This paper will present a discussion of the development and evolution of the genre of the gangster film. The paper will focus on how the gangster film genre matured and changed over time from the year 1925 through 1950. The paper will also discuss the major elements of the genre, as well as the style, influences, themes, and mythic resonance's contained in gangster films. Specific films, directors and stars of the gangster genre will also be discussed.
Throughout its development, the gangster film genre provided an index of the social, political and cultural values of the times. As a popular form, gangster films reflected the ideas and concerns, which held the attention of the general public. As the genre developed, the moral stance, which these films presented kept pace with the changing attitudes in vogue at the time. Perhaps the most important gangster film to be made was Little Caesar, directed by Mervyn LeRoy and released in 1930. This picture clearly defined the genre of the gangster film as it is thought of today. However, it is important to note that "the roots of the gangster film go back to the movies' infancy" (Everson, 1964, p. 68). As early as 1912, D.W. Griffith's one reeler Musketeers of Pig Alley already featured "such soon to be standard ingredients as the innocent hero and heroine unwittingly embroiled between rival gangster factions" (Everson, p. 68).
During the mid 1920's the gangster film began to attain its status as a movie genre. One of the earlier gangster features was The Bootleqqers, made in 1922. However, the public's love of gangster films was not fully established until 1927, with the release of Josef von Sternberg's Underworld. This was an immensely popular film centering around the life of a gangster. Despite minimal publicity and the absence of major stars, Underworld was an immediate hit of such extreme popularity that it influenced other directors and producers to make films dea...