Cold-blooded murder, gang wars, and explosions – was it a Hollywood production? No, it was the streets of Chicago during the 1920’s. The publics fascination with real crime and gangsters was a guilty pleasure that helped generate huge profits for Hollywood. What was happening on the streets during the 20’s would fuel the popularity of the crime and gangster movie genre in the 1930’s and 1940’s. So much so, that a new classification of movie emerged – film noir.   

The history of the crime and gangster movie has its roots in the silent films of the early part of the 20th century. However, it wasn’t until the late 1920’s through the 30’s that these films became a bit more lifelike to moviegoers. The high-profile existence of actual gangsters, their crimes, and the amount of puplicity they received caused this movie genre to flourish. These included notorious names such as Al Capone and John Dillinger. Gangsters became as widely identifiable to the general public as presidents.  On the movie screen, these characters were often portrayed as being money hungry, violent and inclined to shoot first and ask questions later. Film-goers loved it!

With that in mind, here are some of the most interesting, exciting, and enjoyable early crime and gangster movies:

The silent film Underworld came out In 1927, starred George Bancroft as ‘Bull Weed’ along with Clive Brook as ‘Rolls Royce’. There is a unique twist to this story, as it is told completely from the gangsters point of view. A crime kingpin, his ‘moll’ (Evelyn Brent), a befriended derelict, and a vicious rival (Fred Kohler); what could go wrong?

Originally predicted to be a flop, this film became very successful as a result of strong word-of-mouth, and even won a Best Writing Oscar for Ben Hecht. Over 80 years later, this picture is considered by many to be the first modern American gangster movie.   

The Public Enemy, released in 1931, tells the story of two brothers growing up during the prohibition-era. Tom (James Cagney) is a small-time hood with a lot of the wrong kind of ambition, while Mike (Donald Cook) works hard, goes to school, and enlists in the Marines during World War I. With his brother serving his country, Tom and his life-long friend Matt (Edward Woods) rise through the ranks of the Chicago underworld.

Mike returns from the military to find his brother reaping the rewards of a lucrative bootlegging business while he has suffered only the pain of war. Mike tries to get Tom to change his life which only pushes the brothers farther apart. When Tom’s friend Matt is killed, he embarks on a path of revenge that can only lead to one end. This film proved to be James Cagney’s breakout role.

In 1931, Little Caesar hit the big-screen. Aspiring small town criminals Caesar Enrico Bandello (Edward G. Robinson) and Joe Massara (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.) head for the city of Chicago in search of their fortune. Crime offers opportunity for those who will stop at nothing. Through the use of his gun, Rico is able to work his way up to the head of the gang, earning himself the nickname – “Little Caesar”.

Meanwhile, Joe has taken another path. Choosing to be a dancer, and meeting a girl named Olga (Glenda Farrell), As a result, the relationship between the brothers becomes tense and distant. Rico tries to get Joe to forget about Olga and come back and join him. When Joe refuses, Rico informs him that he has signed a death warrant for himself and Olga.

Worried that Joe, or Olga may betray him, Rico sets out to kill them both. However, for the first time, he is unable to pull the trigger. This could prove to be a big mistake -”Is this the end of Rico”? This is considered by the American Film Institute to be one of the Ten Best Gangster Movies of all-time.

One of the most popular of the early crime and gangster films is 1932’s Scarface. The movie is loosely based on the life of famed gangster Al Capone. In fact, Capone liked the picture so much he had his own copy. Extremely violent and power hungry gangster Antonio ‘Tony’ Camonte (Paul Muni) aims to take over the rackets after former head Big Louis Costillo is murdered.

The police suspect Tony was the killer, having been hired to do the job by Johnny Lovo (Osgood Perkins), but are unable to make a case against him because the body was never found. Tony’s ruthless ambition is fast becoming a threat to Lovo and the other crime bosses. With continued pressure from the police along with the suspicion and danger presented by Lovo and friends, a violent showdown can’t be far off. Enjoy the terrific portrayals of mobsters Guino Rinaldo and Gaffney by George Raft and Boris Karloff.

Scarface was directed by Howard Hawks, and produced by Howard Hughes. The film was considered so violent and glorifying of the gangster lifestyle that, although it was completed in 1931, was not released until the next year. 1932’s Scarface is on the American Film Institutes list of the Ten Best Gangster Movies of all-time. Today’s movie audience’s are most familiar with the contemporized 1983 Brian De Palma remake of Scarface starring Al Pacino that has become a cult classic.

