'American Gangster' (2007)

'American Gangster' (2007)

From That's Not How It Went Down by Lewis Howard & Elliot Fitzpatrick

March 31, 2026 · 58 min · Season 1 · Episode 77

About this episode

The episode discusses the film 'American Gangster' and its themes, comparing it to other works and exploring historical accuracy.

After cementing his place in the action/thriller genre with an Oscar for his performance as the corrupt Alonzo Harris, Denzel Washington began a period of starring in an action film almost every year for the next decade and a half. Whilst always brilliant in whatever he does, there is one film from this collection that is held in a similar regard to 2001's Training Day, and it's probably unsurprising that it shares similar themes. As we found with Catch Me If You Can, stories that end with cooperation between a criminal and their pursuer can sometimes be exaggerated but so long as you stick to the theatrical cut of this film, we can keep our focus on the journey that leads to this conclusion. Did Frank Lucas really establish the 'Cadaver Connection'? How much of Ritchie Roberts' actions actually occurred? And was there money under the doghouse..? Join us to find out on That's Not How It Went Down! Subscribe now for further listening: https://tnhiwd.supercast.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Hosts: Lewis Howard, Elliot Fitzpatrick

Topics covered

  • action film
  • thriller
  • Denzel Washington
  • true crime
  • film analysis

Keywords

  • American Gangster
  • Denzel Washington
  • Frank Lucas
  • Ritchie Roberts
  • true story
  • film review
  • action thriller

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: American Gangster, Training Day, Catch Me If You Can

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