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Darth Noodle Says AMERICAN GANGSTER Is The Best Gangster Movie Since GOODFELLAS!?!?
Merrick here...
..with Darth Noodle's just-recovered-from-the-cyber-ether review of AMERICAN GANGSTER. He likes it; moreso than the review we posted yesterday.
Here's Darth Noodle to tell you more...
I just came from an early evening screening of American Gangster here on the upper west side of manhattan. unfortunately it was in a crummy, uncomfortable theatre, but for the price i paid i shouldn't complain. I notice before the movie started that this screening was much more diverse than most i have been to. there was a wonderful mixture of men and women, young and old, black, white, hispanic and asian. Basically a good cross-section of NYC and indeed, America was represented tonight. usually these screenings are for a targeted demographic, but the flyer for tonight's screening was for audiences between 17 and 59. I even saw a neighbor of mine who is well into her 70s and somehow she managed to get in.
I am not a huge fan of Ridley Scott, or Russell Crowe or Denzel Washington. I think they can be very good, but more often than not, i am either not overly impressed with what they do, or just annoyed with them. I think Ridley has made some amazing movies that are visually stunning and have great stories and he has also made movies that just fall flat. I give him credit with at least trying new and different things, and for that i appreciate him. I think Russell peaked with LA Confidential and from then on he's pretty much annoyed me. I don't find him all the special or "intense" or interesting of an actor. i think he turns on the machismo way too much and overdoes it most of the time. I liked him in LA Condfidential because he was something new and that brand of intensity fit the story perfectly. As for Denzel, when he is on his game he is truly great. there are a handful of movies that he has made where he was perfect (glory, malcolm x) but usually i find that he has a denzel schtick that i don't find compelling (i haven't seen training day but i hear this is one of his better performances).
With that said, i think American Gangster is flat out the best gangster movie since goodfellas. ok, let the "plant" calling begin because i flat out loved this movie. the three principles here have performed at the top of their game. ridley made a beautiful nyc/nj movie. he did a great job of showing the grit and grime of the late '60s / early 70s while never doing any "postcard" shots. at the same time he kept the story moving showing the rise of Frank Lucas and his eventual, inevitable fall.
Russell was very quiet and subdued throughout the movie. his character is an "honest" cop whose childhood roots are most probably of the unsavory kind. his high school friends are criminals. He is a cop who is finishing law school so that he can further better himself and distance himself from where he came from. he reminds me a lot of a firefighter friend of mine (who survived 9/11) who after that terrible day retired from the department and went to law school so that he could better his mind and provide for his family in a safe way. ridley and russell were very smart in making this character a flawed one who, while an honest cop, is a dishonest husband and negligent father.
Denzel did not do his schtick, except for one scene where he seemingly tries to ape pacino from godfather 3. other than his "they tried to kill my wife" chest thump, i thought denzel was picture perfect. there are hints of his Malcolm X pimp walk which i enjoyed seeing. frank lucas is a quiet, unassuming man who learns a lot from his mentor and eventually takes that knowledge and builds himself an empire, making enemies of other drug lords and dirty cops. from the opening scene we know this is not a typical denzel character and that he is not to be fucked with. that scene grabs the audience by the balls and tells us to hold on for an exciting ride.
special mention must be given to steven zallian who, yet again, wrote a smart screenplay. the main characters are well developed; there are gangster cliches that are alluded to never fully developed. that is a good thing. an example is a big showdown occurring while frank is at church. obviously this is reminiscing of godfather 1, but the filmmakers were smart enough not to try to redo or outdo the original. instead they did their own thing which worked well in its own rights. zallian was also smart enough to leave some things that are to be read between the lines. i liked that not everything is spoonfed and you have to piece some things together yourself. also i loved the fact that this is not a cat and mouse movie like heat. the bad guy and the cop don't meet until the bad guy is arrested by the cop. we watch russell put together his case while at the same time we watch denzel grow his operation until it becomes too big for the anonymity he so desires.
special mention #2 must be given to josh brolin. this guy has been in 3 of the best movies this year. in planet terror he is a slimy asshole. in no country for old men he is a guy obsessed with money. and in american gangster he is a slimy crooked cop obsessed with money. this may not seem like much of a range but the subtelties in each performance are such that each character has different degrees of sliminess and greed to them. of the three my favorite performance of his is NCFOM which i think is the #1 movie of the year (followed closely by Into the Wild).
i would definitely put American Gangster in my top 5 of the year. i'm sure many, if not most of you will thoroughly enjoy this movie.
call me...the plant. no wait...i'm Darth Noodle. wet and limp and proud of it.