Warner Bros. produced a string of successful crime and gangster movies during the thirty’s, and 1939’s The Roaring Twenties just may be the best of the Warner productions. The story begins just after the end of World War I. Having met in a large artillery shell hole and become friends during the war, returning veterans Eddie Bartlett (James Cagney), George Hally (Humphrey Bogart), and Lloyd Hart (Jeffery Lynn) re-enter society. 

Eddie, unable to get his old job back as a mechanic, joins neighborhood friend Danny as a cab driver, George, a former bar keeper, becomes a bootlegger, and Lloyd looks for work as a lawyer. Eddie and Danny use their cab business to build a fleet of cabs all bootlegging liquor, and hire Lloyd to be their lawyer.

Eddie and George’s illegal paths cross during a liquor hijacking and they form an ill-fated partnership. Their empire is thriving; that is until wars over territory, double-crossing treachery, love, and the great stock market crash threaten to bring everyone down.

This was perhaps the final gangster film of its kind before the genre regenerated itself as film noir. One of the great “Hollywood gangsters” in motion picture history, James Cagney, did not play another gangster role for ten years until the classic White Heat. 

Even though movies about crime and gangsters continue to be made, it will always be difficult, if not impossible, to duplicate the true to life crime and gangster productions of the mid-20th century.

Released in 2006, Tsotsi is a film which accurately portrays the differences between life in Johannesburg, South Africa and the surrounding ghettos.  Tsotsi is approximately 94 minutes long and was directed by Gavin Hood.  The main character in this film, Presley Chweneyagae, is a tsotsi (thug) living in the ghettos outside of Johannesburg where he does anything possible to make money and stay alive.  The movie is very violent and somewhat disturbing, especially in the beginning half.

The movie begins with Tsotsi and his three friends looking for trouble and money in the local train station.  They find a man who is obviously wealthy and buying lavish scarves and follow him onto the train.  The four men surround him and quietly demand his money.  When the older man declines to give up his money, Tsotsi stabs him in the abdomen with a long, homemade knife causing his death.  The young thug’s three friends are in shock in the next scene since Tsotsi actually killed the man for his money.  One of his friends, Boston, confronts him in a local bar later that night and Tsotsi beats him up badly due to Boston’s insults about his family. 

Tsotsi finds himself alone and not wanting to spend time with his accomplices in crime, so he goes out to find money on his own.  He travels to a district in Johannesburg full of mansions and fancy cars where he sees a woman standing outside of her car in the rain, trying to open the gate to enter her estate property.  The young thug approaches her and shoots his handgun at her while stealing her car.  He speeds off, driving erratically, and eventually crashes the fancy car into a sign and ditch, rendering it useless.  He is about to run off when he hears a baby cry.  Tsotsi looks in the back seat and sees that there is an infant whom he must now care for.  He puts the young child into a paper bag along with food and money and runs for his shack in the ghetto. 

The young man who had no responsibilities in the past now finds himself with a baby.  He thinks he has killed the baby’s mother, so he must now care for the baby.  Tsotsi hides the baby from his friends so they do not think he is soft and weak.  The baby eats canned food and sleeps in the shopping bag until Tsotsi realizes he is not doing a good job caring for the child.  He looks out of his shack’s window and sees a young, single mother who seems to take good care of her baby.  Tsotsi follows the young mother to her house and pulls his gun on her.  He enters her house and demands that the woman feed and clean his newfound baby.   She does so with tears in her eyes, but when Tsotsi returns the next day, she starts to accept the baby and offers to keep her. 

At this point, Tsotsi realizes that he is not living a good life.  He flashes back to his childhood several times throughout the movie, giving viewers a glimpse of the circumstances which made him so violent and cruel.  The thug’s mother was dying of the unknown disease, AIDS, and his father was a raging drunk who liked to beat his family and pets.  Tsotsi was forced to watch his father kick a young family dog repeatedly, breaking the dogs spine and leaving him to die.  Tsotsi ran away from home and his abusive father where he lived in a concrete pipe with other homeless children.  The young man returns to this spot several times throughout the movie to look at where he came from and analyze where he is going in life.  He realizes that his father was a bad man and that he has come a long way since running away from home.  Tsotsi starts to change for the better at this point, vowing to take care of the baby and to make things right in his life. 

