American Gangster

I’ve been watching a lot of movies while I work. Hands down, my favorite so far is American Gangster. The movie is based on a true story where Frank Lucas figures out how to cut out all the middlemen in his drug-pushing business and a team of detectives is trying to take down the drug boss.

I have been thinking how the movie and its themes applied to boxing. A few parts in the movie stuck out for me. Number one was this little dialogue:

Frank Lucas: What is that you got on?
Huey Lucas: What? This?
Frank Lucas: Yeah, that.
Huey Lucas: This is a very, very, very nice suit.
Frank Lucas: That’s a very, very, very nice suit, huh?
Huey Lucas: Yeah.
Frank Lucas: That’s a clown suit. That’s a costume; with a big sign on it that says, “Arrest me”. You understand? You’re too loud, you’re making too much noise. Listen to me; the loudest one in the room is the weakest one in the room.

That’s so true. For example, Ricardo Mayorga is so loud and he always loses, but its entertaining. Floyd Mayweather Jr. he’s loud, but he’s weak in the sense he won’t fight the best. C’mon, he turned down an 8 million dollar offer to fight Antonio Margarito. Rumors continue to circulate the internet about him coming out of retirement but he wants a rematch with Ricky Hatton, forget about Hatton fight Manny Pacquiao, you already beat the Hit Man.

The second line in the movie that I liked was this one:

Chinese General: It’s not in my best interest to say this Frank, but quitting while you’re ahead, is not the same as quitting.

This is some thing Oscar De La Hoya should have done, quit before making a fool of himself losing to a smaller guy. Rumors are also circulating the Internet about him coming back because he doesn’t want to be remembered as a loser. Oscar just let it go and continue to promote other fights. If only we were smart enough at all times to live by those words.

Aside from that, if you haven’t seen American Gangster, go rent or buy the DVD and watch it right now. You won’t be sorry.