I am not a huge fan of Ridley Scott, or Russell Crowe or Denzel Washington. I think they can be very good, but more often than not, i am either not overly impressed with what they do, or just annoyed with them. I think Ridley has made some amazing movies that are visually stunning and have great stories and he has also made movies that just fall flat. I give him credit with at least trying new and different things, and for that i appreciate him. I think Russell peaked with LA Confidential and from then on he's pretty much annoyed me. I don't find him all the special or "intense" or interesting of an actor. i think he turns on the machismo way too much and overdoes it most of the time. I liked him in LA Condfidential because he was something new and that brand of intensity fit the story perfectly. As for Denzel, when he is on his game he is truly great. there are a handful of movies that he has made where he was perfect (glory, malcolm x) but usually i find that he has a denzel schtick that i don't find compelling (i haven't seen training day but i hear this is one of his better performances).
With that said, i think American Gangster is flat out the best gangster movie since goodfellas. ok, let the "plant" calling begin because i flat out loved this movie. the three principles here have performed at the top of their game. ridley made a beautiful nyc/nj movie. he did a great job of showing the grit and grime of the late '60s / early 70s while never doing any "postcard" shots. at the same time he kept the story moving showing the rise of Frank Lucas and his eventual, inevitable fall.
Russell was very quiet and subdued throughout the movie. his character is an "honest" cop whose childhood roots are most probably of the unsavory kind. his high school friends are criminals. He is a cop who is finishing law school so that he can further better himself and distance himself from where he came from. he reminds me a lot of a firefighter friend of mine (who survived 9/11) who after that terrible day retired from the department and went to law school so that he could better his mind and provide for his family in a safe way. ridley and russell were very smart in making this character a flawed one who, while an honest cop, is a dishonest husband and negligent father.
Denzel did not do his schtick, except for one scene where he seemingly tries to ape pacino from godfather 3. other than his "they tried to kill my wife" chest thump, i thought denzel was picture perfect. there are hints of his Malcolm X pimp walk which i enjoyed seeing. frank lucas is a quiet, unassuming man who learns a lot from his mentor and eventually takes that knowledge and builds himself an empire, making enemies of other drug lords and dirty cops. from the opening scene we know this is not a typical denzel character and that he is not to be fucked with. that scene grabs the audience by the balls and tells us to hold on for an exciting ride.
special mention must be given to steven zallian who, yet again, wrote a smart screenplay. the main characters are well developed; there are gangster cliches that are alluded to never fully developed. that is a good thing. an example is a big showdown occurring while frank is at church. obviously this is reminiscing of godfather 1, but the filmmakers were smart enough not to try to redo or outdo the original. instead they did their own thing which worked well in its own rights. zallian was also smart enough to leave some things that are to be read between the lines. i liked that not everything is spoonfed and you have to piece some things together yourself. also i loved the fact that this is not a cat and mouse movie like heat. the bad guy and the cop don't meet until the bad guy is arrested by the cop. we watch russell put together his case while at the same time we watch denzel grow his operation until it becomes too big for the anonymity he so desires.
special mention #2 must be given to josh brolin. this guy has been in 3 of the best movies this year. in planet terror he is a slimy asshole. in no country for old men he is a guy obsessed with money. and in american gangster he is a slimy crooked cop obsessed with money. this may not seem like much of a range but the subtelties in each performance are such that each character has different degrees of sliminess and greed to them. of the three my favorite performance of his is NCFOM which i think is the #1 movie of the year (followed closely by Into the Wild).
i would definitely put American Gangster in my top 5 of the year. i'm sure many, if not most of you will thoroughly enjoy this movie.
call me...the plant. no wait...i'm Darth Noodle. wet and limp and proud of it.
