Crime: 145

Martin Scorsese’s film, Boxcar Bertha (1972), tells the story of a young southern girl, Bertha Thompson, who becomes orphaned after her father’s crop-dusting plane crashes. With the onset of the Great Depression, Bertha turns to freighthopping as a means of survival. It is during this time that she meets and falls in love with Big Bill Shelly, a union organizer. Along with Rake Brown and Von Morton, former employee of Bertha’s father, they unintentionally embark on a series of train and bank robberies. As their notoriety grows, they must face off against H. Buckram Sartoris, an influential railway boss ...

Get Carter (1971), a British gangster film and the directorial debut of Mike Hodges, follows the story of Jack Carter, a London-based gangster originally from Newcastle. He works for the notorious crime bosses Gerald and Sid Fletcher, but has been carrying on an affair with Gerald’s girlfriend Anna. Jack is planning to escape with her to South America, but first he must attend his brother Frank’s funeral in Newcastle, who supposedly died in a drunk driving accident. Despite warnings from his bosses to avoid trouble due to the friendship between Gerald and the Newcastle mob, Jack decides to investigate ...

The American biographical neo-noir crime film, Bonnie and Clyde (1967), directed by Arthur Penn and starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, follows the story of Texas natives Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker. During the Great Depression, their paths cross when Clyde attempts to steal Bonnie’s mother’s car. Intrigued by him, Bonnie leaves her mundane job as a waitress to join him in a life of crime. Despite their initial excitement, their small-time heists do not bring in much profit. So they turn to robbing banks ...

Breathless (1960) is a French New Wave crime drama film written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard. Michel, a youthful and dangerous criminal, idolizes the iconic Humphrey Bogart on screen. After escaping with a stolen car in Marseille, he fatally shoots a pursuing police officer on a country road. With no money or options, Michel seeks refuge with his American acquaintance Patricia – a student and aspiring journalist who sells newspapers on the streets of Paris. As they simultaneously navigate their attraction and plot their getaway to Italy, Patricia reveals she may be carrying ...

The Public Enemy (1931) is an American pre-Code gangster film, produced and distributed by Warner Bros. Directed by William A. Wellman and starring James Cagney, the film follows the story of Irish-American friends Tom Powers and Matt Doyle in 1900s Chicago. They start off with petty theft, selling their stolen goods to a man known as ‘Putty Nose’. Tempted by the promise of protection, they join his gang for a fur warehouse robbery. However, things go wrong when Tom accidentally shoots a stuffed bear, alerting the police who kill one of the gang members, Larry ...