Despite its grandiose title and being based on a true story, American Gangster is not the definitive American gangster film. Only half the film concerns the gangster element, although it is the classic rise to power story through boldness, cunning and strategic brutality. The other half of the film is the archetypal story of an increasingly shunned cop who overcomes the odds to dispense justice. This aspect of American Gangster, plus its 70s New York and New Jersey urban settings, make it evoke The French Connection and Serpico more than The Godfather or Goodfellas.
Film review – American Gangster (2007)
29 January 2008
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Film review | Tagged: American Gangster, Black Hawk Down, David Fincher, Denzel Washington, Francis Ford Coppola, gangster film, Gladiator, Goodfellas, Heat, Martin Scorsese, Michael Mann, New York, Ridley Scott, Russell Crowe, Serpico, Sidney Lumet, The French Connection, The Godfather, Vietnam War, William Friedkin, Zodiac | 
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Posted by Thomas Caldwell
Film review – Deja Vu (2006)
22 December 2006Tony Scott films tend to be a hit or miss affair. Deja Vu does not miss completely but it certainly isn’t a hit either. Denzel Washington plays AFT Agent Doug Carlin who is convinced that an investigation into the recent murder of a young woman will reveal the mastermind behind a horrific terrorist attack against a New Orleans ferry carrying returning servicemen and their families. During his investigation he is recruited by FBI Agent Andrew Pryzwarra (Val Kilmer) into a special task force that has the technology to see into past. Before too long Carlin discovers that this technology may enable him to do more than simply look into the past.
Comments Off on Film review – Deja Vu (2006) | Film review | Tagged: Back to the Future, Back to the Future Part II, Back to the Future Part III, Deja Vu, Denzel Washington, James Cameron, Jonathan Mostow, Robert Zemeckis, science fiction, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, The Terminator, Tony Scott, Val Kilmer | Permalink
Posted by Thomas Caldwell
