Re: American Gangster Extended Edition
I also caught the note about the Extended cut not being color corrected, but I didn't notice anything like that, or I would have said so in my review. I think what that reviewer was seeing was one of the first extended sequences is a beach flashback with Bumpy Johnson that is very bright. But I didn't think that was an issue of color correction.
I believe the chase into New York was also extended a bit, and yes, the ending goes on for another few minutes, but it really doesn't add anything substantial to the proceedings.
I totally understand where Scott was coming from in trying to circumvent the pirates by putting the longer cut out. I think he was right to try to do something. On the other hand, the usual Charles de Lauzirika documentary and good extras also go a long way toward providing extra value. And I wouldn't be surprised to see that people are already trying to pirate the extended cut as well. Those guys are relentless.
I also agree with Nathan that this is a subtle and effective film. Keep in mind that it's not a really flashy film as people probably expected from Scott. But it's consistent with the story and the characters that it's more understated and muted. Frank Lucas rarely did anything flashy, and when he did, he regretted it.
Finally, I'm going to do the unthinkable and recommend anyone interested to my review here. (You can find it on the 2nd or 3rd page now, or just go up to the Software Review section) I didn't itemize the Extended Cut differences, but I gave the best summary I could of what's on the disc. Sam Posten has a review up on the HD-DVD combo disc in the Hi-Def section, too.
