“American Gangster” is high on economics
Every university in America should be looking to hire Frank Lucas, the notorious Harlem drug dealer of the ’60s, as an economics teacher. But, drug dealer doesn’t look too good on a resume.
“American Gangster” takes an in-depth look at the lives of Lucas, played by Denzel Washington (“Inside Man”) and his counterpart Richie Roberts, a cop who’s honest to a fault, played by Russell Crowe (“Gladiator”).
“American Gangster” is, by far, the most intriguing and thought-provoking movie of the year. On one side you have Frank Lucas, a man who has inherited the drug business of Harlem after his former boss Bumpy Johnson dies. Lucas takes over and swiftly streamlines the business by finding an ingenious way to import heroine straight from the producers in Vietnam. By cutting out the middle men, Lucas is able to offer a product which is twice as pure at half the price.
Lucas is also a charming sociopath. While his charm wins the audience over, his outrageous temper flies off the handle at any moment. He reminded me a lot of Tony Soprano from “The Sopranos.” Throughout the entire movie, Lucas preaches “Family is everything,” yet he has no reservations about bringing his brothers and cousins into his drug business, a business that is likely going to either get them arrested or killed.
On the other side you have Richie Roberts, the man in charge of hunting down Lucas. Crowe embodies a character who is exactly the opposite of what he played in “3:10 to Yuma.” Roberts has a horrible marriage, a nonexistent relationship with his son and a sense that everything in the world is either black or white. At the beginning of the movie, Roberts and his partner find close to $1 million in unmarked bills in the trunk of a car. Instead of taking it, like most of the corrupt cops in those days, Richie turns it in only to be shunned by his co-workers who are mostly corrupt and think Richie would turn them in to if he found out they were doing unsavory things.
This movie is about these two men and the paths they take which inexorably lead them to each other. It is about how criminal activity can and will breed only hurt and decay. Even though Lucas has an outstanding life style, his world is dying around him. Criminal nature, no matter how well thought out or how well-crafted, will always lead to death or prison.
-aaron.peck@aggiemail.usu.edu