Little Caesar (film)
Encyclopedia
Little Caesar is a 1931 Warner Bros.
Pre-Code crime film
. It tells the story of a hoodlum who ascends the ranks of organized crime until he reaches its upper echelons. Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
, the film stars Edward G. Robinson
and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
. The story was adapted by Francis Edward Faragoh
, Robert N. Lee
, Robert Lord
and Darryl F. Zanuck
(uncredited) from the novel by William R. Burnett
. Little Caesar was Robinson's breakout movie; it catapulted him to stardom.
), while Joe wants to be a dancer. Olga (Glenda Farrell
) becomes his dance partner and girlfriend.
Joe tries to drift away from the gang and its activities, but Rico makes him participate in the robbery of the nightclub where he works. Despite orders from underworld overlord "Big Boy" (Sidney Blackmer
) to all his men to avoid bloodshed, Rico guns down crusading crime commissioner Alvin McClure during the robbery, with Joe as an aghast witness.
Rico accuses Sam of becoming soft and seizes control of his organization. Rival boss "Little Arnie" Storch (Maurice Black
) tries to have Rico killed, but Rico is only grazed. He and his gunmen pay Little Arnie a visit, after which Arnie hastily departs for Detroit. The Big Boy eventually gives Rico control of all of Chicago's Northside.
Rico becomes concerned that Joe knows too much about him. He warns Joe that he must forget about Olga, and join him in a life of crime. Rico threatens to kill both Joe and Olga unless he accedes, but Joe refuses to give in. Olga calls Police Sergeant Flaherty and tells him Joe is ready to talk, just before Rico and his henchman Otero (George E. Stone
) come calling. Rico finds, to his surprise, that he is unable to take his friend's life. When Otero tries to do the job himself, Rico wrestles the gun away from him, though not before Joe is wounded. Hearing the shot, Flaherty and another cop give chase and kill Otero. With the information provided by Joe, Flaherty proceeds to crush Rico's organization.
Desperate and alone, Rico retreats to the gutter from which he sprang. While hiding in a flophouse
, he becomes enraged when he learns that Flaherty has called him a coward in the newspaper. He foolishly telephones the cop to announce he is coming for him. The call is traced, and he is gunned down behind a billboard by Flaherty. Ironically, the billboard shows an advertisement featuring dancers Joe and Olga.
homosexual, with the evidence thereof cited as including Otero's fawning admiration of Rico, Rico's great affinity for Joe, and Rico's complete lack of interest in romantic relationships with women, as well as his utter contempt for Joe's interest in women. When the film was released, Burnett apparently drew this same conclusion about the screen version of the character. Having written Rico as explicitly heterosexual in his novel, Burnett wrote a letter of complaint to the film's producers about the conversion of the character to homosexual in the movie adaptation.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Pre-Code crime film
Pre-Code crime films
The era of American film production from the early sound era to the enforcement of the Hays Code in 1934 is denoted as Pre-Code Hollywood. The era contained violence and crime in pictures which would not be seen again until decades later...
. It tells the story of a hoodlum who ascends the ranks of organized crime until he reaches its upper echelons. Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Mervyn LeRoy
Mervyn LeRoy was an American film director, producer and sometime actor.-Early life:Born to Jewish parents in San Francisco, California, his family was financially ruined by the 1906 earthquake...
, the film stars Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Douglas Elton Fairbanks, Jr. KBE was an American actor and a highly decorated naval officer of World War II.-Early life:...
. The story was adapted by Francis Edward Faragoh
Francis Edward Faragoh
Francis Edward Faragoh was an American screenwriter. He wrote for 20 films between 1929 and 1947. He was nominated for an Academy Award in 1931 for Best Writing, Adaptation for Little Caesar...
, Robert N. Lee
Robert N. Lee
Robert N. Lee was an American screenwriter. He wrote for 31 films between 1922 and 1945. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Adapted Screenplay at the 4th Academy Awards for Little Caesar....
, Robert Lord
Robert Lord
Robert Lord was an American screenwriter and film producer. He wrote for 71 films between 1925 and 1940. He won an Academy Award in 1933 in the category Best Writing, Original Story for the film One Way Passage...
and Darryl F. Zanuck
Darryl F. Zanuck
Darryl Francis Zanuck was an American producer, writer, actor, director and studio executive who played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of its longest survivors...
(uncredited) from the novel by William R. Burnett
William R. Burnett
William Riley Burnett , often credited as W. R. Burnett, was an American novelist and screenwriter. He is best known for the crime novel, Little Caesar, whose film adaptation is considered the first of the classic American gangster movies.Burnett was born in Springfield, Ohio, U.S...
. Little Caesar was Robinson's breakout movie; it catapulted him to stardom.
Plot
Small-time criminals Caesar Enrico "Rico" Bandello (Edward G. Robinson) and his friend Joe Massara (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.) move to Chicago to seek their fortunes. Rico joins the gang of Sam Vettori (Stanley FieldsStanley Fields (actor)
Stanley Fields was an American actor, born 20 May 1883 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA and died 23 April 1941 in Los Angeles, California, USA, aged 57.-Career:Born Walter L. Agnew, he spent seven years as boy Soprano in the Trinity Church choir...
), while Joe wants to be a dancer. Olga (Glenda Farrell
Glenda Farrell
-Career:Farrell came to Hollywood towards the end of the silent era. Farrell began her career with a theatrical company at the age of 7. She played Little Eva in Uncle Tom's Cabin...
) becomes his dance partner and girlfriend.
