The Independent Moviemaker - Understanding Genre: the Gangster Film

Every genre has an archetypical storyline specific to the particular genre. This is particularly true of the Gangster genre. Popularized in the 1930s, this genre is all about impatience. The 'hero' is a man who wants it all, but doesn't want to go through the normal channels to get it. A typical gangster in these stories doesn't have time to advance slowly through the ranks - he wants it all, and he wants it now.

The strength of this genre is watching the rise and fall of a person who breaks society's rules. Like Icarus reaching for the sun, the gangster must pay the price for wanting everything. The roots of this genre are steeped in Greek mythology, where hubris was always punished swiftly by the gods.

Motifs of The Gangster Genre

1. The hero is an immigrant who dislikes his low status in life and wants more.

2. Unlike the Western, this story takes place in the big city. The wide open plains have been traded in for the seedy alleyways and wharves of the urban jungle.

3. The gangster can only gain power by taking it. It is survival of the fittest, and the only law is the law of the jungle.

4. The only loyalty the gangster feels is for his own immigrant roots.

5. Success is measured in material goods - flashy cars, expensive clothes, and mansions. Women are measures of success as well.

6. The hero's antagonist is society, and the enforcers of the law. The police, the FBI, the CIA represent the enforcers of societal status quo.

7. The end justifies the means.

The classic gangster film has been around since Jimmy Cagney learned to eat grapefruit. It is a powerful representation of the underbelly of the American Dream. The inability of the gangster to fit into society ultimately causes his downfall in the classic form. More modern gangster films have added a new twist to the genre. The gangster is undone, not by society, but by betrayal from within. This twist represents a shift in American culture away from looking at 'decent' society as a unified whole, to a society so fragmented that it doesn't supply the unified front necessary to make the genre work in a contemporary setting.

Classics of the Gangster Genre

City Streets - (1931) Directed by: Rouben Mamoulian (supposedly Al Capone's favorite film)

Little Caesar -- (1930) Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy

The Public Enemy -- (1931) Directed by: William Wellman

Key Largo -- (1948) Directed by: John Huston

Bonnie and Clyde -- (1967) Directed by: Arthur Penn

The Godfather (1972) Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola

Scarface -- (1983) Directed by: Brian De Palma

Given the revived popularity of Scarface it's worth examining this film in the context of the genre. Every element, from Tony Montana's immigrant status to his spectacular rise and fall, can be found within the conventions of the Gangster genre. This in no way takes away from the enjoyment of the film, rather it enhances it. This is the power of genre. We know Tony is going to fall long before he does. As a matter of fact, we can't wait for him to fall. It's not fair that he can have all this wealth while I toil away at my nothing job, following the rules. Serves him right. He deserves what he gets in the end. This is the psychological underpinning to the Gangster Genre, and seeing the mighty fall has been entertaining the masses since Aristotle's time.

As the genre developed, it was altered like the Western to keep it fresh for new audiences. The 60's counterculture provided the impetus for the largest upheaval of the genre - reversing the traditional roles between gangster and police. Now it was the cop who was the bad guy, or at least succumbing to the law of the jungle in order to do good. This pattern is a combination of sorts between the Western and the Gangster film. So who better star in the movie that broke this genre out than Clint Eastwood.

Subversions of the Gangster Genre

Dirty Harry - (1971) Directed by: Don Siegel (and its sequels)

Reservoir Dogs - (1992) Directed by: Quentin Tarantino

Clockers (1995) - Directed by: Spike Lee

Carlito's Way (1993) Directed by: Brian De Palma

Pulp Fiction (1994) directed by: Quentin Tarantino

While there are many other examples that could be included, I think you get the picture. The gangster genre is flexible and relevant. The proto-story underneath it can be used in nearly every milieu and often overlaps the film noir genre (although for this article I have kept them separate.)

As society becomes increasingly fragmented, the Gangster genre offers new opportunities for screenwriters and filmmakers to create entertainment that appeals to a wide spectrum of moviegoers.