American Gangster
Starting as a somewhat scattered and murky movie tracking the rise of Harlem drug boss Frank Lucas, American Gangster hits its stride halfway through once cop Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) is given a special task force to tackle the rampant New York drug problem. The story of Roberts’ difficulties in his private life, involving a lengthy divorce proceeding and his night law-school studies, is more distracting than anything else. It also makes Crowe’s decision to portray Roberts with an awkward duck-like stride and nervous habits jar with the depiction of his character as a rampant womanizer. Denzel Washington brings Lucas to life as a chilling but somehow like-able killer that you nevertheless really want to see brought down. Stephen Zaillian’s screenplay was inspired by this New York Magazine article about Lucas. I recommend seeing the movie before reading the article, as I did. The latter half of the movie, especially, is gripping story-telling. It is fascinating to see the scale of the dope operation that Lucas ran in Harlem and to learn that his was but one of many. I found myself simultaneously hoping desperately for him to be captured, but also for him to come out of it all okay somehow.
There is more interesting information on Lucas here that provides a bit more dose of reality to some of Lucas’s claims as well as the dramatic depictions of events in the movie.