HD DVD Review: American Gangster - Page 2

What shouldn’t be skipped by those who are intrigued by the filmmaking process is the marvelous commentary track featuring Scott and writer Steven Zaillian in separate sessions. It is very informative about the many aspects of the film, including the early stages of pre-production as they worked on the script, moved onto other projects when it went into turnaround, and then returned to make the project. Scott gives a master class in directing, talking this film and others and how he works with actors, the writer, and the cinematographer. He provides informative technical info. Zaillian talks about his process as a screenwriter, from what he was trying to accomplish in the script to what he does during production.

The extras also include an alternate opening, deleted scenes, and a very short feature with the cast and their real-life counterparts. On the flipside, the standard version offers an unrated extended version of the film with 22 extra minutes, which includes a warning that it may affect playability on some DVD models.

Article Author: Gordon S. Miller

Gordon S. Miller is the artist formerly known as El Bicho, the nom de plume he used when he first began reviewing movies online for The Masked Movie Snobs in 2003. Before that year was out, he became that site's publisher. …

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