American Gangster - Character

The protagonist, Frank Lucas, is a compelling character. His qualities:

Disciplined:
- Here's Robbins' description of Lucas from the script:
"He gets up early. Five a.m. Has breakfast at a Midtown place, usually alone. Then goes to work. Meeting with his accountant, or lawyer, dropping in on one of the several office buildings he owns. Nights, he usually stays home. When he does go out, it's to a club or dinner - with his new wife - friends, celebrities, sports figures - never O.C. guys. Sundays he takes his mother to church. Then drives out to change the flowers on Bumpy's grave. Every Sunday, no matter what."

Over-the-top Violent:
- The opening scene has Frank dowsing someone is gasoline and casually setting him on fire before shooting him six times. (Note: this scene isn't in the script I have. It's a good addition, clearly introduces the subject and tone)
- Lucas casually shoots rival gangster Tango in front of 50 witnesses, then leaves him a tip. (Personal note: I'm going to make that a habit. Whenever I shoot someone in the head, I'm going to leave them a tip. I joke with you.)

Family Oriented:
- Enlists his entire family in his business.
- Buys his mother a new house.
- Let's his mother smack him.

Goes the extra mile:
- Goes all the way to the Golden Triangle to buy heroin direct from the supplier.
- Invests everything he has, the whole $400k, in the venture.

Dresses Conservatively:
- It's the chinchilla coat that begins his downfall, causes both Trupo and Robbins to notice him.

So what! This isn't film club, why should I care? What use is this to me as a screenwriter?

General Screenwriting Principle: Complex characters, that are both good and bad, are more interesting and sympathetic than one-dimensional perfectly good or utterly evil characters.
Examples:
- Lucas is more interesting and sympathetic because he's loyal to his family.
- The scene where nephew Stevie says "I don't want to play baseball anymore, I want to be like you Uncle Frank" is dramatic in it's own right.
- The scene where Mama Lucas smacks Frank. Awesome.
- The scene where Frank throws the $50,000 chinchilla coat into the fire. Awesome.
- The act 3 scene, where Lucas tells Robbins about "normal" being the cops shooting his 12 year old cousin, creates sympathy for Lucas.

Note that all these scenes, some of the most dramatic and interesting in the script, are scenes where gangster Lucas shows his good side. If Lucas only had a bad side, these scenes couldn't have been in the story.