this movie, i was more than hopeful that it would end up as in the same caliber as 'godfather.' but i guess i was stupid to think that. the actors might have been well known, but i still can't help but feel this movie could've been a lot more. whether it was the director's or the writer's fault, i'm not sure...
