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A drug lord smuggles heroin into Harlem during the 1970s by hiding the stash inside the coffins of American soldiers returning from Vietnam.

Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott team to tell the true juggernaut success story of a cult hero from the streets of 1970s Harlem in American Gangster.

Nobody used to notice Frank Lucas (Oscar® winner Washington), the quiet driver to one of the inner city’s leading black crime bosses. But when his boss suddenly dies, Frank exploits the opening in the power structure to build his own empire and create his own version of the American Dream. Through ingenuity and a strict business ethic, he comes to rule the inner-city drug trade, flooding the streets with a purer product at a better price. Lucas outplays all of the leading crime syndicates and becomes not only one of the city’s mainline corrupters, but part of its circle of legit civic superstars.

Richie Roberts (Oscar® winner Crowe) is an outcast cop close enough to the streets to feel a shift of control in the drug underworld. Roberts believes someone is climbing the rungs above the known Mafia families and starts to suspect that a black power player has come from nowhere to dominate the scene. Both Lucas and Roberts share a rigorous ethical code that sets them apart from their own colleagues, making them lone figures on opposite sides of the law. The destinies of these two men will become intertwined as they approach a confrontation where only one of them can come out on top.

Starring : Denzel Washington , Russell Crowe , Cuba Gooding Jr.

Notes :
Russell Crowe requested tape recordings of Richie Roberts speaking in order to match his voice mannerisms accurately.

When this project was canceled by Universal, actors Denzel Washington and Benicio Del Toro received their salaries nonetheless. A pay-or-play deal was stipulated in both of their contracts that Universal would pay Washington $20 million and Del Toro $5 million regardless of whether the film was made or not. When this project was green-lit a second time by Universal, Washington received another $20 million, ultimately pocketing $40 million on this motion picture.

Official Site :

- View ‘A Look Inside’: Watch a video clip of the Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, and Ridley Scott discussing the film!

- Get the Inside Scoop: On Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts as you navigate through exclusive video clips, text, and images

- Download: Desktops and Buddy Icon images

High Definition Trailer