American Gangster

Sans aucun doute un bon film, dont la qualité est garantie par le duo central d'acteurs oscarisés. De là à dire que c’est un chef-d’œuvre cinématographique, je ne le pense quand même pas. (31/12/2007)

Un autre membre de la famille des monuments de la mafia de qualité. La première moitié est un peu longue et ennuyeuse, la deuxième moitié compense cela. Denzel Washington le vole tout pour lui, Russell Crowe n'a que la possibilité de faire passer des ballons. Le nouveau Scorsese (The Departed) était plus superficiel, mais plus fort dans les détails et avait des bords plus tranchants. Scott est plus lent et moins remarquable, mais aussi plus harmonieux et clair. Pour moi, les rois restent Coppola (Le Parrain), De Palma (Scarface) et le vieux Scorsese (Les Affranchis). (20/12/2007)

While most famous directors in this age are making films solely for their own entertainment, Ridley Scott comes up with a work of such incredible awareness and craft that it’s essentially unbelievable. Two and a half hours of the essence of scorching filmmaking that will sweep you away with its unique ode to the time period, perfectly written and superbly acted parts, and, last but not least, the naturalistic violence that a proper gangster cannot do without. Scott extracts the essentials from Scorsese, De Palma, and Mann, but remains incredibly his own, i.e., a self-assured filmmaker with a unique authorial imprint that will be indelibly etched in the viewer's mind forever. There is no point in sparing superlatives here. Believe me, they’ll get Oscars for editing, cinematography, and directing! Edit: The absence (albeit!) of nominations in these categories is the American Film Academy’s greatest crime since the beginning of the new century! Shove the Oscars up your ass! (03/11/2007)

I have a feeling Ridley Scott must be on some kind of steroids, or he's an alien. To be able to have such a work pace and commitment at his age (7 films in the next 2 years(!!!), directing or producing) without lowering his standards of quality? Hats off to him! And there's no need to waste superlatives and repeat what has already been written, just a mention of Josh Brolin. His corrupt cop with his slicked back hair, booming bass and mischief in his eyes is exactly the persona, the expression imprinted on your memory that will come to mind when you think of this mafia epic in another 20 years. His few minutes of screen presence almost overshadows the two leads, his blackmail of Frank Lucas – "...Cause you don't fuckin know me! Do you see that right there? Special Investigations Unit. Special. Get it?" – in its bluntness and commanding delivery, almost made me smile. Just an irresistible son of a bitch par excellence. If Judi Dench got an Oscar for her four-minute snap in Shakespeare in Love, I'd give Josh two! (03/01/2008)

After being urged by a fried for several months, I finally watched American Gangster and I can’t shake the slight enthusiasm. Flawless direction, brilliant performances (and I don’t like Denzel too much) and an interesting story (at least for me, I haven’t seen many gangster movies so I can’t compare it within the genre), all combine to deliver a five-star worthy film. And even though I generally prefer films that are half as long, this one didn’t bore me for a second. (03/07/2008)