RTVF 4415.001: Mafia, Gangsters and Gangland in the Cinema

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS Spring 2015 RTVF 4415.001: Mafia, Gangsters and Gangland in the Cinema Tues 9.30am – 1.50pm pm RTFP 184

Instructor: Dr G.S. Larke-Walsh, Office M&P 272a, Email: [email protected] Office hours: Mondays 10.30-Noon and by appointment

TA: Phil Walsh

Course Outline This course is split into three sections. Each section will examine aspects of organized crime in cinema. I have not structured this course chronologically, or by nationality. Instead it is a mix of styles and approaches. By completing this course you will be able to identify the components of the gangster genre, the various discourses that define it, and the historical and cultural influences behind its development across various industries. You will be able to describe the aesthetics of each film and analyze how these aesthetics reflect cross-cultural mythologies of organized crime.

Course Objectives To explore and interrogate the structure and thematic trends in gangster films as they developed within a variety of historical periods and countries.

To analyze cultural discourses surrounding the representation of organized crime in cinema pertaining to Mafia mythologies, gender, race and sexualities

Course Texts There is not a required text. I will be teaching from a wide range of sources.

Required Reading appears under each seminar description. These are ALL available as PDFs on blackboard. Recommended reading is also listed and a selection is on blackboard.

Your required work for this class includes: Two midterm examinations (in class) 25% each One final examination (in class) 25% Three 4-6 page (1,000 word) written assignment 25% OR 3 Screening quizzes (50 questions each)

Students expecting to do well in this class should read the assigned materials, attend and take notes on all components of the class, including discussions and screenings. You do not need to notify me if you miss class, but it is up to you to get the lecture notes from another student, and/or view the assigned film(s), (most of which will be available at the Chilton Media Center within a day or so after the class meeting). I can almost guarantee you will fail this class if you skip the assigned readings and/or continue to miss lectures and screenings. Exams will be based on lectures, screenings, readings, and discussions. The final will not be cumulative. The Written Assignments will be research papers on a related topic (1,000 words each). The screening quizzes are based on films NOT screened in class. Details of each assignment are available in separate hand-outs. Late papers will not be accepted. Your Final Grade will thus be based upon three in-class examinations, three written assignments OR 3 screening quizzes. You must complete each of these components in order to pass the class. Any form of academic dishonesty will result in an F for this course.

NOTE: “The University of North Texas makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide you with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding your specific needs in a course. You may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. For additional information see the Office of Disability Accommodation website at http://www.unt.edu/oda. You may also contact them by phone at 940.565.4323.”

BREAKDOWN BY WEEKS AND CLASS MEETINGS

Unit 1

Week One: Jan 20th Introduction to the Course: Screening Goodfellas (1990) dir. Martin Scorsese

Week Two: Jan 27th Screening: Little Caesar (1931) dir. Mervyn LeRoy, 79mins. Seminar: The Classical Cycle Required Reading: Warshow, R “The Gangster as Tragic Hero” in The Immediate Experience, 1948 reprinted in Silver & Urisini, Gangster Film Reader NY, Limelight Editions (2007) pp.11-18.

Recommended Reading: Munby, J “The Enemy goes Public: Voicing the cultural other in the early 1930s talking gangster film” in Public Enemies, Public Heroes: screening the gangster from Little Caesar to Touch of Evil Chicago, Uni of Chicago Press, 1999, pp.39-65. Maltby, R “The Spectacle of Criminality” in Slocum, J.D. (ed) Violence and American Cinema (2001), N.Y. Routledge, pp. 117-152 Ruth, David E “Criminal Businessmen” in Inventing the Public Enemy: the gangster in American culture 1918-1934, Chicago, Uni of Chicago Press, pp. 37-62

Screening Notes: Consider Rico Bandello (Edward G. Robinson) as a hero. Is he an example of ideal masculinity? What makes us sympathize, distance ourselves from him?

Consider the possible reasons behind Rico’s actions. What drives him to do the things he does?

How is the male body portrayed? Compare this film to others in terms of costume and the male body.

