Categories & segments

American Gangster poster
American Gangster

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

American Gangster The Rewatchables

Roger Guenveur Smith leads a deep field

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:48Read transcript
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Half-Assed Internet Research

American Gangster The Rewatchables

Research covers budget penalties, gifts, real-world family connections, locations, and a Godfather Part III idea

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:38:11Read transcript
  • Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott reportedly returned three million dollars after overrunning the budget
  • The BET series American Gangster is noted as predating the movie
  • Russell Crowe reportedly gave RZA a mint 1961 Gretsch guitar and they remained friends
  • Frank Lucas’s real driver is identified as Sean Combs’s father, who was killed when Combs was two
  • The production used parts of upper Manhattan that could still pass for 1970s New York
  • Francis Ford Coppola reportedly considered a Frank Lucas-like character for The Godfather Part III
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Apex Mountain

American Gangster The Rewatchables

The film peaks for sprawling, disjointed gangster films and drug-kingpin biopics; many people and subjects are debated

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:40:44Read transcript
  • Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, and Ridley Scott are rejected as apex choices
  • Sprawling, disjointed gangster films are assigned an apex
  • John Ortiz is discussed as near an apex performance
  • John Hawkes is judged not yet at his apex
  • Harlem films are rejected, with Mo’ Better Blues preferred
  • Miami Vice is selected for the Golden Triangle on screen
  • Josh Brolin is rejected because No Country for Old Men released the same year
  • Lymari Nadal is assigned her apex as Frank’s wife
  • Bad portrayals of 1960s and 1970s athletes are assigned an apex
  • Real drug-kingpin biopics are assigned an apex, with Blow and Paid in Full as comparators
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Cruise or Hanks?

American Gangster The Rewatchables

Tom Hanks wins for Richie Roberts; Martin Scorsese and Philip Seymour Hoffman are also chosen

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:45:06Read transcript
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Picking Nits

American Gangster The Rewatchables

Frank’s market position, lack of consequences, unclear chronology, family awareness, and fabricated epilogue are challenged

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:46:44Read transcript
  • Frank’s superior direct supply should have let him eliminate Harlem competition
  • Territory and distribution relationships are offered as constraints on expansion
  • Frank faces no repercussions for shooting Tango in public
  • Harlem loyalty is offered as an explanation for the silence
  • Woody Allen and Diane Keaton are shown together before their real relationship and before Keaton was well known
  • The chronology is too unclear about whether scenes are weeks or years apart
  • Frank’s mother knowing he sells drugs is criticized as disconnected from the movie’s reality
  • The closing-title claims are mocked for extending the film’s fabrications
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

American Gangster The Rewatchables

A satirical all-white remake is cast

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:49:37Read transcript
  • The usual all-Black-remake prompt is inverted into an all-white American Gangster
  • Mark Ruffalo and Adam Scott are proposed, with Scott as Nicky Barnes
  • Rob McElhenney is proposed as Tango and Tom Cruise as Frank
  • Sally Field is proposed as Frank’s mother
  • JJ Redick is proposed as Stevie, changing baseball to basketball
American Gangster poster
American Gangster

Is This Movie Better With…?

American Gangster The Rewatchables

A faux Bob Costas-style narration is selected from an expanded list

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:50:38Read transcript
  • The candidate list includes Wayne Jenkins, Danny Trejo, Mad Dog Russo, Doris Burke, Samuel L. Jackson, Nora Byer, Tony Romo, Chris Collinsworth, Daniel Plainview, Longlegs, Bangkok Craig, and Wilford Brimley
  • A mock historical-sports narration about Frank and Blue Magic is performed as the choice
Displaying discussions 1165 - 1176 of 2932 in total