"American Gangster" extras

email this story
read comments (15)
post a comment

For the most part, the extra 18 or 19 minutes of footage in the American Gangster Extended Cut DVD (out Tuesday) feeds right into the whole with a sense of absolute harmony. We all know what it feels like when a film has had lumps added to its stocking with "flavor" or directorial "darlings." This is not one of those cases. This is more like the extended Bugsy or Aliens. I would have been that much happier with American Gangster if these extras had been in from the get-go.

Josh Brolin (center), Ridley Scott (r.) during preparation of American Gangster's dog-shooting scene

The two biggest stand-outs are a "Bumpy on the beach" scene (a flashback to Denzel Washington and Clarence Williams III talking about supply and demand and the middle man out at Coney Island) and a follow/chase scene with Richie Roberts/Russell Crowe tailing a member of Frank Lucas's gang who's "carrying."

One of the additional scenes seems gratuitous, but only a wee bit. I'm speaking of an extended finale after Washington gets out of prison and finds Crowe saying "welcome back" and taking him on a walk through the new Harlem. I enjoyed a line that Washington says about a trio of young hip-hoppers ("I guess you can only be young and dumb once" or something similar) that's taken verbatim from Lucas in Marc Jacobson's "Return of Superfly" article. But the ending in the theatrical version is tighter, cleaner, preferred.

Disc 2, however, has an omitted alternate beginning that's far superior to the one used in the theatrical version. Instead of a short nighttime scene with Washington setting a guy on fire and then shooting him as Williams looks on, the alternate is a blue-tinted, dialogue-free prologue in a diner (or a bar) that shows Washington walking in the front door and plugging a guy who's just sitting there and tapping the seat of a chair with with a pair of drumsticks. The spooky, dreamlike aura gets you right off the top. I can't imagine why Scott decided to use the other scene instead. Scott uses the last portion of this sequence at the tail-end of the extended version, after the closing credits.

Barkley Blurts<< previous | next >>Down on the plantation

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on February 17, 2008 at 2:48 PM

comment #1

Geoff says ...

That alternate opening is like the scene in the trailer? I loved that shot when I first saw it.

Posted by Geoff at February 17, 2008 3:57 PM

comment #2

Shane says ...

That shot from the trailer is also at the tail end of the feature version, too. It has kind of a "Great Train Robbery" effect, much like the shot after the credits of "Assassination of Jesse James."

Posted by Shane at February 17, 2008 4:21 PM

comment #3

Geoff says ...

You know, that ending sounds crappy the more I think about it. I have to see it, but I loved the theatrical and this is reminding me of when The Exorcist was released in theaters, which had a horrible ending.

Posted by Geoff at February 17, 2008 5:42 PM

comment #4

actionman says ...

Can't wait to pick this dvd up on Tuesday. Loved the theatrical version and I'm really excited to see more footage.

Posted by actionman at February 17, 2008 5:49 PM

comment #5

BurmaShave says ...

Is there a cooler man alive than Josh Brolin? Look at him. Seriously. In the words of Mamet, motherfucker is so cool sheep count him.

Posted by BurmaShave at February 17, 2008 5:53 PM

comment #6

Jimmycrackcorn says ...

I don't think it's possible to overstate how bad the epilogue is in this extended cut. The flashback scene with Clarence Williams is pretty bad, too. Even the "drummer" alternate opening stinks. These were all very sensible trims and the movie is much better without them.

Posted by Jimmycrackcorn at February 17, 2008 7:27 PM

comment #7

Geoff says ...

Jimmycrackcorn

I will reserve my final judgement until I see the uncut version, but I seem to be confident in your analysis.

I read Wells' review and was surprised with how much I agreed with him. After I came out of the film I felt greedy, and wanted more footage to bask in. But the vibe I'm getting so far isn't convincing me the ucut version is anything special.

I loved the theatrical, and I loved the closing shot, which is always an integral part of any film.

Posted by Geoff at February 17, 2008 11:12 PM

comment #8

knightrider76 says ...

I've noticed that Ridley Scott always comes out with director's cuts. Shouldn't studios give him free reign by now to have final theatrical cut???? Cmon!!!!

Posted by knightrider76 at February 18, 2008 12:03 AM

comment #9

houmas says ...

I remember one or two of the early "spy" reviews on AICN slamming the original opening (where Washington walks into a bar, Sillouhette style and shoots a gun toward the camera) as being "cheesy" and being too much like a James Bond opening sequence. It's possible that Ridley and/or the producers read those criticisms, and took it on board. It's funny to think that some nitpicky nerd writing into AICN could possibly influence how a film is cut, but these days, anything's possible.

I think that scene would have been a better, and quirker start to the film. And to be honest, they could have added the scene with Lucas and Bumpy shooting and burning the guy, at any point in the film (maybe as a flashback sequence). It was a real waste to put the original opening after the credits, imho.

I thought the theatrical version was excellent though, so I do want to see the extended version.

Posted by houmas at February 18, 2008 10:20 AM

comment #10

ctj3525 says ...

I have never seen the theatrical cut and just finished the extended cut on dvd. Movie felt like another hour was still needed to fully tell the story proper. Good flick but not great. A little too cinematic and lacking in realism.

Posted by ctj3525 at February 20, 2008 7:44 PM

comment #11