Historical Genre Research- Gangster crime thriller

Gangster Crime


Gangster films are a sub-genre of American crime films dealing with organized crime, often specifically with the Mafia.

The American movie The Black Hand (1906) is thought to be the earliest surviving gangster film. In 1912, D. W. Griffith directed The Musketeers of Pig Alley, a short drama film about crime on the streets of New York City  rumored to have included real gangsters as extras.Even though gangster films had their roots in such silent films, the genre in its most successful form was in the early 1930s.
In 1931 and 1932 saw the genre produce three all time classics: The Warner Bros produced Little Caesar and The Public Enemy, which made screen icons out of Edward G. Robinson and James Cagney, and Howard Hawks' Scarface starring Paul Muni, which offered a dark psychological analysis of a fictionalized Al Capone and launched the film career of George Raft. These films chronicle the quick rise, and equally quick downfall, of three young, violent criminals, and represent the genre in its purest form before moral pressure would force it to change and evolve. Though the gangster in each film would face a violent downfall which was designed to remind the viewers of the consequences of crime, audiences were often able to identify with the charismatic anti-hero. Those suffering from the Depression were able to relate to the gangster character who worked hard to earn his place and success in the world, only to have it all taken away from him. Despite the genre reaching the decade before dying out, some argue that the gangster film in its purest form only existed until 1933, when restrictions from the Production Code led to films that did not have the same power as the earlier ones.

Many of the 1930s crime films also dealt with class and ethnic conflict, notably the earliest films, reflecting doubts about how well the American system was working. Many films pushed the message that criminals were the result of a poor moral and economic society, and many were shown as having foreign backgrounds or coming from the lower class. Therefore the film criminal is often able to show sympathy and admiration out of the viewer, who often will not place the blame on the criminal's shoulders, but rather a cruel society where success is difficult. However the hype of gangster crime films had died down in the 1930's and only picked up once again in the 1970's where there was a revival of gangster films with novels such as the godfather part 2 etc. The 2000s continued to produce box office gangster films with high profile actors. 

 he 2010s continued the 2000s trend of bringing new movies featuring both prohibition and post real life gangster incidents into the box office. Examples of this would be lawless and the more famously known one 'gangster squad.' It is the story of a group of LAPD officers and detectives called the "Gangster Squad" who are attempting to keep Los Angeles safe from Mickey Cohen, a real life example, Los Angeles gangster that became a powerful figure in the criminal underworld, and intended to continue to expand his criminal enterprise and his gang during the 1940s and '50s. The film was released January 11, 2013.



Thriller


Thriller is a genre of literature, film, and television programming that uses suspense, tension, and excitement as its main elements. Thrillers heavily stimulate the viewer's moods, giving them a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, surprise, anxiety and terror. Films of this genre tend to be adrenaline-rushing, gritty, and fast-paced.
A thriller provides the sudden rush of emotions, excitement that drive the narrative. It keeps the audience on the "edge of their seats", as the plot builds towards a climax. Techniques such as cliffhangers are used quite often. A thriller is usually a villain-driven plot, whereby he or she presents obstacles that the protagonist must overcome.


in 1926 a man called Alfred Hitchcock released his third silent thriller called The Lodger which was a Jack The Ripper Story filled with suspense. In 1929 he released another thriller film called Blackmail which was not only the first sound thriller film, but also the first sound film to be made in Britain. In 1928 Fritz Lang’s Spies was released and were one of the earliest spy films and was the directors first independent production. The film anticipated the James Bond film’s of the future. In 1931 the film The Chilling German by Fritz Lang was released and starred Peter Lorre in his first ever film role. The film was based on the life of a serial killer. In 1933 another crime thriller was released called Murder’s In The Zoo and was about a murderous zoologist, played by Lionel Atwill. This film was directed by Edward Sutherland. There were also other directors that made many thriller films within this period of time, such as Walter Forde made nine2. Vorhaus seven between 1932 and 19353. George A. Cooper six in the same period4. and Michael Powell also made six.

Until this very day, thriller films have shared ideas and themes and have similar elements within them. However, in the recent thrillers that have been made, directors try to maintain an aspect of individuality by making them stand out from the rest. They do this by adding more gore, horror, violence, blood and brutal behavior. Thrillers used to be a lot more psychological but have now started to have horror aspects within them. Examples of thriller films that have added the above elements in them are: Eden Lake, released in 2008. The Last House On The Left, released in 2009. P2, released in 2007. Captivity, released in 2007. Funny Games, released in 2008. Spy thrillers contain a lot more action within them and have done for the last few years of thriller films. Films such as Hostage and Joy Ride were very much action filled but more so thriller.

I have researched the history of gangster crime and  thriller genre to give me an insight of how it has changed over years and in what ways. It also gave me an indication of how the styles and story lines have adapted and improved throughout the years. I learned about specific directors and how they made an impact on thriller films over the years. It has helped me with the planning of my own film as I now have a good idea of what type of storyline to do and how to make my film stand out from the other gangster crime thriller films. I have also adapted the knowledge of gangster crime thriller and what to include.