Joe tries to drift away from the gang and its activities, but Rico makes him participate in the robbery of the nightclub where he works. Despite orders from underworld overlord "Big Boy" (Sidney Blackmer
Sidney Blackmer
Sidney Alderman Blackmer was an American actor.Blackmer was born and raised in Salisbury, North Carolina. He started off in an insurance and financial business but gave up on it. While working as a builder's laborer on a new building, he saw a Pearl White serial being filmed and immediately...
) to all his men to avoid bloodshed, Rico guns down crusading crime commissioner Alvin McClure during the robbery, with Joe as an aghast witness.
Rico accuses Sam of becoming soft and seizes control of his organization. Rival boss "Little Arnie" Storch (Maurice Black
Maurice Black
Maurice Black Was an American Character actor known for his portrayal of Mobsters. he died of Pneumonia-Selected filmography:* Bonnie Scotland * The Crusades * Bride of Frankenstein...
) tries to have Rico killed, but Rico is only grazed. He and his gunmen pay Little Arnie a visit, after which Arnie hastily departs for Detroit. The Big Boy eventually gives Rico control of all of Chicago's Northside.
Rico becomes concerned that Joe knows too much about him. He warns Joe that he must forget about Olga, and join him in a life of crime. Rico threatens to kill both Joe and Olga unless he accedes, but Joe refuses to give in. Olga calls Police Sergeant Flaherty and tells him Joe is ready to talk, just before Rico and his henchman Otero (George E. Stone
George E. Stone
George E. Stone was a Polish-born American character actor in movies, radio, and television.-Career:Stone's slight build and very expressive face first attracted attention in 1927, in the popular silent-film romance Seventh Heaven...
) come calling. Rico finds, to his surprise, that he is unable to take his friend's life. When Otero tries to do the job himself, Rico wrestles the gun away from him, though not before Joe is wounded. Hearing the shot, Flaherty and another cop give chase and kill Otero. With the information provided by Joe, Flaherty proceeds to crush Rico's organization.
Desperate and alone, Rico retreats to the gutter from which he sprang. While hiding in a flophouse
Flophouse
A flophouse , doss-house or dosshouse is a place that offers very cheap lodging, generally by providing only minimal services.-Characteristics:...
, he becomes enraged when he learns that Flaherty has called him a coward in the newspaper. He foolishly telephones the cop to announce he is coming for him. The call is traced, and he is gunned down behind a billboard by Flaherty. Ironically, the billboard shows an advertisement featuring dancers Joe and Olga.
Cast
- Edward G. RobinsonEdward G. RobinsonEdward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
as Caesar Enrico "Rico" Bandello / "Little Caesar" - Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as Joe Massara
- Glenda FarrellGlenda Farrell-Career:Farrell came to Hollywood towards the end of the silent era. Farrell began her career with a theatrical company at the age of 7. She played Little Eva in Uncle Tom's Cabin...
as Olga Stassoff - William Collier Jr. as Tony Passa
- Sidney BlackmerSidney BlackmerSidney Alderman Blackmer was an American actor.Blackmer was born and raised in Salisbury, North Carolina. He started off in an insurance and financial business but gave up on it. While working as a builder's laborer on a new building, he saw a Pearl White serial being filmed and immediately...
as "Big Boy" - Ralph InceRalph InceRalph Ince , was an American film director, actor and screenwriter of the silent era. He directed 171 films between 1910 and 1937. He also appeared in 110 films between 1907 and 1937....
as Pete Montana - Thomas E. Jackson as Sergeant Flaherty
- Stanley Fields as Sam Vettori
- Maurice BlackMaurice BlackMaurice Black Was an American Character actor known for his portrayal of Mobsters. he died of Pneumonia-Selected filmography:* Bonnie Scotland * The Crusades * Bride of Frankenstein...
as "Little Arnie" Lorch - George E. StoneGeorge E. StoneGeorge E. Stone was a Polish-born American character actor in movies, radio, and television.-Career:Stone's slight build and very expressive face first attracted attention in 1927, in the popular silent-film romance Seventh Heaven...
as Otero - Armand KalizArmand KalizArmand Kaliz was a French born American film actor of the silent film and early sound period of the 1930s.Born in Paris, Kaliz began his career in vaudeville...
as De Voss - Nicholas Bela as Ritz Colonna
Award and honors
- 4th Academy Awards4th Academy AwardsThe 4th Academy Awards were awarded to films completed and screened in 1930/1931, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. At the ceremony, nine-year-old Jackie Cooper, nominated for Best Actor in "Skippy," fell asleep on the shoulder of Best Actress nominee Marie Dressler...
: Adapted Screenplay ‒ Nominated - National Film RegistryNational Film RegistryThe National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
: Selected by the Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
in 2000 - American Film InstituteAmerican Film InstituteThe American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
:- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies: Nominated in both 1998 and 2007
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills: Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains: Caesar Enrico "Rico" Bandello listed as the #38 best villain
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes: Rico's quote "Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?" listed as the #73 best quote
- AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest American films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute , the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008....
: Listed #9 in the gangster film genre
Homosexual subtext
A common interpretation of the film's title character is that he is a repressed or closetedCloseted
Closeted and in the closet are metaphors used to describe lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and intersex people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior.-Background:In late 20th...
homosexual, with the evidence thereof cited as including Otero's fawning admiration of Rico, Rico's great affinity for Joe, and Rico's complete lack of interest in romantic relationships with women, as well as his utter contempt for Joe's interest in women. When the film was released, Burnett apparently drew this same conclusion about the screen version of the character. Having written Rico as explicitly heterosexual in his novel, Burnett wrote a letter of complaint to the film's producers about the conversion of the character to homosexual in the movie adaptation.