Stars:
** 1/2
Rating: R for excessive
language and violence
Run
Time: 2
hours, 37 minutes
Ridley Scott
pumps up the volume with a gritty, glitzy valentine to the anarchic American
drug wars.
Superstars
Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington bring heat to their central roles as a
dogged Jersey supercop and the bad-to-the-bone Harlem dealer he’s determined to
shake down.
Based on the
true story of drug lord Frank Lucas (Washington), “Gangster” charts Lucas’s
trajectory from small-time businessman to millionaire kingpin. Along the way
Lucas spouts family values and integrity, sticking close to his roots while
viciously gutting the fools who stand in the way of his American dream.
For his part
detective Richie Roberts (Crowe) is marking time as a clean cop in a dirty vice
melting pot. Ultimately his gutsy maneuvers and upstanding ethics catch the eye
of the big brass and Richie is assigned his very own drug enforcement task
force.
An explosive
face-off is inevitable as all roads lead to Lucas. Tension threatens the
boiling point as our leads don’t come eye to eye until well into the last act.
Kabloom.
Banner crime
saga elements are accounted for – sinister characterizations, 70s-era vibes,
crack performances, etc. What’s not to love? Try as I might I couldn’t ignore
the fact that Scott brings nothing new to the table, relying on ripe clichés to
cobble together a wannabe epic. Stealing and dealing, junkies in freefall,
corrupt cops, zzzzz.
Back to the
looove. Crowe and Washington va va voom their way through dark alleyways of misconduct,
perfectly in sync with narrative obligations and each others’ thespian cred.
Crowe crackles with reckless veracity
in a less engaging subplot and Washington goes full out “Training Day”, chewing
it up and spitting it out with sinuously evil intent. Best of show: Denzel
pimped out in floor-length chinchilla with matching fur fedora – classic.
Eye candy
aside its business as usual and that’s not good enough. Charismatic A-listers
throw Scott a bone but bottom line its been-there, done-that.