Gangster Film Genre

Term Paper # 101953

Film > History of
History > U.S. The 1930's - Great Depression

Gangster Film Genre

An analysis of the historical context of the rise of the gangster film genre in the United States and its development from 1930 to 1960.

1,897 words () | 9 sources | MLA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at the history of the gangster film genre in the United States from the 1930s to the 1960s. It specifically looks at the impact that this film genre has had on American society and culture. The paper discusses the historical context of the rise of the gangster film genre and why it appealed to Americans at that time in their history. It gives specific examples of films and characters that fit into this category.

Table of Contents:
The Rise of the Gangster Genre
The Postwar World
1960's and Beyond

From the Paper:

"As World War I ended, the 18th Amendment ushered in Prohibition and with it a wave of crime matched only by the drug and gang wars of our own era. Where brewing and distilling were once respectable trades, the importation, production, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages was taken over by criminals during the 1920s. In big cities like New York or Chicago, headline grabbing mobsters battled for control of this illegal market. Competition among newspapers sensationalized and romanticized the stories of events like the St. Valentine's Day Massacre or the exploits of "Scarface" Al Capone. Our contemporary war on drugs can be seen as a parallel event - both of which run counter to the dominant free market and individual free choice ideology of the United States. Just as ethnic minorities were disproportionately represented as violating prohibition in the 1930s, those portrayed in modern gangster films are disproportionately Latino and Black or immigrant."

Sample of Sources Used:

Baxter, Nicky. Sweet's Back Again. Metro. 9-15 Nov.1995. 28 Feb. 2007 <http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/11.09.95/blax-9545.html>.
"Classical Film Genres." Classic Hollywood Cinema FATHOM. American Film Institute (AFI). 28 Feb. 2007 <http://www.fathom.com/course/10701053/session3.html>.
Comeau, Sylvain. "Romancing the Mafia." McGill Reporter. 32.11 (24 Feb. 2000). 28 Feb. 2007 <http://www.mcgill.ca/reporter/32/11/mafia>.
Fordham, Geoff. "A Study in Ambiguity: The Godfather and the American Gangster Movie Tradition." Crime Culture. 2004. 28 Feb. 2007 <http://www.crimeculture.com/Contents/Articles-Spring05/Godfather.htm>.
Hilfer, Tony. "Review: Public Enemies, Public Heroes: Screening the Gangster from Little Caesar to Touch of Evil." Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture 10.1 (2003): 87-92. U Albany. 28 Feb. 2007 <http://www.albany.edu/scj/jcjpc/vol10is1/hilfer.pdf>.