American Gangster Cinema

American Gangster Cinema PDF Author: F. Mason
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230596398
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 203

Get Book Here

Book Description
Much analysis of gangster movies has been based upon a study of the gangster as a malign figuration of the American Dream, originally set in the era of the Depression. This text extends previous analysis of the genre by examining the evolution of gangster movies from the 1930s to the contemporary period and by placing them in the context of cultural and cinematic issues such as masculinity, consumerism and technology. With a close examination of many films from Scarface and Public Enemy to Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction , this book provides a fascinating insight into a topical and popular subject.

American Gangster Cinema

American Gangster Cinema PDF Author: F. Mason
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230596398
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 203

Get Book Here

Book Description
Much analysis of gangster movies has been based upon a study of the gangster as a malign figuration of the American Dream, originally set in the era of the Depression. This text extends previous analysis of the genre by examining the evolution of gangster movies from the 1930s to the contemporary period and by placing them in the context of cultural and cinematic issues such as masculinity, consumerism and technology. With a close examination of many films from Scarface and Public Enemy to Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction , this book provides a fascinating insight into a topical and popular subject.

Mob Culture

Mob Culture PDF Author: Lee Grieveson
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
ISBN: 9780813535579
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 328

Get Book Here

Book Description
Mob Culture offers a long-awaited, fresh look at the American gangster film, exposing its hidden histories from the Black Hand gangs of the early twentieth century to The Sopranos. Departing from traditional approaches that have typically focused on the "nature" of the gangster, the editors have collected essays that engage the larger question of how the meaning of criminality has changed over time. Grouped into three thematic sections, the essays examine gangster films through the lens of social, gender, and racial/ethnic issues.

Dreams and Dead Ends

Dreams and Dead Ends PDF Author: Jack Shadoian
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198032633
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 397

Get Book Here

Book Description
Dreams and Dead Ends provides a compelling history of the twentieth-century American gangster film. Beginning with Little Caesar (1930) and ending with Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead (1995), Jack Shadoian adroitly analyzes twenty notable examples of the crime film genre. Moving chronologically through nearly seven decades, this volume offers illuminating readings of a select group of the classic films--including The Public Enemy, D.O.A., Bonnie and Clyde, and The Godfather--that best define and represent each period in the development of the American crime film. Richly illustrated with more than seventy film stills, Dreams and Dead Ends details the evolution of the genre through insightful and precise considerations of cinematography, characterization, and narrative style. This updated edition includes new readings of three additional movies--Once Upon a Time in America, Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead, and Criss Cross--and brings this clear and lively discussion of the history of the gangster film to the end of the twentieth century.

The Ultimate Book of Gangster Movies

The Ultimate Book of Gangster Movies PDF Author: George Anastasia
Publisher: Running Press Adult
ISBN: 0762443707
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 354

Get Book Here

Book Description
The gangster movie is one of the most popular genres in film. From the Italian, Irish, and Russian "families" in America to similarly sinister groups in Europe, Japan, and beyond, the cinema has never shied away from portraying the evil exploits of these brutal outfits. In this highly entertaining and informative book, two accomplished and apropos authors put the genre in perspective like no other author or documentarian has done before. The Ultimate Book of Gangster Movies provides extensive reviews of the Top 100 gangster films of all time, including sidebars like "Reality Check," "Hit and Miss," "I Know That Guy," "Body Count," and other fun and informative features. Also included are over a dozen stand-alone chapters such as Sleeper "Hits," "Fugazi" Flops, Guilty Pleasures, Lost Treasures, Q&A Interviews with top actors and directors (including Chazz Palinteri, Michael Madsen, Joe Mantagna, and more), plus over 50 compelling photographs. Foreword by Joe Pistone, the FBI agent and mob infiltrator who wrote the bestselling book and acclaimed movie, Donnie Brasco.

The Gangster Film

The Gangster Film PDF Author: Ron Wilson
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231850670
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 137

Get Book Here

Book Description
This volume examines the gangster film in its historical context with an emphasis on the ways the image of the gangster has adapted and changed as a result of socio-cultural circumstances. From its origins in Progressive-era reforms to its use as an indictment of corporate greed, the gangster film has often provided a template for critiquing American ideas and values concerning individualism, success, and business acumen. The gangster genre has also been useful in critically examining race and ethnicity in American culture in terms of "otherness." Films studied include Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912), The Racket (1928), The Captive City (1952), The Godfather, Part Two (1974), Goodfellas (1990), and Killing Them Softly (2012).

A Companion to the Gangster Film

A Companion to the Gangster Film PDF Author: George S. Larke-Walsh
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 111904166X
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 510

Get Book Here

Book Description
A companion to the study of the gangster film’s international appeal spanning the Americas, Europe, and Asia A Companion to the Gangster Film presents a comprehensive overview of the newest scholarship on the contemporary gangster film genre as a global phenomenon. While gangster films are one of America’s most popular genres, gangster movies appear in every film industry across the world. With contributions from an international panel of experts, A Companion to the Gangster Film explores the popularity of gangster films across three major continents, the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The authors acknowledge the gangster genre’s popularity and examine the reasons supporting its appeal to twenty-first century audiences across the globe. The book examines common themes across all three continents such as production histories and reception, gender race and sexuality, mafia mythologies, and politics. In addition, the companion clearly shows that no national cinema develops in isolation and that cinema is a truly global popular art form. This important guide to the gangster film genre: Reveals how the gangster film engages in complex and contradictory themes Examines the changing face of the gangster film in America Explores the ideas of gangsterism and migration in the Hispanic USA, Latin America and the Caribbean Discusses the wide variety of gangster types to appear in European cinema Contains a review of a wide-range of gangster films from the Americans, Europe, and Asia Written for academics and students of film, A Companion to the Gangster Film offers a scholarly and authoritative guide exploring the various aspects and international appeal of the gangster film genre.