Week Three: Feb 3rd Screening: White Heat (1949) dir. Raoul Walsh, 114mins. Seminar: PostWar Gangsters as Criminally Insane

Required Reading: Erickson, G “White Heat: I am Cody Jarrett, Destroyer of Worlds” in Silver & Urisini, Gangster Film Reader NY, Limelight Editions (2007) pp.135-154

Recommended Reading: (based on this very interesting era of film) Studlar, Gaylyn “A Gunsel is being Beaten: Gangster Masculinity and the Homoerotics of the Crime Film” in Grieveson, Sonnet & Stanfield, Mob Culture: Hidden Histories of the American Gangster Film, Rutgers Uni Press, 2005 pp. 120-145 Wilson, Ron “Gang Busters: The Kefauver Crime Committee and the Syndicate Films of the 1950s” in Grieveson, Sonnet & Stanfield, Mob Culture: Hidden Histories of the American Gangster Film, Rutgers Uni Press, 2005 pp. 67-90

Screening Notes: The postwar American gangster is often portrayed as mentally disturbed. This is partly due to the production code’s insistence on clear motivations and penalties for criminal behaviour, but it also provides some interesting portrayals of deviant masculinity.

Note the simplistic connection between Cody’s attachment to his mother and his deviant behaviour. The film is a prime example of how postwar American masculine anxieties were often explained in very basic psychological terms.

Extra Viewing: Kiss of Death (1947) dir.Henry Hathaway, 98 mins. Worth watching for Tommy Udo (Richard Widmark) and his maniacal laugh.

Week Four: Feb 10th Screening: Le Samourai (1967) dir. Jean-Pierre Melville, 101mins Seminar: 1960s Gangster Chic

Required Reading: Dickos, A “The Noir Influence on the French New Wave: Jean Pierre Melville” in Street With No Name: A History of the Classic American Film Noir” Uni Press of Kentucky (2002), pp.222-234 Trifonova, Temenuga “Cinematic Cool: J.P Melville’s Le Samurai” in Senses of Cinema http://sensesofcinema.com/2006/cteq/samourai/

Recommended Reading: Larke-Walsh, G.S. “Mafia Myths” in Screening the Mafia: masculinity, ethnicity and mobsters from the Godfather to The Sopranos, Jefferson, N.C. McFarland, (2010) pp.112-159. Vincendeau, G “The Delon Trilogy: Le Samurai” in Jean Pierre Melville: An American in Paris London, BFI (2003), pp.175-188

Screening Notes: The film is all about ‘mood’ and ‘aesthetics’. The lone hitman that you know in films such as Leon: The Professional is born here.

Melville’s film and central character are part Noir, part gangster, part Americana and part French existentialism.

Extra Viewing: Le Doulos (1962) dir. Jean-Pierre Melville, 109 mins. Another gangster noir film that focuses on costume and style (Jazz soundtrack and highly stylized aesthetics). Melville’s films were extremely influential on the postclassical American era (esp. Scorsese).

EXAM #1: Feb 17th

Week Six: Feb 24th Screening: The Godfather (1972) dir. Francis Ford Coppola, 175 mins Seminar: The Postclassical ‘Classic’ Required Reading: Fordham, Geoff “A Study in Ambiguity: The Godfather and the American Gangster Movie Tradition” in Silver & Urisini, Gangster Film Reader NY, Limelight Editions (2007) pp. 165-182

Recommended Reading: Larke-Walsh, G.S. “Theorizing the Gangster Genre” in Screening the Mafia: masculinity, ethnicity and mobsters from the Godfather to The Sopranos, Jefferson, N.C. McFarland, (2010), pp.58-111. Man, Glenn “Ideology and Genre in The Godfather Films” in Browne, N (ed) Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Trilogy, NY, Cambridge Uni Press, (2000), pp.109-132. Dika, Vera “The Representation of Ethnicity in The Godfather” in Browne, N (ed) Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Trilogy, NY, Cambridge Uni Press, (2000), pp. 76-108

Screening Notes: The Godfather trilogy is deemed a classic and as such it informs all gangster films made since. What themes does it present? (Identity through business; Romance; Ethnic identity for instance)

Consider The Godfather Pt I as a genre film. What conventions does it use that are similar to Little Caesar ? What themes or conventions are more developed?

Week Seven: March 3rd Screening: Mean Streets (1973) dir. Martin Scorsese, 112mins. Seminar: Scorsese’s gangsters Required Reading: Casillo, R “Season of the Witch: Mean Streets” in Gangster Priest: the Italian American cinema of Martin Scorsese Toronto, Uni of Toronto Press, 2006, pp.179-221 Friedman, L “Our Gang: from Elizabeth street to mean streets” in The Cinema of Martin Scorsese N.Y. Continuum, 1997, pp.20-38.

