Perhaps the best (and certainly the most realistic and violent) of the great 1930s gangster films, with Paul Muni as an Al Capone surrogate. Directed by Howard Hawks at a flat-out pace, with thrilling shoot-outs and intriguing if depraved characters. [18 Jun 2013]
Its seminal importance in the early gangster movie cycle outweighed only by its still exhilarating brilliance, this Howard Hughes production was the one unflawed classic the tycoon was involved with.
Here's the third classic you'd better know if you're going to know anything about American gangster movies. This one is powered by Paul Muni's thinly disguised and daringly simian take on Al Capone. [01 Nov 1991, p.35]
Some of the humour is dated, but mostly it's astonishingly modern, full of unforgettable images. Muni is stunning and George Raft, who, like Sinatra, enjoyed the company of mobsters, gives an iconic performance: his cool, coin-tossing habit is referred to both in Singin' in the Rain and Some Like it Hot. [09 Apr 2006, p.18]
It is a stirring picture, efficiently directed and capably acted, but as was once said of The Covered Wagon, that it was all very well if you liked wagons, so this is an excellent diversion for those who like to take an afternoon or an evening off to study the activities of cowardly thugs.
After waiting till this year to see this highly regarded vintage gangster flick, have to admit coming away somewhat disappointed. The whole thing looks good thanks to top cinematography by veteran Lee Garmes (Detective Story 51) and some nice touches from director Hawks, it also features some superbly staged crashes and gun battles but these seem to become overdone, and more in line with exploitation. These films were the action fare of their day but with so many being churned out, the line became blurred between glorifying these moronic henchmen and showing them up for their immorality. Another cliché of the era, assisting to bring it undone, was the inclusion of a comic relief sidekick to the main villain. These characters were stereotypes of unbelievable Simple-Simon stupidity but deemed necessary by Hollywood (and it seems Hughes & Hawks) as ‘humorous’ relief. Technically, good to look at as cinema history but showing the constraints of early sound performances and their various limitations. This is certainly a different Paul Muni to most I have seen but for professionalism, would prefer to take another look at ‘I’m A Fugitive from a Chain Gang’, than this effort.