MQP Recommends: The Ultimate Book of Gangster Movies

"You look like a gangster!"

If you enjoy gangster movies - and one thing I've learned from the Movie Quotes Project is that gangsters are surprisingly philosophical - then you will want to read The Ultimate Book of Gangster Movies by George Anastasia and Glenn Macnow.  The book was published in 2011 so it includes newer films like The Departed (2006) while paying tribute to classics like Key Largo (1948).

The Authors:  George Anastasia has a very respectable history reporting on crime for the Philadelphia Inquirer, and on TV, radio, and the Internet.  Glen Macnow has been a reporter at the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Detroit Free Press and co-wrote The Ultimate Book of Sports Movies.

Pleasant Surprise:  The authors include Bound (1996) in their top 100, one of my favorite gangster films and not a well-known one.

Weak Point:  The authors include some movies in their top 100 that even they admit aren't very good.  For example, they write "...we have trouble even getting a fix on the central figures..." about Michael Cimino's 1985 Year of the Dragon.  Better to rank solid efforts like The Limey (1999), which only gets a brief mention in a "If you liked this, you'll like" section.

Bottom Line:  The obvious choices are here - The Godfather, Carlito's Way, etc.  But the authors include a nice sample of foreign films and they provide interesting trivia that adds to the pleasure of watching these films (for example, if you think the car/train chase in The French Connection is memorable, you should read how that sequence was filmed.)  This book is flexible - you can read it cover to cover, or skim the pages for quick recommendations.  You will want to peruse this book if you're a movie fan, even if you're only lukewarm on gangster movies.