American Gangster
2007 · Movie · R · 157 min · ★ 7.6 · 79% critics
Set in the Vietnam War era and beyond, a gangster from La Grange smuggles heroin into the United States using American service planes, then rises to power in New York. His operation draws a task force led by a determined detective, setting the stage for a tense pursuit of a lucrative drug trade.
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Streaming on Netflix — or rent from $3.99.
3 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 2007
- Release date
- 2007-11-02
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 157 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 79/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.6/10 (6,050 votes)
- Box office
- $266,500,000
About
You’ll like American Gangster if you enjoy crime dramas with a compelling rise-and-fall energy and strong lead performances by Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe; Not for you if you want a tight, short runtime or prefer a strictly accurate biopic.
Pros: enthralling premise; standout acting; strong pacing | Cons: feels too long; biopic inaccuracies; predictable/too Hollywood
Themes
- new york city
- vietnam
- drug smuggling
- society
- gangster
- drug trafficking
- heroin
- junkie
- ghetto
- nightclub
- ambition
- rise and fall
- +18 more
Awards & recognition
- Academy Award — Best Supporting Actress · 2008 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Production Design · 2008 · nominated
Cast & crew
Denzel Washington
as Frank Lucas
Russell Crowe
as Richie Roberts
Josh Brolin
as Detective Trupo
Chiwetel Ejiofor
as Huey Lucas
Cuba Gooding Jr.
as Nicky Barnes
Lymari Nadal
as Eva
Ted Levine
as Lou Toback
Armand Assante
as Dominic Cattano
John Ortiz
as Javier J. Rivera
John Hawkes
as Freddie Spearman
Directed by Ridley Scott