Der kleine Gangsterkönig

The Little Giant (1933) : Brief Review -

The reason why I don't enjoy modern-day gangster comedies. Much better than Roy Del Ruth's own "Lady Killer," which tried the same theme in the same year. Today's gangster comedies hardly offer anything new and unique. All they do is just copy some good scenes from old Hollywood or British flicks and paste them on modern canvas with a new cast. That's the reason why I don't enjoy them as much as others do. I enjoy these original source materials instead. Roy Del Ruth was doing alright in the 30s, despite not making many great films. His Lady Killer has a similar theme drawn with James Cagney, while The Little Giant tells the same story again with new characters and a little bit more comedy and romance. It follows the attempts of an ex-gangster to make his way into high society, but he gets conned by a family of crooks. It was a pleasure seeing Edward G. Robinson in such a role where he could be brutal as well as funny at the same time. And he nailed it in both parts. Mary Astor's generous, smart little dame was bound to be loved by Bug, but why should he have all the fun? The audience found her just as lovable as him. You may hate Poly Cass' character, but you cannot hate Helen Vinson's portrayal. She looks like a perfect honey badger. The other cast members complement each other very well. The Little Giant is a very influential flick. Smartly written by Robert Lord and Wilson Mizner, this crime comedy has scenes that can never get outdated. You find many references in any modern-day gangster comedy, and you can immediately recall The Little Giant for its enormous contribution to top-class cliches. 9 decades old, yet our generation is remaking it. You can imagine how good it must have been for contemporary audiences. Roy Del Ruth may have lacked great classics in his career, but he certainly gave us many nice, entertaining, and timeless films. Hoping to catch more of his work soon.

RATING - 7.5/10*

By - #samthebestest.

The Little Giant is so adorable, and so entertaining, I accidentally watched it twice without recognizing it until halfway through! I love Edward G. Robinson, so it was no hardship to sit through one of his classically touching films about a gangster who wants to go straight and find class in high society. If you loved him in Brother Orchid, check out The Little Giant.

When Eddie G and his faithful sidekick Russell Hopton go to Santa Barbara after their bootlegging days are over, they're snubbed by high society. Only after his wealth becomes apparent does Eddie G get noticed, and unfortunately by the wrong woman: Helen Vinson. She's a gold-digger and seduces Eddie G while the rest of her family tries to swindle him out of money. This sounds depressing, but like I said, if you liked Brother Orchid, watch this movie. It's cuter and more heart-warming than it sounds. There are tons of jokes as he tries to come across as high class, like calling Plato 'Pluto' and asking what state California is in. Plus, it's always sweet to see Eddie G in a romance, and this time around he gets to fall in love with both Helen and Mary Astor!

How can one not love a great Edward G. Robinson flick? Here he plays a Chicago gangster named 'Bugs' looking to go straight, with a seemingly unhealthy obsession with mingling with "high society" people.

Of course he gets out to California with his buddy, and while keeping his old gangster life a secret, gets involved with a woman who, along with her family, wants to swindle him out of his money. Like a fish out of water, Bugs is out of his element and can't see the scam against him, so blinded by the pretty woman.

The real hilarious thing about "The Little Giant" is that after Bugs realizes he's been scammed, the gangsters then turn into the good guys to make things right. This being a comedy, we laugh as the gangsters even use torture (!) to set things straight, all while cracking jokes. Bugs even refers to the ones who swindled him as (insert gay slur here). Talk about pre-code!

As always, Edward G. Is non-stop, and the film is a tour-de-force for him to showcase his quick wit and razor-sharp delivery. Definitely worth a viewing.

Although the early sound era presented some problems - such as stationary camera shots with the actors nailed to their marks, and minimal use of background music resulting in long stretches of torpor - by 1931 most of these bugs had been corrected; thus the pre-censorship period of '31-'34 is chockfull of some of the most vigorous, creative and satisfying movies of Hollywood's Golden Age, however little-known many of them may be. LITTLE GIANT is one such hidden gem. A lightning-paced gangster comedy from the Warner-First National studio (where speed and economy were stylistic hallmarks), it's fast, funny and flippant in a manner that the decayed virgins of the Hays Office would render, if not impossible, at least awfully difficult after '34. Edward G Robinson plays Bugs Ahearn, a Chicago bootlegger put out of business by Prohibition's repeal, who decides to relocate to California and buy his way into society. Once there, he's immediately preyed upon by the type of 'respectable' vipers & parasites his background has left him ill-equipped to recognize, let alone fend off. This 'fish-out-of-water' comedy benefits greatly from a cheerfully amoral tone and a slew of zesty performances, not least of them Mary Astor's as a busted heiress who is the only non-hood here who's on the level. The mix of slapstick and rat-a-tat verbal comedy, coming at you at fast as it does, works very well, and nobody was better at this kind of hectic farce than the woefully-underrated Roy del Ruth, who was one of a number of sure & steady craftsmen who hit their peaks only under the Warners' aegis. In Del Ruth's case, the coming of the Code (and his subsequent move to MGM) proved to be disastrous: though he continued to direct till the late 50s, his post-Warners work was so drained of zest and inspiration that he is hardly remembered at all today. Even the auteurist crowd dismisses him as a competent hack. But do yourself a favor and seek out everything he did prior to 1935, and you'll be rewarded with a body of work that will surprise you with its cynical bite and confident staging. They play as well today as they did the day they opened. (Highly recommended, besides GIANT, are BLESSED EVENT, LADY KILLER, EMPLOYEES ENTRANCE & TAXI.)

The Little Giant (1933)

By 1933 the gangster genre was in full blown maturity, and Warner Bros. Along with Edward G. Robinson were key to that. This is a lesser known movie but still a good one, two years after his phenomenal "Little Caesar." This time, they thought the genre had room for comedy, and it doesn't always take off. Robinson is good, and Mary Astor is also good in a very different way, though not always on the same page as Robinson.

Mostly this is part of the larger picture-there are better Warner Bros gangster films, but this one holds its own.