The American Gangster The American Gangster The American Gangster is a 1992 American crime documentary film directed by Ben Burtt and written and produced by Ray Herbeck Jr. The documentary is narrated by Dennis Farina and explores the lives of America's gangsters like Pretty Boy Floyd, John Dillinger, Al Capone, and Bugsy Siegel. It was directly released on VHS in 1992 and later released as part of a DVD box set in 2006. "The American Gangster" is a documentary that chronicles the formation of the first generation of American gangsters. The documentary explores the illegal businesses involving gambling, prostitution, and defiance of prohibition
American Gangster (film) departure. After Fuqua's departure, the studio met with Peter Berg to take over directing the film, and Denzel Washington had approved of the choice. Due to the search potentially escalating a budget already in the US$80 million range and the difficulty in recouping the amount based on the film's subject matter, Universal canceled production of "American Gangster", citing time constraints and creative elements for its reason. The cancellation cost the studio $30 million, of which $20 million went to Washington and $5 million went to del Toro due to their pay or play contracts. In March 2005, "American Gangster" was