“See, ya are what ya are in this world. That’s either one of two things: Either you’re somebody, or you ain’t nobody.” – Frank Lucas
Number of Times Seen – 2 (27 Oct 2007 and 19 Mar 2015)
Brief Synopsis – The former driver of a NYC crime boss starts his own business and becomes one of the most successful gangsters in history
My Take on it – I have always been a fan of epic style movies that spend enough time developing it’s characters and also it’s plot.
This movie definitely fits into that category.
Director Ridley Scott did a great job paying attention to the details of his characters and story in order to bring us another masterfully done epic movie.
We are transported back in time to a time and place where we learn about the rise of two men on opposite sides of the law who have both personal and professional goals and we get to see what each are willing to do to achieve those goals.
The casting of Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington as the two leads was a smart one and they both work great together as adversaries.
The motivations and pressures on both of them are shown to us and over the course of the 3 hours we get to spend with them, we get to know who they truly are.
Not unlike The Godfather series, this is a more cerebral gangster movie than an in-your-face violent one and it truly works well that way.
Bottom Line – Amazingly done epic gangster movie that transports us through history back to the late 60’s and early 70’s NYC to try and explain the rise of a notorious gangster and his pursuit by one of the few uncorrupted policemen at the time. Crowe and Washington work well as adversaries and the movie spends enough time developing both of their characters so we can understand their motivations and their personal and professional goals. Highly recommended!
MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Ridley Scott recalls that this production was one of the most massive undertakings of his career. There were 360 scenes filmed in over 180 different locations. (From IMDB)
Rating – Oscar Worthy
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Great review, it’s been ages since my last viewing of this film.
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Good review. It’s conventional, but Scott finds some cool ways to spice up the narrative. If only ever so slightly.
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