Review

The effects of crime and the efforts of a group of black crooks to control their turf in 1930s Harlem is the subject of this minor gangster outing. Fishburne is "Bumpy" Johnson, a slick con artist just out of the slammer who wants to make his mark on New York's organized crime front. He assimilates himself into the lucrative numbers racket run by the Queen (Tyson), but soon finds the operation in trouble when veteran bad boy Dutch Schultz (Roth with a bad haircut) muscles in. In cahoots with Schultz is Lucky Luciano (Garcia), a hedonistic manipulator who takes his cut of the profits despite his disdain for his partner. Director Duke (A Rage in Harlem) and screenwriter Chris Brancato (who mixed fact with fancy in Mobsters) have classic aspirations, but don't have the chutzpah to put it all together. There's fine period production work and costumes, but their effort simply lacks the type of style needed to pull off an epic gangster movie. This could have something to do with a restricted budget, but with a fine cast and the subject of racism a point worth exploring, the result is rather flat. Bumpy? You bet.