Bullets Over Hollywood

Bullets Over Hollywood PDF Author: John McCarty
Publisher: Da Capo Press
ISBN: 0786738758
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 366

Get Book Here

Book Description
The gangster, like the gunslinger, is a classic American character-and the gangster movie, like the Western, is one of the American cinema's enduring film genres. From Scarface to White Heat, from The Godfather to The Usual Suspects, from Once Upon a Time in America to Road to Perdition, gangland on the screen remains as popular as ever.In Bullets over Hollywood, film scholar John McCarty traces the history of mob flicks and reveals why the films are so beloved by Americans. As McCarty demonstrates, the themes, characters, landscapes, stories-the overall iconography-of the gangster genre have proven resilient enough to be updated, reshaped, and expanded upon to connect with even today's young audiences. Packed with fascinating behind-the-scenes anecdotes and information about real-life hoods and their cinematic alter egos, insightful analysis, and a solid historical perspective, Bullets over Hollywood will be the definitive book on the gangster movie for years to come.

100 Iconic Gangster Movies

100 Iconic Gangster Movies PDF Author: Pierre Toromanoff
Publisher: Gingko Press
ISBN: 9783943330731
Category : Gangster films
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Get Book Here

Book Description
Gangsters embodied on the screen by Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Alain Delon, Robert De Niro and other iconic actors have become modern legends. It's no wonder that movies tracing the rise and fall of these fascinating characters have built a rapt fanbase. 100 Iconic Gangster Movies fills a gap in the literature and serves as a roadmap for navigating this beloved and enduring genre by highlighting 112 of the best films by directors from all over the globe. Relive the unforgettable dialog and scenes, discover some half-forgotten gems, and learn more about these masterpieces of action and suspense, often inspired by real events.

American Gangster

American Gangster PDF Author: Mark Jacobson
Publisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
ISBN: 1555846556
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 349

Get Book Here

Book Description
The “riveting account” of a Harlem drug kingpin—the basis for the Ridley Scott film starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe (Entertainment Weekly). In the 1970s, Frank Lucas was the king of the Harlem drug trade, bringing in over a million dollars a day. So many heroin addicts were buying from him on 116th Street that he claimed the Transit Authority changed the bus routes to avoid them. He lived a glamorous life, hobnobbing with athletes, musicians, and politicians, but Lucas was a ruthless gangster. He was notorious for using the coffins of dead GIs to smuggle heroin into the United States and, before being sentenced to seventy years in prison, he played a major role in the near death of New York City. In American Gangster, Mark Jacobson’s captivating account of the life of Frank Lucas (the basis for the major motion picture) joins other tales of New York City from the past few decades. The collection features a number of Jacobson’s most famous essays, as well as previous unpublished work and recent articles on 9/11 conspiracy theorists, America’s #1 escort, and Harlem’s own Charles Rangel, the retired chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. American Gangster is a vibrant, many-layered portrait of the most fascinating city in the world, by one of the most acclaimed journalists of our time. “Gripping reading . . . Whether covering the high life or lowlifes, Jacobson boasts a novelistic eye and muscular prose in the tradition of urban chroniclers like Joseph Mitchell, A.J. Liebling, and Pete Hamill. A-.”—Entertainment Weekly “Mark Jacobson is a living American Master.”—New York Daily News

Gangster Priest

Gangster Priest PDF Author: Robert Casillo
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
ISBN: 080209113X
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 641

Get Book Here

Book Description
Widely acclaimed as America's greatest living film director, Martin Scorsese is also, some argue, the pre-eminent Italian American artist. Although he has treated various subjects in over three decades, his most sustained filmmaking and the core of his achievement consists of five films on Italian American subjects - Who's That Knocking at My Door?, Mean Streets, Raging Bull, GoodFellas, and Casino - as well as the documentary Italianamerican. In Gangster Priest Robert Casillo examines these films in the context of the society, religion, culture, and history of Southern Italy, from which the majority of Italian Americans, including Scorsese, derive. Casillo argues that these films cannot be fully appreciated either thematically or formally without understanding the various facets of Italian American ethnicity, as well as the nature of Italian American cinema and the difficulties facing assimilating third-generation artists. Forming a unified whole, Scorsese's Italian American films offer what Casillo views as a prolonged meditation on the immigrant experience, the relationship between Italian America and Southern Italy, the conflicts between the ethnic generations, and the formation and development of Italian American ethnicity (and thus identity) on American soil through the generations. Raised as a Catholic and deeply imbued with Catholic values, Scorsese also deals with certain forms of Southern Italian vernacular religion, which have left their imprint not only on Scorsese himself but also on the spiritually tormented characters of his Italian American films. Casillo also shows how Scorsese interrogates the Southern Italian code of masculine honour in his exploration of the Italian American underworld or Mafia, and through his implicitly Catholic optic, discloses its thoroughgoing and longstanding opposition to Christianity. Bringing a wealth of scholarship and insight into Scorsese's work, Casillo's study will captivate readers interested in the director's magisterial artistry, the rich social history of Southern Italy, Italian American ethnicity, and the sociology and history of the Mafia in both Sicily and the United States.