American Me

Director: Edward James Olmos Edward James Olmos

Overview

"The directorial debut of actor Edward James Olmos, the drama American Me, comes to DVD with a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. English and French soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Surround. Spanish subtitles are accessible, and the English soundtrack is closed-captioned. Supplemental materials include the award-winning documentary Lives in Hazard. This is a solid release from Universal."

Product Details

Release Date:	01/07/2003
UPC:	0025192057427
Original Release:	1992
Rating:	R
Source:	STUDIO DISTRIBUTION SERVS LLC
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:06:00
Sales rank:	11,745

Special Features

Closed Caption; Lives in Hazard documentary

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Edward James Olmos	Santana
William Forsythe	J.D.
Pepe Serna	Mundo
Danny De La Paz	Puppet
Evelina Fernandez	Julie
Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa	El Japo
Daniel Villarreal	Little Puppet
Sal Lopez	Pedro
Daniel A. Haro	Huero
Vira Montes	Esperanza
Panchito Gomez	Young Santana,Eddie
Steve Wilcox	Young JD
Richard Coca	Young Mundo
Roberto Martin Marquez	Acha
Dyana Ortelli	Yolanda
Joe Aubel	Tattoo Artist
Rob Garrett	Zoot Riot Bystander
Lance August	Young Sailor
Cody Glenn	Older Sailor
Don Pugsley	Police Officer
Albert Joe Medina Jr.	Street Mechanic
Alex Solis	Street Mechanic
Raymond Amezquita	Abuelito
Javier Castellanos	Hazard Kid
Richard Lee-Sung	Restaurant Owner
Eric Close	Juvie Hall Attacker
Christian Klemash	Blonde Kid in Yard
Brian Joe Holechek	Juvie Officer
Rigoberto Jimenez	Big Happy
Domingo Ambriz	Pie Face
Ron Thompson	Junkie
Glenn Shelton	Visiting Room Guard
Scott Johnstad	Visiting Room Guard
Abraham Verduzco	Paulito (age 7)
Grace Morley	JD's Friend
Vic Trevino	Cheetah
Robby Robinson	Drug Thief
Paul Bollen	Doc
Guillermo Perez	Willie-Vato
Robert Chavez	Sparky
Rafael H. Robledo	El Chucko,El Chucko
Modesto M. Sanchez	Mo
Dennis Ryan Sacco	Paulito (age 11)
Michael A. Shaner	Tony Scagnelli Jr.,Tony Scagnelli Jr.
Tom S. Ventimiglia	Segregation Guard
William Fetzer	Processing Guard
Thomas Richard Gorman III	Processing Guard
George Padilla	Mundo's Attorney
Humberto Madrigal	Veneno
Jose Guardado	Samson
Jacob Vargas	Paulito (age 15)
Daniel Lujan	Mico (age 9)
Rodney Rincon	Shoe Salesman
John Rangel	Neto (age 15)
Robert Pucci	Bodyguard
Tony Giorgio	Don Antonio Scagnelli
Sabino Villalobos	Tin Man
Armando Briseno	Chuy
Mauricio Ernesto Anzueto	Bam Bam
Manny Perry	Arthur J.
Bennie Moore	Ronnie Little
Alex Brown	Eddie Johnson
William Smith	Deacon
Gerald L. Walker	BGF Member
William T. Amos	Tank
Irma Aurea Garcia	Lourdes
Roberto Alvarez	Ralphy
Ken Medlock	Cop
Rolando Molina	Cop
Anna Lizarraga	Julie's Mother
Steven Cisneros	Chivo
Tom Bower	Dornan (uncredited)
Bob Morones	Actor
Claude Gaudette	Composer
Dennis Lambert	Composer

Technical Credits

Floyd Mutrux

Desmond Nakano

Edward James Olmos	Director,Producer
Floyd Mutrux	Screenwriter,Executive Producer,Producer
Desmond Nakano	Screenwriter
Lou Adler	Executive Producer,Producer
Sean Daniel	Producer
Robert M. Young	Producer,Executive Producer,Producer,Executive Producer
Chuck Picerni Jr.	Stunts

Editorial Reviews

This searing drama, the directorial debut of star Edward James Olmos, is an ambitious fusion of crime epic à la The Godfather and social exposé. It's a tough balance to pull off, but American Me works because it maintains this agenda by balancing brutal realism with dramatic subtlety. As it charts the way the criminal justice system allows misguided kids to become hardened criminals, the film achieves an impressive sense of tragic grandeur without ever pulling its punches or giving in to cheap melodrama. That said, American Me isn't an easy film to warm up to for more than one reason. The first is its refusal to flinch from the ugly reality of its subject matter; though it is never dealt out in a glorified manner, American Me presents the savage violence of the drug trade with a gruesome, vivid sense of detail that will shock many people. The other reason is that it doesn't give the viewer an identification figure to latch on to; the central characters aren't presented in a way that inspires sympathy, and none of them ever experience an audience-friendly moment of redemption. These factors may limit the appeal of American Me, but it remains well worth the effort for the brave viewer because it is an extremely well-made film. Olmos reveals himself to be quite a stylist behind the camera, making deft use of cross-cutting to amplify the film's level of drama during key sequences and crafting a number of nerve-jangling set pieces along the way (an assassination during a prison film screening is a standout). He also gives a powerful yet controlled performance as Santana, and his work is skillfully supported by an array of distinguished supporting performances, most notably Evelina Fernandez as his ill-fated love interest and Danny De La Paz as a colleague whose faithfulness to his criminal organization comes with a heavy cost. To sum up, American Me is not for every viewer but anyone interested in a powerful, realistic crime drama will find it a rewarding experience.