The Racket

In an unnamed city the gang leader Nick Scarsi controls the town hall, the prosecutor's office and the newspapers. One man stands against him: Captain McQuigg, who does not take money. The harder the captain works, the more his own superiors move him aside and post him to the edge of the city. Then Scarsi's brother is involved in a killing and the case reopens. The subject is not crime but politics being interwoven with the gang. The film says so in 1928, before the gangster genre had been established; the play it comes from was about Chicago and could not be staged there. The form belongs to late silent cinema and is technically fluent. The night scenes, car chases and station interiors are quickly cut; Lewis Milestone would make All Quiet on the Western Front two years later. The production's story is more interesting than the film. Howard Hughes produced it and bought the rights to the play. It was nominated for best picture at the first Academy Awards. It was then considered lost for decades; after Hughes's death a print was found in his personal collection and only then was the film recovered. Thomas Meighan plays the captain and Louis Wolheim the gang leader. Who it is for: viewers curious about early gangster films and silent cinema. Who it is not for: anyone after character depth; the narrative is fast and works through types.