Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Mr. Untouchable (2007)

Director: Marc Levin

Composer: Hi-Tek

Starring: Leroy 'Nicky' Barnes, Don Ferrarone, Thelma Grant, Carol Hawkins-Williams, Joseph Jazz Hayden, Leon Scrap Batts

More info: IMDb

Tagline: Godfather or Snitch

Plot: The true-life story of a Harlem's notorious Nicky Barnes, a junkie turned multimillionaire drug-lord, MR. UNTOUCHABLE takes its audience deep inside the heroin industry of the 1970s. The most powerful black drug kingpin in New York City history, Barnes came from humble beginnings to make himself and his comrades rich beyond their wildest dreams, ultimately reaching national infamy in 1977 when the New York Times put him on the front cover of their magazine with the headline "Mr. Untouchable". Soon after, it all came crumbling down, and facing a life sentence without parole, Barnes started naming names. With the first hand testimony from "the black Godfather" himself, this documentary tells an epic story of business, excess, greed and revenge.



My rating: 7/10

Will I watch it again?  Yes.

It's a great story but at the same time, this guy is responsible for countless deaths and spreading drugs like a virus.  The film does a fine job of hitting all the right beats from how Barnes got to being the top man to his eventual fall.  Barnes is a charismatic piece of shit but he's not above striking back when someone fucks him over and that's exactly what he did after he was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 1978.  He turned snitch big time when his crew stopped paying his attorney fees and one was sleeping with Barnes' wife.  He gave up EVERYBODY, including admitting to 8 murders he committed.  He was beloved and despised and you're likely to feel one way or the other by the end of the picture.  

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