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That totally nulls any review you would have of this film. It was one of the best movies that year and you didn't see it and have not seen it yet?
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Ridley Scott, Tarantino, and the Coen Bros. Good for him.
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See them!
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Is wondering why Denzel didnt want him to be in this movie.
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is by far one of the greatest cop movie ever made.
Jason Patrick like a muthafucka!!!! -
Nah, I do hope this is good :)
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really.
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He's seen No Country for Old Men, which doesn't come out for 2 months? And he's seen American Gangster, which doesn't come out for 6 weeks? And he paid attention to the who the writer was? I guess some people get lucky with these previews and just stumble into them, especially living in New York. Still feels a little plant-y. Trashes Denzel and Russell a LITTLE bit, just to let you know he's for real, and then says it's the best gangster film since Goodfellas. Meh. OK.
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'friend' of his and comparing one of the characters to him, the depths these people will go to. If you really had a friend like that you wouldn't belittle him in a film review.
Go away. -
You homoplant.
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It's become a cliche.
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OH MY GOD!!!! AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!
That scene still makes me crack up to this day. -
Fuck the naysayers and plant chanters! TIFF! to them I say! TIFF!
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You're seeing all these sneak previews but haven't seen dick from the past? Let me guess, you've already seen the Dark Knight but will finally be getting around to watching Jaws next week.
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of course i've seen casino. not a great movie. not even a great scorcesse movie. it's good, but sharon stone is annoying and so was pesci. maybe b/c i hate vegas i just didn't find the story that compelling, nor did i care about the characters.
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Yes, in all seriousness (in his pre-righteous days).
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Fuck's sake- just because he is not completely illiterate doesn't mean he isn't a plant- list of plant traits:1) Using first names in the fashion of "Russell is usually too macho, but when I was lubing up I was actually surprised..." 2)Pseudo criticism- most of which is bollocks: Denzel's shtick? WTF? 3)Calling us out in a brave double bluff: "I can't possibly be a plant because I am being all arch and ironic in a sort of post-modern way by attempting to pre-empt cries of PLANT"4) Deliberate bullshit mistakes such as failing to use capital letters properly- which (presuming he typed in word) must have been deliberate as the fucker corrects it. 5)Stupid sporting analogy to make it sound like he’s one of us- but used in a cringe-worthy fashion.6) pitching up on TB to defend himsef (heh- only joking)Can I ask you a question Plant Noodle? How exactly does one get a job of posting plant reviews on the internet? I have no scruples and am a complete whore so would like the job. All accusations aside, I hope this is good- really, I hope this is good- as the last few Ridley Scott efforts I have seen were not good at all, and I want a return to form. So if you aren't a plant- sorry man. It's all in good fun
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those rich fucks like anything with a high budget and a self satisfied sense of its own quality. you might not be a plant friend but you are still a tool
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2 things really. 1)Isn't it a sorry state of affairs that a positive reviewer (if non plant-if plant then this is irrelevant) has to preempt a review with "I liked it and I'm telling the truth, honest". Have we really become that negative- or are films getting worse? 2) If it is as good as this, I will be a very happy boy indeed. As much as I dislike that Kiwi twat- I love Ridley Scott (Alien Ridley Scott- not GI Jane/ Kingdom of Heaven Ridley Scott)
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That's a plant. When you see a good review of a Ridley Scott/Denzel Washington/Russell Crowe movie, well, it might still be a plant. But at least it's a more credible plant.
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..IN THE AIR !
I GOT YOU MOTHERFOCKER I GOT YOU!
nah just kidding - cool i will see this.
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seeing "I am not a huge fan of Ridley Scott"
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See that thing rapidly vanishing in the air? That's your credibility, Noodledick.
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Watch the director's cut and just TRY to tell me it isn't better than Gladiator.
Also, Malcolm X does in fact have a pimp walk. -
Sep 26, 2007 1:05:21 PM CDT
i hear [training day] is one of his better performances
by darthcorleone
Really? I hadn't heard that.
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i hear it's called American Gladiators
btw... i dont remember any geek boys getting revved up for their last piece of cinematic genius... you know, the straight-to-dvd "A Good Year." -
you're not fooling anyone, but way to adapt. you guys are getting to be like "the thing" with that shit. planty.
