Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Messages gone awry: American Gangster

I recently read an interesting analysis of "American Gangster" by George Will. I have not seen this film--from what I've heard, though, it doesn't look like one which I will be seeing...

However, this review includes some very interesting scrutiny of how morality and our impressions are manipulated in this film. I don't know how accurate George Will is overall, but this is pretty incisive.

In "American Gangster," Frank Lucas, proud of the purity of his Blue Magic heroin, upbraids a dealer for selling a less-pure product under that name, denouncing the "trademark infringement" that damages "the brand." Message: A drug kingpin can master MBA-speak; the line between commerce and crime is blurry. (paragraph 5)

Read the whole story here.

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