Rolling Stone
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "[I]t has bite and timely relevance....Washington and Crowe clash like titans -- they're something to see." 11/01/2007 p.91 Total Film
4 stars out of 5 -- "[With] bravura photography, assured performances and flawless period detail....A top-of-the-range example of genre filmmaking..." 11/01/2007 p.56 Entertainment Weekly
"AMERICAN GANGSTER is meticulous and detailed, a drug-world epic that holds you from moment to moment, immersing you in the intimate and sleazy logistics of crime." -- Grade: B 11/09/2007 p.76-77 Empire
3 stars out of 5 -- "[U]ndeniably enjoyable....Served up with enough verve to engage." 12/01/2007 p.56 Uncut
4 stars out of 5 -- "Crowe and Washington are extremely charismatic here; particularly Washington, whose man-of-the-people charm disguises a ruthless, shark-like drive..." 12/01/2007 p.134 Sight and Sound
"AMERICAN GANGSTER moves along at quite a clip....[Scott] does bring panache to the film's tense climax..." 01/01/2008 p.56 Los Angeles Times
"[A] finely made and richly satisfying film....[Washington] is always at his best, as he was in the Oscar-winning TRAINING DAY..." 11/02/2007 Rolling Stone
Ranked #6 in Rolling Stone's "10 Best Movies Of 2007" -- "Ridley Scott digs into this juicy tale with epic style and wit." 12/27/2007 p.120 Ultimate DVD
5 stars out of 5 -- "Scott brings his stylish shot composition and impeccable eye for detail to the streets of Seventies Harlem, melding his striking visuals with an enthralling story..." 04/01/2008 p.78 ReelViews 8 of 10
American Gangster is compelling in the same way that many mob-related motion pictures are compelling, but it fails to achieve the greatness that the best of them attain. The problem with American Gangster may be that it tries to hard to provide balance between the protagonist and the antagonist but never really achieves it. While the story is rarely dull and there's plenty of material to fill up the more than 2 1/2 hour running time, there's an overall absence of dramatic tension. Ridley Scott rarely creates an uninteresting motion picture, and this is no exception, but American Gangster will not go down as one of the respected director's best efforts...While the decision to focus on a black gangster isn't original, the way in which Frank is developed is unique, and that's the primary reason why the film works. Characters whose personalities mix so many contradictory and volatile elements are always the most interesting - that's what has made Michael Corleone one of the all-time best screen gangsters, and there's more than a little of this in Frank. Like in Training Day and Malcolm X, where he portrayed less than perfect individuals, Washington rules the screen. His portrayal is one of many things that elevates this film to the level of being consistently entertaining and occasionally compelling. - James Berardinelli Variety 8 of 10
"American Gangster" wants to be a great epic crime saga so badly you can feel it. The true story at its core -- of the rise, fall and redemption of a '70s-era Harlem drug lord -- is so terrific, it's amazing it wasn't put onscreen long ago, and it would be difficult today to find two better actors to pit against one another, as hoodlum and cop, respectively, than Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. With so many elements going for it, this big, fat Universal release is absorbing, exciting at times and undeniably entertaining, and is poised to be a major commercial hit. But great it's not...Memories of numerous classics hang over this film like banners commemorating past championship teams -- "The Godfather," "Serpico," "Prince of the City," "Scarface" and "Goodfellas," among other modern-era crime-pic landmarks. Like most of those, this is a quintessential New York story, one you feel could have been the basis for a Sidney Lumet masterpiece. But while "American Gangster" is made with consummate professionalism on every level, it just doesn't quite feel like the real deal; it delivers, but doesn't soar...Based on a New York magazine article by Mark Jacobson, the story arc is so sensational it warrants outsized treatment...Still, Washington's steely grip on his impersonation of Frank Lucas holds the film together. - Todd McCarthy
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