Rod Steiger is excellent as the famed Italian-American gangster Al Capone. When you see him speaking Italian and getting hurt feelings when someone disrespects him, it makes you wonder (if you haven't already) why Marlon Brando was cast as the titular role in The Godfather, when so many other actors would have done a better job. Rod is so great in this role, it dampens others who have subsequently played Capone. Why was it necessary to keep making biopics when Scarface (the original) and Al Capone were so well-acted?
In the supporting cast, you'll see Martin Balsam, James Gregory, and Nehemiah Persoff. There's a pretty big focus on Capone's Achille's heel: Fay Spain. He's an enormously powerful man who gets his way always, and yet he's completely vulnerable to Fay's affections. He brings her expensive presents and dresses her well, but when she still doesn't love him, he feels worthless and unappreciated. I didn't understand why he didn't just move on and get another mistress, but then again, people are often drawn to those who will hurt them.
If you like Rod Steiger, check out this lesser known drama. It's filmed in a very old, 1930s style to pay tribute to the gangster period. It probably wasn't a hit at the time because movies like Ben-Hur, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and North by Northwest were big spectacles in Technicolor and full of action. This is a black-and-white nostalgia piece that reminds viewers of Prohibition and the Great Depression. It's well-done, but it's definitely stylized.
In the supporting cast, you'll see Martin Balsam, James Gregory, and Nehemiah Persoff. There's a pretty big focus on Capone's Achille's heel: Fay Spain. He's an enormously powerful man who gets his way always, and yet he's completely vulnerable to Fay's affections. He brings her expensive presents and dresses her well, but when she still doesn't love him, he feels worthless and unappreciated. I didn't understand why he didn't just move on and get another mistress, but then again, people are often drawn to those who will hurt them.
If you like Rod Steiger, check out this lesser known drama. It's filmed in a very old, 1930s style to pay tribute to the gangster period. It probably wasn't a hit at the time because movies like Ben-Hur, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and North by Northwest were big spectacles in Technicolor and full of action. This is a black-and-white nostalgia piece that reminds viewers of Prohibition and the Great Depression. It's well-done, but it's definitely stylized.