La loi de la pègre

Charles Bickford looks and sounds like a Warner Brothers gangster, and he is accompanied by some other fine actors, including Harold Huber, Alan Baxter, and Maxie Rosenbloom, as Republic tries its hand in the genre.

And plays it pretty well.

"Gangs," from an original story by Sam Fuller, is well directed by James Cruze.

There's a fair print at YouTube and it's worth watching.

Much like so many other pictures of the era, this is a title that is quite direct, by way of maintaining a steady pace over its tight runtime. In at least one way, though, it diverges from so many of its brethren that were produced nearly en masse by film studios: there's some delightful subtlety and detail peppered throughout the feature. This is true even as in more than a few ways the movie bears the appearance of austerity, such as set design and decoration that appears bare-bones and bare-budget, costume design that while suitable is scarcely anything to write home about, and other small touches (such as a cell block of prisoners jeering) that make little attempt at authenticity. More important than these, though - there's some sharp wit in the dialogue and scene writing, and the very premise is clever and well thought out. Some chief characters are written with wonderful personality, making them distinct and easy to get invested in. There are times in the course of events when as a viewer we have to ask how undercover agent John Franklin can possibly perfectly imitate crime boss Rocky Thorpe - but the screenplay is sufficiently dexterous to also mind those considerations. I'm not going to sit here and say it's perfect, but 1938's 'Gangs of New York' somewhat impresses fairly quickly.

Sure, some of the movie is marginally ham-handed and a little predictable. Much more so than not, though, I rather think it's just swell. Wherever the credit belongs for the writing (there seem to be a surprisingly large number of names attached), those behind the typewriters deserve commendations for work that is unexpectedly rich, and engaging. Other elements struggle to stand out - the direction serves its purpose but doesn't inspire; either surviving prints have deteriorated over the years before being digitized, or the cinematography and sound design were a few steps down on the list of priorities in the first place. Still, hand in hand with the screenplay, I can only express earnest pleasure as a viewer at the strength of the performances. I'm gratified to say that unlike in some other forthright features of the time, the actors filling the roles (not least of all star Charles Bickford, more or less playing two parts as Franklin and Thorpe) are allowed to show their capabilities. They match the fine substance in how those roles are written, illustrating excellent range, nuance, and poise throughout, and adapting to the needs of each scene. Hats off to them all!

It needs to be said that the very concept of the film is frankly troubling in and of itself. It's a vast understatement to say that law enforcement and correctional officers depicted in 'Gangs of New York' demonstrate an astounding overreach and abuse of power, neatly ignoring constitutional rights as the foundational plot device. I'm willing to overlook a lot of holes and errors when it comes to watching movies, but as glaring an issue as this story beat would be in real life (or at least should be, if we didn't live in Unaccountable Police State Hell), it also inherently represents a flaw in the fictional narrative that is never addressed. Yes, of course it all builds compelling drama, and a duly engrossing experience as a movie-goer - but under the circumstances, at the same time that John Franklin is centered as the protagonist, crime boss Rocky Thorpe becomes a sympathetic character in his own right. As strong as the feature is at large, this is a point worth honing in on, and analyzing.

To whatever extent it may falter, however, far and away this is a title that stands pretty tall alongside its contemporaries, and still holds up fairly well decades later. Once more: the writing is pretty solid, if imperfect, and the acting is better still. Though the very final scene is pointlessly contrived as an ending, the climax is done very well. Overall 'Gangs of New York' is a slightly mixed bag, including one necessary teachable moment of both civics, law and ethics, and screenwriting that must not be ignored. When all is said and done, though, above all it's entertaining - and that, after all, is just what it's intended to be. There's no need to go out of your way for this, but if you happen to come across it, it's a fair way to spend 66 minutes!

Charles Bickford (Rocky) looks Irish. And he plays an Irish mafia boss in New York who gets released after 5 years to get straight back into hoodlum killing activities. However, on his release, he is put into a private cell and a double who works for the police is sent undercover in his place to infiltrate his gang and bring all criminal behaviour to an end. However, whilst he has the looks and attitude, he must also convince the gang members, the gangster's girlfriend Wynne Gibson (Orchid) and her dog that he is the genuine person. People gradually begin to question his authenticity and there is always the possibility that the real gangster will break free and turn up on the scene. Guess what?

Bickford has a dual role in this film which gets better as it goes on. It's nothing earth-shatteringly good - it's ok. You can pretty much tell what is going to happen and that is exactly what happens. We have some shooting at the end and there are no surprises. It's a straightforward narrative. Shame that henchman Harold Huber (Panatella) plays for comedy but I guess it humanizes him more than the other cardboard cut-out gangster associates. The best tension comes from Wynne Gibson and the new girl on the block Ann Dvorak (Connie) in their scenes together - you can see Gibson is up for a fight. It would also have been good to see Michael Flatley doing some Irish dancing and some leprechauns drinking Guinness for added authenticity. As it stands, the film is pretty unbelievable.

Sometimes when you watch an old movie, you just have to suspend disbelief just a bit—and if you can't, you probably won't enjoy the film. "The Gangs of New York" is exactly such a film. It uses one of the oldest clichés in movie—the identical stranger. But, providing you can look past this, it's a dandy and entertaining picture.

When the film begins, you learn that although the evil mobster, Rocky, is in prison, he's still running his criminal empire—and the police seem unable to stop them. But, when it just happens that there is an identical copy of Rocky and he works for the police, they decide to release the fake Rocky and have him infiltrate the mob and get evidence on their actions. However, because he doesn't know everything the real Rocky is supposed to know and because he doesn't act like the old Rocky, some of the gang becomes suspicious. But, when the REAL Rocky escapes , you know that something bad will happen…and fast!

Yes, I know it's impossible to have a man look EXACTLY like another as well as sound EXACTLY like him, but it works. Much of it is because Charles Bickford was great in the leading roles. He was fun to watch and his gangster ways were pretty funny because they were so extreme. Also, the writing (despite the clichéd plot) was quite good—especially the dialog. It's actually one of the better Republic B-movies from the era. Well worth seeing because it's so much fun.

Charles Bickford doubles up nicely here as nasty mob boss "Rocky" and as his cop doppelgänger "Franklin" in this well paced and quite enjoyable crime thriller. Try as they might, the authorities cannot find a way to keep the presently incarcerated "Rocky" in jail, so they resort to swapping him for a lookalike, days before his release from prison, in the hope that the new iteration can help garner evidence to finally put an end to activities of the criminal fraternities running the city with impunity. There is a functional supporting cast to help this short film along, but mainly it's the strong effort from the star that maintains a fair degree of momentum as he must try and manoeuvre friend and foe before his precarious status is discovered by his gal or one of his cohorts. Passes an hour well, this - well worth an hour.