American Mafia: The Rise and Fall of Organized Crime in Las Vegas

What a great documentary covering the beginnings of Las Vegas and the mafia. I just love seeing all the old photos and video of a time long gone. The interviews and footage are wonderfully woven together to tell a great story that does not disappoint. Hats off to the filmmakers. I highly recommend this doc to anyone interested in the birth of Las Vegas and how the mafia shaped it.

The story of organized crime in Las Vegas is an intriguing tale of murder greed and corruption. Learn how the mob built the most dazzling and decadent city in the West before being dismantled by federal prosecutors hell-bent on taking them down. Through newsreels, archival photos and first hand accounts from those who participated, American Mafia: Las Vegas takes you inside the story from the people who know it best.

For what it covered it was interesting. It didn't cover organized crime in Las Vegas during prohibition. Totally skipped that for some reason. I also didn't like that they sometimes jumped around chronologically but failed to give a reference. It was only because I was already familiar with Vegas history that I knew when they were covering.

The second half seemed like they started running out of material to meet the total time for the show. They repeated things like explaining the Hole in the Wall Gang it seemed like many times.

They did cover some things more in depth which made most of this show interesting. Could have been better but worth a watch if really interested in Vegas history. There is also the Vegas history the local PBS station has been posting on YouTube that is excellent and covers some of the same.

This gem of a documentary looks into the genesis of Las Vegas from desert land to a place of glamour where celebrities rubbed shoulders with mobsters. It follows events in a chronological order highlighting the 2 masterminds behind Sin City. The interviews and cool footage work a chronic of times when men not corporations ran the world of high stake gambling. If you are a fan of Vegas and Gangster stories this documentary will not disappoint.

This documentary shows the deep, comprehensive history of Las Vegas and the criminal underbelly that helped shape the city. Narrated by director Mark Curran and including interviews with various experts, this subject makes for a great documentary!

This documentary repeats itself so many times it's really laughable. How many people do we need to tell us how the "Hole in the wall" gang got its name? Well evidently it's three times by three different people back to back. This thing feels like it's on loop. If it has one good fact, it has every interviewee repeat it over and over again. It feels like when my high school teacher said I needed to write a 1500 word essay and I've only got 500 words of content. Also, for a documentary that beats a dead horse over and over again, we really don't need to hear the name of every single person's first and last name that committed every single crime and made every single purchase. I feel like the interviewees are just showing off the fact that they know all these name, even though that have absolutely no relevance to the main stories. The only more infuriating documentary that got me to write a review like this was "The Spirit of the Pony Express."

This documentary does not receive a passing grade from a high school film editor.