American Gangster - The Complete First Season
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DVD details
Actor: Alex Alonso, Barry Michael Cooper, Bernard Parks, Cornell Jones, Nelson GeorgeBrand: PARAMOUNT HOME VIDEO
Producer: Nelson George
Producer: Chris Mortensen
Producer: Frank Sinton
Producer: Henry Schipper
Producer: Lauren Feldman
Producer: Lea Walker
Producer: Mark Monroe
Producer: Mark Rowland
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 180 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-10-23
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Paramount
DVD Reviews of American Gangster - The Complete First Season
DVD Review: Violent Crime Reinforces Savage Stereotypes
Summary: 2 Stars
This well-made series shamelessly celebrates black criminals, elevating ghetto drug dealers, murderers and thieves to mythic status in the heroic outlaw tradition of Jesse James, Billy the Kid, John Dillinger, and Bonnie & Clyde. Each episode follows a familiar formula. First the gangster is depicted as a victim of a white racist power structure. In turn, this "victimization" excuses the most horrific crimes. Case in point: remorseless convicted murderer Stanley "Tookie" Williams is situated within a historical continuum where the gangs of South Central L.A. were formed "to fend off white vigilantes who terrorized an expanding black community." Later the Black Panthers "provided hopeful options for those at the bottom of the social ladder." However, these noble champions were undone "through a campaign of murder and subversion sanctioned by the FBI director, J. Edgar Hoover." That created a social vacuum filled by violent street gangs such as the Crips and Bloods.
Accordingly, Crips cofounder Tookie Williams is not responsible for the 15,000 Angelenos killed by gangbangers since the 1970s; J. Edgar Hoover is to blame. Small wonder, then, that no grieving survivor appears on camera to humanize Tookie's four 1979 murder victims, none of whom was black. The 26-year-old white convenience-store clerk made to lie facedown in a storage room as two shotgun blasts are pumped into his back, and the Korean family of three slaughtered during the course of a $100 robbery at their South Central motel, are accorded less time and respect than Tookie's narcissistic muscleman poses that year on 'The Gong Show.'
Since the graphic postmortem photographs of Yen-I Yang sprawled in a pool of blood and of her daughter Yu-Chin Yang Lin, with half her face blown away by a shotgun at close range, would have made Tookie a less sympathetic figure, they are conveniently not shown on 'American Gangster.' This pattern is followed throughout the series. In justifying criminal choices as if they were hardwired into the black experience, 'American Gangster' gives BET big ratings and an even bigger black eye. "You can take an African out of the jungle," goes the racist slur, "but you can't take the jungle out of an African." 'American Gangster' plays right into that vile caricature.
DVD Review: A fair and balanced look at gangsters
Summary: 5 Stars
OK, I know the title sounds like a total paradox. After all, gangsters are murderous thugs who ruin lives and destroy communities. However, "American Gangster" does a great job at looking at all aspects of these people, as well as raising questions about the circumstances of their take-downs. The Freeway Ricky Ross is probably the best episode, as it demonstrates how the CIA allowed the Central and South American cartels to distribute crack into the inner city (in other words, the conspiracy theories are largely true about crack). I looked up a lot of the stuff that was in that episode, and apparently American Gangster did its homework because virtually everything stated in this episode was backed up by internal CIA memos and the late Gary Webb's excellent expose. However, all the episodes are excellent, and the show brings to light gangsters I never knew existed (the Chambers Brothers, et al). Ving Rhames may not be Morgan Freeman, but he is an excellent narrator and really sets the tone. Overall, BET did an excellent job telling the story of these gangsters without either over-villianizing them or overly-glorifying them (never thought I'd ever say something positive about BET).DVD Review: American gangster
Summary: 5 Stars
my husband loved it he has season 2 and he really liked the first season as wellDVD Review: American Gangster - The Complete First Season
Summary: 5 Stars
Great educational peace of work, I find this to be interesting as well as entertainingDVD Review: What an Eye Opener!
Summary: 5 Stars
Not only do you get a real look into the lives of mostly high profile drug dealers and those people and large communities (often metropolitan cities) affected by the drug dealers' actions, you also get an look at the corruption within the United States government, FBI, CIA, and other government divisions which is far too often kept under the radar by the mainstream media. It is very sad to know how corrupt the government is, how free speech within the United States media is just an illusion (you'll notice a reoccurring true life theme of how those journalists who exposed government corruption were always blackballed in their media careers and harassed by the government), AND have a close up into what some people would do to their own neighborhoods and families for money.
Not only do I highly recommend both the 1st and 2nd season DVDs but I would want every single American to view it. I WOULD REALLY URGE PARENTS TO VIEW THESE DVDs WITH THEIR CHILDREN (probably ages 13-17). These documentaries are that important!
In addition to being an excellent educational tool both DVDs are intense, thrilling, and easily kept the attention of myself and my friends. It is worth every penny of its price!
Description of American Gangster - The Complete First Season
AMERICAN GANGSTER is BET's critically acclaimed, highly rated crime docu-series that explores the historical, socio-economic and political context surrounding the rise and fall of 9 notorious African-American criminal minds. These are not just your two-bit hustlers.One modeled his organization after the management structure of General Motors. Another studied gemology to be well versed and blend in among an elite audience of jewelers and high end collectors. Another was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature for children's books before he was eventually executed. What was the catalyst for their life of crime? How does their story begin and end? This groundbreaking series digs deeper to answer these and other poignant questions.A fascinating, hypnotic documentary series, American Gangster investigates the lives of African-American druglords, thieves, and gang leaders. The most compelling story is probably that of Stanley "Tookie" Williams, who co-founded the Crips, counseled at-risk youth, appeared on The Gong Show as a bodybuilder, had a mental breakdown from drug use, had a social awakening in prison, and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end gang warfare, before finally being executed for multiple murders. But American Gangster also uses his story to delve into how the cultural vacuum created by the collapse of the civil rights movement led to the rise of gangs--just as its episodes on drug lords like the Chamber Brothers and Leroy "Nicky" Barnes (who appeared on the cover of a Sunday New York Times Magazine next to the headline "Mr. Untouchable") explore the history of heroin and cocaine trafficking. Narrated by the authoritative voice of Ving Rhames (Rosewood, Dawn of the Dead), the show balances salacious details (the women who sorted "Freeway" Ricky Ross's cocaine did so topless, so that they couldn't steal any) and sharp sociological observations. The life of Ross, whose blocked aspirations as a tennis player led to a wildly successful drug empire, intersects with the Iran-Contra scandals of the Reagan Administration. The episode about jewel thieves Dino and Troy Smith, who went in for one last score after going straight for a while, plays out like a topnotch thriller, while the life of Lorenzo "Fat Cat" Nichols seems even more of a sad waste than these other ambitious, intelligent, and ruthless men whose talents found no place in the American mainstream. American Gangster doesn't forgive anyone's crimes, but its breadth of vision demonstrates the social forces that make crime seem inevitable. The result is compulsive and enlightening viewing. --Bret Fetzer
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