Date: November 4Location: Muvico Boca Raton
My father and I, the manliest of men, saw this manly movie together while our women went shopping. As it should be. As for the movie... it's a great one, one of the best so far this year. 2007 has been a great year for throwbacks to a 70s aesthetic, from Michael Clayton to Black Snake Moan, Zodiac to American Gangster. The latter two, in addition to being filmed and plotted like great crime movies of the 70s, are largely set in that decade. They share a cinematographer and production designer, too, with award-worthy results. I'd rank both films among the best crime movies I've seen — if not the equal of The Godfather and Goodfellas, at least shoulder-to-shoulder with The Departed and L.A. Confidential.
Ridley Scott does great, subtle work here, content to let his actors carry the weight. And what a lineup of actors he has at his disposal — Washington and Crowe are note-perfect as always (both should vie for the Best Actor award), but just as impressive is the excellent work by Ruby Dee, Armand Assante, John Ortiz, Joe Morton and Josh Brolin. And Chiwetel Ejiofor has great taste and/or a great agent — he picks one winner after another and shines in every one.
I'm a sucker for movies like this — movies that feel gritty and real and put you right in the center of the depraved but fascinating lives of criminals. American Gangster goes a step further and puts you in the center of the lead investigation as well. The back-and-forth between these very different worlds, and very different central figures, is fascinating. And the climax is beautifully staged, delivering all the thrills of an action movie plus the heft of a tragedy. The movies runs 2 1/2 hours but I didn't want it to end.
