Gangster movie

**Gangster film** is a type of crime film. It is about gangs and organized crime. It is considered a subgenre of the crime genre. Notable directors in this subgenre are Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Quentin Tarantino and Brian De Palma. Notable actors in gangster films are Robert De Niro, Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Frank Vincent, Wesley Snipes, Ray Liotta, Christopher Walken, and Samuel L. Jackson.

### Early Hollywood

The first official gangster film was _The Regeneration_ (1915) and the first with sound was _The Lights of New York_ (1928). There were a few notable films in the 1920s and early 1930s, including _Scarface_ (1932), _Little Caesar_ (1931) and _The Public Enemy_ (1931)_._ Films from th e 1930s to 1960s reflected political and cultural views on criminals. Punishment was strict and respect for authority important. Films showed criminals and organized crime as bad things. Several gangster films had warnings before the motion picture. Early films showed criminals as a result or product of society and not rebels. As a result, viewers could sympathize with the criminals. With the growth of the FBI, there were more films about police and government officials hunting criminals. Gangster films were often about trying to deal with crimes and detectives fighting crime.

### New Hollywood

In 1968, the Hays Code that censored inappropriate films was removed. Directors now had more freedom. Some notable gangster films were made after 1968. They include _Bonnie and Clyde_ by Arthur Penn and _Mean Streets_ by Martin Scorcese_._ The movie starred Robert De Niro. These films began to include move violence and gore.

In the 1970s, _The Godfather_ films by Francis Ford Coppola showed the Italian-American Mafia in New York. _The Godfather_ is considered one of the best movies of all time. _The_ _Godfather_ movies changed the genre and made the genre more popular. Many films about the Mafia would follow in the 1970s and 1980s. Important films are the _Goodfellas_ and _The Untouchables_.

Martin Scorcese has made several gangster films from the 1990s to 2010s. Scorsese often works with Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. Scorsese has also worked with Leonardo DiCaprio in films like _Gangs of New York_ and _The Departed_.

## AFI's 10 Top 10 Gangster Films

|width="5%"|#|width="85%"|Film|width="10%"|Year|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|1|_The Godfather_|1972||||
|2|_Goodfellas_|1990||||
|3|_The Godfather Part II_|1974||||
|4|_White Heat_|1949||||
|5|_Bonnie and Clyde_|1967||||
|6|_Scarface_|1932||||
|7|_Pulp Fiction_|1994||||
|8|_The Public Enemy_|1931||||
|9|_Little Caesar_|1931||||
|10|_Scarface_|1983||||

## Notable Gangster Films

_For a more complete list of gangster films see List of Gangster Films._

### 1900s - 1930s

- _Little Caesar (1931)_
- _The Pubic Enemy (1931)_
- _Scarface (1932)_
- _The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933)_
- _Fury_ _(1936)_
- _The Roaring Twenties (1939)_

### 1940s - 1960s

- _High Sierra (1941)_
- _T-Men (1947)_
- _I Walk Alone (1948)_
- _White Heat (1949)_
- _On the Waterfront (1954)_
- _The Killing (1956)_
- _Touch of Evil (1958)_
- _Some Like it Hot (1959)_
- _The League of Gentlemen_ (1960)
- _West Side Story (1961)_
- _Bonnie and Clyde (1967)_
- _Point Blank (1967)_
- _The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967)_
- _The Italian Job (1969)_

### 1970s

- _The French Connection (1971)_
- _Get Carter (1971)_
- _The Godfather (1972)_
- _Mean Streets (1973)_
- _The Sting (1973)_
- _Chinatown (1974)_
- _The Godfather: Part II (1974)_
- _Assault On Precinct 13 (1976)_
- _Bugsy Malone (1976)_
- _The Warriors (1979)_

### 1980s

- _The Long Good Friday (1980)_
- _Scarface (1983)_
- _The Outsiders_ _(1983)_
- _Once Upon a Time in America (1984)_
- _A Better Tomorrow (1986)_
- _The Untouchables (1987)_
- _Black Rain (1989)_

### 1990s

- _Goodfellas (1990)_
- _King of New York (1990)_
- _Miller's Crossing (1990)_
- _Boyz n the Hood (1991)_
- _Reservoir Dogs (1992)_
- _Léon: The Professional (1994)_
- _Pulp Fiction (1994)_
- _Casino (1995)_
- _Heat (1995)_
- _The Usual Suspects (1995)_

### 2000s - 2010s

- _Snatch (2000)_
- _City of God (2002)_
- _Gangs of New York (2002)_
- _Road to Perdition (2002)_
- _A History of Violence (2005)_
- _The Departed (2006)_
- _American Gangster (2007)_
- _Eastern Promises (2007)_
- _American Hustle (2013)_
- _Gangster Squad (2013)_
- _John Wick (2014)_
- _Widows (2018)_
- _The Irishman (2019)_
- _West Side Story (2021)_