Little Caesar (1931)

Little Caesar
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Written by Francis Edward Faragoh based on a novel by W.R. Burnett
1931/US
Warner Bros.
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

Caesar Enrico Bandello: You can dish it out, but you got so you can’t take it no more.

Edward G. Robinson lights up the screen every time he appears in this gangland classic.

We meet Caesar Enrico Bandello (“Rico”; soon to become Little Caesar) (Robinson) as he is robbing a gas station somewhere in the sticks.  Shots ring out and it is clear he has used his constant companion so as to leave no witnesses.  His friend and sidekick Joe Massara has been his accomplice.  Rico and Joe talk things over and Rico figures he is ready for the big city and the big time.  The city attracts Joe too, but he’d rather hit the big time as a dancer, a profession Rico scorns.

Rico applies for a position in Sam Vittori’s (Stanley Fields) gang.  He is hired though Sam has been told by the Big Boy (Sidney Blackmer) to cool it with the killings and Rico is clearly trigger happy.  The first job Rico goes out on is to rob the patrons of the Peacock Club, where Joe now has a dance act with girlfriend Olga (Glenda Farrell).  Joe is forced by Rico to participate.  He is aghast when Rico blasts the Crime Commissioner.

The ruthless Rico continues to rise in the ranks of the underworld taking over Sam’s gang and setting his sites ever higher.  He wants Joe by his side, threatening to kill him and Olga, unless he complies.  But Rico is a vain hot-head who doesn’t think things through too well.  Will hubris lead to his downfall?

It’s been awhile since I last saw this.  The big draw is Robinson’s electric performance. You can’t take your eyes off him while he is on screen.  Unfortunately, he is not always on screen and those parts are kind of ordinary.  I was surprised that there is no reference to either Prohibition or bootlegging in the film.  Iconic and recommended.

Little Caesar received an Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Adapted.