Denzel Washington is a drug boss in American Gangster

Danny Langhorne
Editor-in-Chief
(Three stars)
In the film American Gangster, Academy Award winning director Ridley Scott delves into the life of Frank Lucas, the alleged kingpin of Harlem during the 1970s. Played by Academy Award winner Denzel Washington, Lucas’ tough childhood and hatred for the police helped him survive the streets when he moved to Harlem. There he became the driver, enforcer, and collector for the established crime boss, Ellsworth “Bumpy” Johnson.
After Bumpy died Frank constructed his own empire, based on the Italian Mafia, and would come to control the flow of heroin in Harlem. At his peak Frank’s own brothers, parents, and other family members were his closest associates in the dope business.
What made his empire so successful compared to that of the mob, which had previously controlled heroin, were his direct ties to the producers of heroin in Southeast Asia.
By conducting business with suppliers in Vietnam, Lucas was able to cut out the Italian middle man by smuggling his famous “Blue Magic” in the caskets of dead soldiers from the Vietnam War. True blue was a hundred percent pure heroin compared to the diluted drugs that flooded the streets of America at the time.
But where there are amazing criminals there is usually a good cop sniffing around close behind. After he was blacklisted by corrupt cops in the NYPD for turning in almost a million dollars for evidence. Richie Roberts became the chief investigator of Lucas.
To many of the Special Unit Investigators, Roberts was a thorn in their side when it came to cutting off a slice of the drug empire for themselves. Richie walks a fine line as a narcotics investigator who finds himself between temptation and justice as he takes heat from crooked cops.
Roberts is played by Academy Award winner Russell Crowe who has worked with director Ridley Scott before on Gladiator. The all star cast and crew of American Gangster really bring to light the underbelly of the drug empire.
It not only shows how it expanded across continents and crime organizations but its effect on the people that lived smack in the middle of it. The movie is based on events that really occurred during the 1970s.
The disturbing corruption that ran rampant through the ranks of the NYPD during this time is one of the main highlights of the movie and makes Richie Roberts’ honest efforts as a detective all the more heroic.
Hip Hop artists Common and T.I. play two of Frank Lucas’ family members who are associates of his empire. Academy Award winner Cuba Gooding Jr. also plays one of Frank Lucas’ extravagant drug associates.
American Gangster is Rated R.