MR. UNTOUCHABLE is documentary of the rise of Leroy Nicky Barnes as one of New York’s most infamous drug dealers. At the top of his reign, Barnes built an heroin empire that pulled in millions of dollars. Barnes was eventually arrested and prosecuted for drug related crimes, when he turned informant, and basically snitched on his partners and other high level lieutenants within his “organization”. Barnes received early release from prison for his good behavior and is now in a witness protection program because of a million dollar hit on his head. Barnes now 70 tells the story of his life.
If you are documentary buff this movie is worth seeing, but at a time when many of our entertainers and sports player are becoming victims of urban lifestyle and crimes, this movies timing couldn’t be worst. I believe this movie focus too much on the rise of Nicky Barnes and less on the fall of Mr. Barnes. This movie glorifies his life and puts him on a pedestal as an icon.
Nicky Barnes is the man you love to hate, I couldn’t find any redeeming quality in him, or any sense of remorse for selling out his wife or his partners in crime. After serving time in prison you would think he would have a new perspective on the life he lived and the destruction of his empire by his ego. You leave this movie feeling like the wrong people are in jail and that Mr. Barnes is happy about putting them there. I think most shocking is the reason he turned states witness, if you think it’s some profound reason well you’re wrong. I won’t give the ending away, but I will tell you it’s all over a woman. The fact that most of the people involved received a jail sentence of at least ten years, comes at the end of the movie as a side note.
On a positive note, if you love New Jack City as I do, you would love watching this movie. Nino Bown’s character is loosely based on the life of Leroy Nicky Barnes, and seeing the similarities between the two is quite interesting. Overall I give this movie a C+. It’s just a documentary, there isn’t any unique angle or perspective on Nicky Barnes; it’s just simply a retelling of history that glorifies murder and drug dealers. The movie is entitled MR. UNTOUCHABLE, and it doesn’t even focus on how he received the nickname, or the many times he was accused of crimes and got off. Instead it’s a biography on film that just feeds his insatiable ego.
