The opening credits of “Gangster’s Paradise” note that it was “inspired by real events.” It would be more accurate to say that the film was inspired by Brian De Palma’s “Scarface” and similar fare.
Written and directed by music-video veteran Ralph Ziman, “Gangster’s Paradise” charts the rise of Lucky Kunene — a South African black man who says his idols are Karl Marx and Al Capone — from a clean-cut kid who wants to go to college, to a petty crook, then to a notorious gang leader and slumlord.
The proceedings start promisingly, with snappy lensing and a charismatic performance by hulking Rapulana Seiphemo as Lucky.
But the story falls apart when Lucky improbably becomes involved with a rich white woman who has a druggie brother. The movie loses all credibility when Lucky dons a yarmulke and joins the woman for her family’s Passover seder.