AMERICAN GANGSTER
RYAN: We have finally seen “American Gangster”…
CAROLINE: …and it’s really, really, really long. And by that, I mean 2 and a half hours.
RYAN: And sadly, it took me 2 hours and 10 minutes to get into it, because that’s how long it takes Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington to be in a scene together.
CAROLINE: I really liked the last 40 minutes; other than that, I was bored.
RYAN: I liked the last 30 minutes. The movie just didn’t go anywhere for so long. And Russell Crowe’s performance is undramatic and kind of boring.
CAROLINE: Having said that, his American accent is flawless.
RYAN: ‘Tis. But his performance is way too understated and then conversely, Cuba Gooding Jr.’s is way over-the-top and ridiculous. I don’t know how that man ever won an Oscar.
CAROLINE: Whatever, he’s in the movie for 5 minutes. There are a lot of actors in this movie that you’ll recognize but you won’t remember where from. I spent half the movie like, “Oh that’s the guy from ‘Dirty Pretty Things’ and that’s the guy from ‘Seinfeld.’”
RYAN: Yes, and “It places the lotion in the basket” man from “Silence of the Lambs” is in it.
CAROLINE: OMG really? How did I miss that?
RYAN: Are you serious?
CAROLINE: Why didn’t you nudge me?
RYAN: Hello, he had a pretty big part! He plays Russell Crowe’s boss. I can’t believe you didn’t recognize him.
CAROLINE: He’s just so old now.
RYAN: Roger Bart is also in this, best known for “Desperate Housewives” and “The Producers.” We love him.
CAROLINE: It’s directed by Ridley Scott, so it’s well made and it’s very authentic to the ‘70s; great costumes and hair, and the era is captured very well. But I was just not at all engaged by this movie, and I can’t really explain why. It never captivated me the way I wanted it to.
RYAN: I don’t think it was as well directed as some of his other films. There were a couple of unique and creative shots, but just a couple. I think Ben Affleck did a better job with “Gone Baby Gone.” I just didn’t think this was that good a movie.
CAROLINE: Some of the performances are great though, especially the supporting roles. Ruby Dee, who plays Denzel’s mom, is great, and Denzel’s drug cohorts are really good. Common plays one of them; he’s in a lot of movies now.
RYAN: Denzel was excellent, of course. And once he and Russell were onscreen together, there were fireworks. But that only happens in the last half hour.
CAROLINE: There are really great action scenes at the end too, but you have to wait for 2 hours to get there.
RYAN: Maybe I had unrealistic expectations for this movie; I was expecting it to be big like a summer blockbuster. I don’t even want to call it a slow burn, because it never ignited.
CAROLINE: I love that metaphor, Ryan. Bottom line?
RYAN: This is not a must-see in the theater. If it winds up getting nominations and you want to see it, fine; but other than that, don’t bother.
CAROLINE: My advice to people going to see this is it’s really, really long in typical Ridley Scott fashion. If you’re looking for great scenes between Russell and Denzel, you’re gonna wait a long time. I enjoyed a good chunk of it toward the end, but not enough for me to recommend this film.