Little Caesar (1931)
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy

Film Review

Whilst it may not have been the first gangster film that was made in Hollywood, Little Caesar is certainly one of the most influential.  Its success resulted in a spate of similar films - beginning with William A. Wellman's Public Enemy (1931) and Howard Hawks's Scarface (1932) - which made the 1930s the decade of the American gangster movie.

With its low budget sets and bland cinematography, Little Caesar looks dated even for the standards of its time, but an extraordinarily intense performance from its lead actor, Edward G. Robinson, makes it a classic of its kind.  The 37-year old actor, an East European émigré, was a virtual unknown at the time he made the film, but his portrayal of Rico Bandello brought him instant celebrity and effectively typecast him as the cruel yet sympathetic gangster for most of his career.  The character that Robison plays in this film is the antithesis of his real-life persona.  In his private life, he was an amiable and sensitive man, possessed with great charm and intellect.   Robinson's inability to fire a gun without blinking wildly led director Mervyn LeRoy to fix strips of transparent tape to his eyelids to keep them up - something which made the actor appear even more menacing and inhuman.

Robinson was chosen for the part of Rico on account of his striking resemblance to the notorious Chicago mobster Al Capone, on whose exploits W.R. Burnett based the book of which the film is a close adaptation.   Clark Gable was originally considered for the role, but was rejected because his ears were too large.  The part of Rico's likeable sidekick Joe Massara was given to Douglas Fairbanks Jr, the son of the legendary actor of the silent era, Douglas Fairbanks.

Made before the Hollywood Production Code came into effect, Little Caesar manages to portrays its central character in a generally positive light.  Although a deeply flawed individual - brutal, vain, ignorant and treacherous - Rico Bandello still manages to retain our sympathy, mainly on the strength of Robinson's exceptional performance, which combines viciousness with pathos.   After the Code came in, in 1934, the film was (along with others) deemed morally corrupting and was withdrawn,  not seen again until the mid-1950s.  Interestingly, Rico's famous line "Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?" was originally intended to be  "Mother of God, is this the end of Rico?", but was changed as it was felt to be blasphemous.

Unlike many later gangster films, Little Caesar has the essence of a morality play, with some serious messages for contemporary American society.  The most important message, which is underlined in the last shot of the film, is that crime doesn't pay and that, if you want to succeed in life, there is no alternative to honest hard work.   Whereas Joe's ambitions ultimately succeed through patient commitment, Rico's end in spectacular failure, with him falling back to Earth just as quickly as he rose to the stars.

The film has also been interpreted as a wry comment on the notion of the American Dream.  When the film was made, at the height of the Great Depression, the American Dream was looking distinctly sour and so the rise and fall of Rico Bandello would have struck an instant chord with a great number of people.   In the eyes of many, gangsters and greedy businessmen (the perceived culprits of the Wall Street Crash) were seen in an equal light, and so the success and failure of Rico was, for many, an expression of the emptiness of the so-called American Dream.

Film Synopsis

Caesar Enrico Bandello - Rico to his friends - arrives in Chicago with his friend Joe Massara to make his fortune in the criminal underworld.  Rico joins a gang run by Sam Vettori, whose position he quickly usurps.  It is just the first step in Little Caesar's determined climb to the top tier of a crime empire.  Meanwhile, Massara has met a dancer, Olga, and decides to give up his career in crime to start a new life with her.  Fearful that Massara will betray him, Rico has no choice but to kill him...