Recommended Reading: Verevis, Constantine “A Way of Life: Goodfellas and Casino” in Silver & Urisini, Gangster Film Reader NY, Limelight Editions (2007) pp. 209-224

Screening Notes: It may seem like a huge omission not to screen Goodfellas, but I am assuming it is a film everyone has seen. We can still discuss it and Casino in class. I want you to watch Mean Streets instead and think about the ways in which it responds to The Godfather.

Scorsese is quoted as saying he dislikes Coppola’s romanticism. His films are supposedly more realistic. Consider this assertion. In what ways is he right, and in what ways is he wrong?

Extra Viewing: Goodfellas (1990) and Casino (1995) of course, but don’t forget how much Scorsese was influenced by the Italian films I Vitelloni (1953) dir. Federico Fellini, 103 mins, and Rocco and his Brothers (1960) dir. Luchno Visconti.

Week Eight: March 10th Screening: Miller’s Crossing (1990), dir. Joel & Ethan Coen, 115 mins. Seminar: Narrative and Film Form Required Reading: Coughlin, P “Acting for Real: Performing characters in Miller’s Crossing and Fargo” in Journal of Popular Culture, V.41, N.2, 2008, pp.224-244 Nolan, W “Miller’s Crossing’s Tom Reagan: Straight as a corkscrew, Mr Inside-outsky” in Post Script, Winter, v.27 Iss. 2, 2008, pp.48-61

Recommended Reading: (not on blackboard) Herling, Bradley “Ethics, Heart and Violence in Miller’s Crossing” in Conrad, M (ed) The Philosophy of the Coen Brothers, Lexington, Uni Press of Kentucky, 2009, pp. 125-146 Mottram, J The Coen Brothers: The Life of the Mind, London, B.T. Batsford, 2000

Screening Notes Based on narratives from Dashiell Hammet’s pulp crime novels of the 1920s, Miller’s Crossing owes as much to Film Noir as it does to the gangster genre. However, make note of the use of Mafia mythologies. How is the mafia presented in this film?

Costumes, especially hats, are a semi-comic motif in this film. This marks a shift in gangster film aesthetics towards ‘performance’ as a central signifier of criminality. Note how costume denotes character.

SPRING BREAK Week Nine: March 24th Screening: The Funeral (1996) dir. Abel Ferrara, 99mins Seminar: Mafia Madness

Required Reading: Larke-Walsh G.S. “Mafia and Madness: Abel Ferrara’s The Funeral” in Journal of Popular Film and TV v.40:2 pp.75-82

Screening Notes: This film has been largely ignored by critics and reviewers. It is a film about madness and criminality. What does it suggest is the source of the brothers’ neuroses?

Consider the revelation of the real killer. What does this say about violence and masculinity?

Extra Viewing: The Sopranos (HBO 1997-2007) First two series. If you haven’t seen this series – watch it mainly for the cinematic allusions, Carmela Soprano and the links between Mafia identity and mental instability.

SECOND EXAM: March 31st

Unit 3 Week Eleven: April 7th Screening: Brat (1997) dir. Aleksey Balabanov, 96mins. Seminar: Organized crime in Russia

Required Reading: Anemone, Anthony “About Killers, Freaks and Real Men: The Vigilante Hero of Aleksei Balabanov’s Films” in Norris, S.M. & Torlone, Z.M. (eds.) Insiders and Outsiders in Russian Cinema, Bloomington, Indiana Uni Press, pp.127-141 Beumers, Birgit "To Moscow! To Moscow? the Russian Hero and the Loss of the Centre" in Russia on Reels: The Russian Idea in Post-Soviet Cinema Beumers, B (ed.) London, I.B. Taurus (1999), pp.76-87

Recommended Reading: (not on blackboard) Gillespie, David “The Sight and Sound of Russian Cinema” in Russian Cinema New York, Longman (??) Pozefsky, Peter “Russian Gangster Films as Popular History: genre, ideology and memory in Pavel Lungin’s Tycoon” in Studies in Russian and Soviet cinema v.2 n.3 (2008), pp.299-325

Screening Notes This is a very impressive film. The violence is brutal, but – as always – it’s the reasons behind the violence (and the attitudes towards it) that is interesting not the violence itself. Danila is a introverted character (hints of a ‘Travis Bickle’ style vigilantism). He emerges from the unknown (war, water) and attempts to find his place back in civilization. What skills does this ‘civilization’ prize the most?

