This would be the most recent movie I caught in theatres, and it’s worth every buck.

You know there are some movies which seem draggy and you kept thinking what the hell is the point of showing us mundane conversations or irrelevant scenes? Well, they’re actually to add some realism to the movie, coz it’s probably set in a different time than ours.

We’ve seen it many times in stuff like Ali, Zodiac, Monsters’ Ball. But the effect gets through, coz you do believe that the movie is set in.. whenever the movie says its set.

American Gangster is also such a movie. So you can expect some draggy bits. But if you follow closely and optimistically, you’ll find it to be perfectly harmonised.

Denzel Washington. Every movie this guy acts in becomes gold. It’s either he picks which movie he wanna star in really carefully, or he just transforms whatever movie he starred in to an awesome film. Either way, he’s one of the reasons you gotta catch American Gangster.

Denzel plays Frank Lucas, a black man rising from a chauffeur of a notorious moneylender to a big boss of a massive drug syndicate. I just love this kinda ‘rise to power’ movies. I couldn’t help but compare this movie to greats like Scarface and Godfather. But I think Gangster can stand on its own.

Russel Crowe plays a cop who is as straight as he can ever be. In the time of corruption, he’s the very few who stood for true justice. It’s amazing how he couldn’t be tempted by all that offers.

Armand Assante was also in the movie, as some mob boss.

And all that linkage to Ali vs Joe Frasier, which reminds me of Will Smith’s Ali, is just great.

The movie starts rather messily, and you find yourself asking what’s going on for quite some time. But as the pieces fall together, it’s really an awesome experience.

I’d recommend it, if you got 2 hours 40 minutes to spare. Heh.

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Tags: American Gangster, Denzel Washington, movie review, Russel Crowe