Gangster films have been popular fare since the early days of Hollywood, from the trendsetting classics of the early '30s such as Public Enemy, Little Caesar and the original Scarface to The Godfather trilogy in later years and more recently, the hit HBO series, The Sopranos.
Moviegoers worldwide developed a hot-and-cold fascination with tough guys in the initial years, making stars of 'bad boys' James Cagney, Edward G. Robinson, George Raft and Paul Muni, among others.
In the early 1950s, the love/hate relationship with gangsters waned, but in the early '70s, writer/ director Francis Ford Coppola and Paramount Pictures teamed up to make the quintessential mob epic, The Godfather, based on Mario Puzo's best-selling novel.
The film, starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall and Diane Keaton, spawned two sequels and is the standard by which films in the genre are judged.
Email your take on the 10 best gangster films of all time to saturdaylife@gleanerjm.com.
Marlon Brando
1. THE GODFATHER (1972)
Despite its marathon length (three hours), this groundbreaking film remains a masterpiece by virtue of its exceptional cast and compelling story. It won the Best Picture Oscar, while Brando also took home an Oscar for his great performance as the Mafia patriarch Don Corleone. The film places strong emphasis on family and loyalty, contrasting with the brutal underbelly of the mob world. Another plus - Nina Rota's magnificent score. Epic!
De Niro
2. GODFATHER Part II (1974)
Starring Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and the usual suspects (except Brando) from the first film. Michael Corleone (Pacino) consolidates his power with merciless might. The flick also won the award for Best Picture; De Niro picked up a Best Supporting Oscar as well.
3.THE UNTOUCHABLES (1987)
Starring Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, Andy Garcia and a sneering De Niro as legendary Chicago crime boss, Al Capone. Based on the rip-roaring, violent television series of the late 1950s and '60s, Costner scored as federal agent Elliot Ness who, with a small band of men, vowed to bring down Capone. There are great performances from De Niro and Connery, who won a Supporting Oscar for his role as a tough but ageing Irish cop. Ennio Morricone's (The Good, The Bad and The Ugly) powerful score also enhances the film.
4. GOODFELLAS (1990)
Starring Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci and directed by the legendary Martin Scorsese. Another violent tale about a young man (Liotta) becoming part of the Brooklyn mob, fulfilling his boyhood dream.
5. ANGELS WITH DIRTY FACES (1938)
Starring James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, Humphrey Bogart. Cagney and O'Brien play boyhood friends growing up in the slums of NYC. One becomes a priest (O'Brien) and the other a notorious gangster who is idolised by strong-arm youth (the Dead End Kids) when he returns to his old neighbourhood 20 years later. Cagney breaks down in the electric chair in an effort to save the boys. "The yellow rat was gonna spit in my eyes" was the classic line at the end. Great stuff.
6.CASINO(1995)
Starring Robert De Niro, Sharon Stone, Joe Pesci and James Wood. The blockbuster (directed by Martin Scorsese) focuses on the life and times of the mob in Las Vegas. An engrossing film, with Stone scoring big as De Niro's unfaithful wife.
7.SCARFACE (1983)
Starring Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer and directed by Brian Da Palma. This updated version of the 1930s classic depicts Pacino as a Cuban refugee in Miami shooting his way to the top with deadly consequences. Pretty violent.
8. HOODLUM (1997)
Starring Laurence Fishburne, Vanessa L. Williams, Tim Roth, Cicely Tyson and Andy Garcia as legendary gangster Lucky Luciano. Fishburne portrays real-life African-American mobster 'Bumpy' Johnson, who successfully took on the Mafia in Harlem circa 1950s. Roth scores big as rival gangster Dutch Schultz, a slimy villain.
9.CARLITO'S WAY (1993)
Starring Al Pacino, Penelope Ann Miller and Sean Penn. Pacino, in the title role of an of ageing ex-con who returns to his old neighbour, finds that times have changed. The film climaxes with a beautifully staged shoot-out between Pacino and the mob in a NY train station, but in the end he doesn't make it.
10.BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967)
Starring Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Gene Hackman. Beatty and Dunaway are perfect in this stylish but terror-filled tale of 1930s bank robbers, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, who went down in a hail of bullets. This film, directed by Arthur Penn, made a tremendous impact in the late '60s. It not only influenced fashion but music and made the cover of Time magazine as well. Holds up well even by today's standards.