Extra Viewing: Tycoon: A New Russian (2002) dir. Pavel Lungin (120mins). Available on Netflix Instant. Very enjoyable Mafia/business thriller.

Week Twelve: April 14th Screening: Gomorrah (2008) dir. Matteo Garrone, 137mins. Seminar: Italian Mafia Required Reading: Behan, T “Introduction” & “The ‘business camorra’ of the Nuvoletta gang” in See Naples and Die: The Camorra and Organized Crime London, I.B. Taurus (2002), pp.1-16 &106-130 Radovic, Rajko “McMafia Rising” in Film International 7.1 (2009), pp.6-11

Recommended Reading: Allum, Felia “Chaper 6: The Camorras in the 1980s-2000s” in Camorristi, Politicians, and Businessmen: The Transformation of Organized Crime in Post-war Naples, Leeds, UK, Northern Universities Press (2006), pp.117-156. Small, P “Giordana’s I cento passi: renegotiating the Mafia codes” in Journal of Contemporary Film V.3 n.1 (2005), pp.41-54.

Screening Notes: This film is very different to Saviano’s book except in its focus on the social environment. Its narrative is more related to the Hollywood gangster genre, emulating various well-known characters.

Consider the impact of such decisions in the film’s structure and characters. How does this change the film and what does it do to its connection to the realities of life in the Naples area of Campania.

Extra Viewing: Bullhead (2011) dir. Michaël Roskam (128 mins) Like Gomorrah, this film focuses on the impact of organized crime on regular business practices.

Week Thirteen: April 21st Screening: The Long Good Friday (1980) dir. John Mackenzie, 114mins. Seminar: British Gangland Required Reading: Keefe, Barrie “Haunting Friday” in Sight and Sound v6:8 Aug 1996), pp20-21. Hill, John “Allegorizing the Nation: British Gangster Films of the 1980s” in British Crime Cinema, London, Routledge, (1999)

Recommended: (Historical Overview) Williams, Tony “The British Gangster Film” in Silver & Urisini, Gangster Film Reader NY, Limelight Editions (2007) pp. 237-258 Walsh, M “Thinking the Unthinkable: Coming to terms with Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s” in Ashby, J & Higson, A (eds.) British Cinema: Past and Present London, Routledge (2000).

Screening Notes: Considered one of the best films about British gangland, this film is an exercise in British politics, class and paranoia. Note the layering of clues and red herrings in this narrative. The intention is to lead the audience down the wrong path, so that the revelation is more chilling at the end.

This film, like Goodfellas, is representative of the excess of the 1980s (Long Good Friday anticipates it, Goodfellas comments upon it). Note the similarities and differences between British gangland identity and images of the American Mafia

Extra Viewing: The Take (Mini-series, 2009) available on Netflix. Adapted from a novel by Martina Cole. This series (and all of Cole’s novels) captures the essence of British gangland mythology much better than most feature films (and it stars Tom Hardy).

Week Fourteen: April 28th Screening: Lawless (2012) dir. John Hillcoat, 116mins. Seminar: Rural Gangsters and American History

Required Reading: Warshow, R “Movie Chronicle: The Westerner” in Braudy & Cohen (eds) Film Theory and Criticism (6th Edition), Oxford Uni Press (2004), pp.703-716.

Screening Notes: This is a film about rural versus urban living. It’s also about class (corporate versus family business). The themes are similar to those employed in the American Western, but what are the connections to the gangster genre?

The Bondurant brothers are simply trying to save their business and therefore get all the sympathy in the narrative. Is this a celebration of American rural communities, or a exploitation of the redneck stereotype? Extra Viewing: Dillinger (1973) dir. John Milius, 109 mins. The myths of Lawless reflect the myths of the American westerner rather than the urban gangsters. There are thematic similarities between the film and Shane (1953) as well.

REVIEW WEEK May 5th

FINAL EXAM:

SCREENING QUIZ FILMS #1 Underworld (1927) Scarface: shame of a nation (1934) High Sierra (1941) The Big Heat (1953) The Brotherhood (1968)

#2 The Godfather Pt II (1974) Gloria (1980) Scarface (1983) New Jack City (1991) Donnie Brasco (1995)

#3 Brighton Rock (1947) Sonatine (1993) The Sicilian Girl (2008) A Prophet (2009) Animal Kingdom (2010)