The Public Enemy Genre Analysis - 1219 Words

To define a film by a certain genre, there are several elements and signatures that a film will display in order to signify its place amongst the genre. A film from the gangster genre is characterized by violence and lawlessness of american capitalism and The American Dream. The short lived classical era of the gangster genre in Hollywood is also greatly influenced by the production code which manifested the iconic moral narrative of the gangster genre. William A. Wellman’s 1931 film The Public Enemy can be considered a film of the gangster genre when one examines the conflict with the American dream, the rise and fall of the protagonist Tom Powers, as well as the visual storytelling employed to support the narrative. Within gangster†¦show more content†¦As a film, The Public Enemy explores this relationship between crime and the American dream through Tom’s journey as a bootlegger as he becomes increasingly more violent. This conflict and the violence is ultimately the reason Tom must die at the end of the film. Another element of the gangster genre that is seen in Wellman’s film is the rise and fall trajectory of the central gangster protagonist. In order to avoid glamorizing the life of a gangster and his perverted American Dream, his crimes must be punished. This is a central element to any gangster film created under the auspices of the production code. To obey the rules and regulation of the PCA, any gangster in film will live â€Å"a short but glamorous life..that reaffirms the audience’s knowledge that in Hollywood, lawlessness cannot go unpunished† (Kà ¸hlert 857). The era under the PCA shaped the narrative of the gangster genre to include the death of essentially every gangster protagonist. In one of the most powerful scenes of the film, after Tom has taken revenge on the rival members, he stumbles, shot, clutching his chest into the raining streets and gutter (The Public Enemy). He is alone, isolated by the rain, and likely going to die. This is not a characte r the audience is supposed to sympathize with, and this is exactly to goal of the gangster genre. After the audience has seen Powers rise through the world of crime starting as a little boyShow MoreRelatedRhetorical Analysis Of Hip Hop Music1182 Words   |  5 Pages Rhetorical Analysis of Hip-Hop Music Sharon Rhetorical Analysis of hip-hop music among Black Americans in ‘From the margins to the mainstream: the political power of hip-hop’ by Katina R. Stapleton Thesis: the paper’s focus on hip-hop as a music genre that has changed the lives of the black Americans Introduction In this article, the speaker must be an expert in politics, ethnicity and the music industry. 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