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And she's buying a Kingdom of Heaven
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1) Look, this movie is all about point 3)
2) See 4)
3) Points 4) + 2) - 1)
4) Point 3) + Point 4) recurring -
That is all.
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What will they think of next?
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I don't know about best G-film since Goodfellas...that is some bar...but I definitely want to see this one. The trailer looked soo tight...
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some people just can't write for shit...still, I hope this one makes good on the promising trailer
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watch yourself, guy.
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Yes, Denzel has a killer pimp walk in the opening scenes of Malcolm X, after he gets his hair done. His partner in crime, Spike Lee, also gives us a complimentary pimp walk. You know whats funny? That scene, or perhaps shot is a better description is still fresh in my head to this day. Denzel really is pimpamatic.
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actually this review sounds legit. can't wait to seeit.
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American Gangster might be the best, well, American gangster film since Goodfellas, but 'Fellas is not better that City of God.
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Nuff' Said.
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Damn. I thought I was the only one who was getting sick of this "American..." trend.
Ok, American Beauty made sense as a title. It promised a satire on our culture and it delivered. American Gangster just seems redundant in a way. I've always imagined gangsters to be American (Cagney,Bogart,DeNiro) in the first place. Do we really need this title to be clarified? -
Well Lost Jarv,you obviously haven't seen the Directors Cut of Kingdom Of Heaven,otherwise you wouldn't be saying how poor it is.The DC is a masterpiece and is Ridleys best film in my opinion,maybe American gangster will top it.
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but steady on the hyperbole- remember this is the man who gave the world Alien.
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but I cannot imagine it being that much better than what was released in theaters. And I can't see how the tweaking to the film could elevate it over Alien. Not sure about Blade Runner either.
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I love Alien but I like the KOH DC more.I know some people think thats blasphemy,but thats my opinion.
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well I guess its just a matter of opinion,but I know I am in the minority on this one.
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Does anyone know if the rumblings about the studio being unhappy with AG length are true.I hope Ridley was allowed to have final cut this time and not forced to make any edits like he was with KOH.The Studios always stuff up good films this way.
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...than the theatrical version, certainly, but it's still an oddly unsatisfying movie. Bloom's character remains a complete cypher throughout and elicits no sympathy whatsoever. Technically brilliant film, but cold and hollow.
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But really, Alien & Blade Runner are such masterpieces it is damned hard to imagine them being topped.
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fucking classic! As for Training day being garbage, WTF are you talking about redholt? Denzel nailed that part and got the golden statue as proof not to mention the dialogue. However Dre as a cop was a major miscast. Both NARC and Dark Blue tried to capitalize off the bad cop genre (post training day)but failed to meet expectations,however I did like Russel and Raines' performance in DB. Can't wait to see this when it comes out in November.
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It almost felt like sleepwalking with Bloom. So if that didn't change Doc, what was improved over the original release? Anything change with Liam's character? I'm not saying it won't be better than the original, just curious as to what changed so significantly to make people love the movie now. eveaugust, no problem dude. My interest is definitely piqued to see the director's cut.
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strange.
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thats absurd..why would seeing training day be a prerequisite for critiquing this film? Training Day is not a great film. Unless you think other overblown spoon feeding cliches like million dollar baby and Crash are great films then maybe. sigh.
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and whats that? being black?
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What changed was the pacing and character development. Many of the problems that I had with the theatrical cut had to do with the uneven pacing of the film and the odd character changes that turn out to have been caused by cuts Ridley was forced to make. For example, in the original cut, Eva Green's character seems to make an inexplicable descent into madness in the final act. In the DC, this is now much better understood. Also, the story of Bloom's character in France is more fully developed, which helps to explain a lot of his actions when he is put in charge of the defense of Jerusalem. Finally, the cuts help to even out the pacing of the film by filling out areas that seemed to inexplicably fly by in the original cut. just pillow talk, definitely give the DC a try. You may still not like, and that's okay. But I think the additions (and they are substantial, something like 45 minutes added) make the director's cut a far superior film. Is it better than Alien or Blade Runner? I guess that is debatable still.
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I will give the director's cut a look.
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