Little Caesar

"The Power-Mad Monarch of the Murder Mobs!"

1931 1h 18m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 314

DramaCrime

Synopsis

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A small-time hood shoots his way to the top, but how long can he stay there?

“The Power-Mad Monarch of the Murder Mobs!”

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Cast

Edward G. Robinson
Caesar Enrico 'Rico' Bandello aka 'Little Caesar'
Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
Joe Massara
Glenda Farrell
Olga Stassoff
William Collier Jr.
Tony Passa
Sidney Blackmer
Big Boy
Ralph Ince
Pete Montana
Thomas E. Jackson
Sgt. Flaherty
Stanley Fields
Sam Vettori

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Writers: Francis Edward Faragoh, Robert N. Lee
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 78-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

95 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, shot by Tony Gaudio. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by David Mendoza. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Ray Curtiss shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Edward G. Robinson and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Glenda Farrell carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The Power-Mad Monarch of the Murder Mobs!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Mervyn LeRoy directs. Tony Gaudio behind the camera. David Mendoza scores. Ray Curtiss cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 78-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
2Shot for just $0.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
395 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, shot by Tony Gaudio. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by David Mendoza. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Ray Curtiss shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Edward G. Robinson and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Glenda Farrell carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "The Power-Mad Monarch of the Murder Mobs!".
9IMDB entry: tt0021079 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 9 themes, including "robbery", "based on novel or book", "gangster", "crime boss".
11Released under 15 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Tony Gaudio
Original score: David Mendoza
Editing: Ray Curtiss
Costume design: Earl Luick
Runtime: 78 min · 1h 18m
Status: Released
Budget: $281,000
Box office: $752,000
Return: 268% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Little Caesar (1931)

Also by

Mervyn LeRoy

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2018-12-13
★ 8/10
You tell him the cops couldn't get me no other way, so they hired a couple of gunmen. Rico Bandello quickly rises through the gangster ranks, earning himself the nick-name of Little Caesar. As he sets his sights on the top boss job held by Pete Montana, Rico knows the heat is closing in - fast. Though not the first gangster picture to hit the big screen, Little Caesar is undeniably one of the genres landmark pictures. Adapted from W.R. Burnett's (High Sierra) Al Capone inspired novel, Little Caesar would go on to influence many of the genre highlights that followed, while in the process typecasting its star and icon, Edward G. Robinson. What is perhaps the first striking thing about viewing the film now is actually just how un-violent it is in context to what would follow it, and yet it never needs to be because this is not just about a violent uprising. With the advent of sound proving to be a winner with the fact that it's set outside of prison walls. The gangster genre by and large up to this point in 1931 consisted of mob characters behind bars, the sight of Rico about town amongst the noisy hustle and bustle surely would have depression jaded cinema goers, director Mervyn LeRoy exploits this by utilising opened the eyes and ears of the paying public. I wasn't around back then so have no on the spot frame of reference, but the professional critics point to many allegories that reside within Little Caesar's structure. Talk of paranoias and conformities during economic collapse, which are for sure points of reference for those so inclined to analyse and dissect Caesar as a whole. Yet to me it's a gangster picture first and foremost, outlaying the rise and fall of a very dubious man with big ideals above his relatively small social standing. Rico has ruthless violence constantly itching to burst out, add in definite hints of sexual ambiguity and this makes him a troubling yet most intriguing character. That it works so well obviously is down to Edward G. Robinson's portrayal, big bulging eyes and snappy slang phrases (this themselves must have really hit a chord with the viewersback in the day), Robinson gives the performance that so many have imitated over the years, where he probably defined the archetype in the process. It does look a little dated now, but of course that is only natural, but this is a powerful film that rises above merely being a hoodlum based piece. Producer Darryl Zanuck wanted something different for this burgeoning genre, and with the might of Warners revelling in the power of the talkie movie, they all crafted one hell of a picture that enthrals still today as much as it has influenced through the decades. Things most definitely changed with Little Caesar. 8/10
CinemaSerf2022-06-13
★ 7/10
Edward G. Robinson is great in this early gangster talkie. He is "Rico", a clever and ambitious petty thief who decides it's time to move to the big city. Initially, he goes to work for "Sam Vettori" (Stanley Fields) but not long after, the local Crime Commissioner "McClure" is assassinated. Luckily, his buddy "Joe Massara" (Douglas Fairbanks Jr") is working at that self same club, and manages to warn "Rico" ahead of the subsequent police crackdown. It is now that he starts to smell an opportunity. First his boss, then the bigger boss "Pete Montana" (Ralph Ince) are toppled. Even his pal "Joe" and his gal "Olga" (Glenda Farrell) are not immune from his increasingly megalomanic tendencies. The thing I didn't especially like about this film is the ending - it is just a little too tame, but otherwise this is a solid effort from Mervyn LeRoy that really did bring out the best in Robinson with a quickly paced and enjoyable film.