The first thing Tsotsi does is apologize to Boston.  He tells Boston that he has always been there for him in the past and that he made a mistake by beating him up.  Boston ends up moving into Tsotsi’s shack and sleeping in his small bed while recovering.  The young man then sneaks over to see his baby and the baby’s temporary mother where he offers her money and strikes up a genuine conversation about her life.  They both realize that they are alone in life except for their small children, and become friends in a way.  While viewers of this movie start to feel that Tsotsi is a better person, he still has one more act of violence left in him.  The four young men return to the woman’s house where Tsotsi stole her car and baby, and attempt to rob the house.  They do not know that the woman’s husband is home from visiting his paralyzed life in the hospital, and end up confronting each other.  The woman’s husband is restrained and tied to a chair while the boys vandalize his house. 

However, the robbery does not go as planned.  The home owner sets off the house alarm using a keychain in his pocket.  Tsotsi and his friends become spooked and one of the boys decides he will kill the home owner.  As he raises his pistol and prepares to shoot the man, Tsotsi shoots his friend and kills him from outside the picture.  Blood is splattered everywhere and Tsotsi and the other two boys run away, leaving the man tied to the chair and his friend dead on the floor.  At this point, South African police have posted pictures of Tsotsi all over the ghetto and are harassing people who may know his whereabouts.  He really begins to feel that pressure from the police and realizes that he must do the right thing before he is arrested; he must return the baby to her parents. 

On a damp night, Tsotsi sets out by himself with the baby in her paper bag along with all of the baby’s toys and food in a leather bag.  The young man appears at the mansion where security has set up cameras to survey the perimeter and rings the bell at the front gate.  Security becomes alarmed, and the husband and wife get out of bed to hurry outside.  Other police officers arrive and hold the young man at gunpoint while the husband pushes his wife outside in her wheelchair to talk to Tsotsi.  The husband asks the police to be quiet while he talks some sense into the young thug.  He slowly opens his gate and walks toward Tsotsi while the police still have their guns pointed at him.  Tsotsi has tears in his eyes and is unable to talk he is so afraid, but he gently hands the child over to her father and breathes a sigh of relief.  The movie ends abruptly at this point, leaving the viewer in a sense of awe at what just occurred.

Tsotsi is a great movie on several levels.  First, it puts the viewer through all emotions.  The viewer feels fear and disgust when Tsotsi kills the rich man in the beginning and shoots the rich wife leaving her paralyzed.  One also feels an enormous sense of relief when the baby is taken care of by the single mother and when Tsotsi eventually returns the young child to her parents.  There is also some heart-pounding action when Tsotsi is driving crazily with the baby in the back seat and when the rich man’s house is being robbed while the alarm is sounding off.  The movie also gives an accurate portrayal of life in the rich and extremely poor parts of South Africa and what people must do to survive in the ghettos.  Due to the in-depth plot, accurate portrayal of life in South Africa, and overall drama involved in the movie, I rate Tsotsi a 4 out of 5.   

The movie Conan, with Arnold Schwarzenegger, was released in 1982 and the sword called “The Atlantean” was specifically designed for the movie and for the actor. It was given a major role in the movie because it played a major role in the Conan stories and novels written by Robert E. Howard. The sword itself proved to be very popular and replicas were created for sale on the mass market. Twenty-five years later replicas of the Atlantean are still made and sold. This sword started a whole trend in movie making and today fantasy moviemakers take great care to design, create, and market unique swords as part of the movie and as part of their marketing. This can be seen in the recently released movie 300, which has caused a resurgence in the gladiator type sword. And the new Harry Potter movie will spotlight a sword wielded by Harry himself. This sword replica has already been released and is available in currently limited quantities on the mass market.

The Highlander movies, (First installment released in 1986) are another good example of the sword as a centerpiece of the movie. The swords play a major role in the film plot in that the sword must be used to dispatch a foe, and consequently, to gain the foe’s powers. In the first film a Scottish Claymore was used and as the Highlander moves through time into the present he switches to a highly stylized version of Japanes katanas. This use of the Japanes katana is one of the earliest examples of mass marketing of Japanese swords and this has been very successfully followed in the Kill Bill movies.

Braveheart (released in 1995) is a good example of using replica swords that stay true to the flavor of the time period they portray. Mel Gibson wields a number of different weapons that stay accurate to the time of the movie. These weapons include a warhammer and a flail. The most famous of the weapons that he wields is A Flamberge which is a two-handed sword with a leather wrapping around a portion of the blade which allows the user to choke up on the weapon and use it in close combat situations.

Blade (1996-2004) is a series of vampire movies that use a variety of weapons including flailing, and whipping weapons. The primary weapon of the main character (Wesley Snipes) is a Japanese Katana that has the added effect of a booby trap. If a person picks up the weapon they have a few seconds to press a secret button. If they don’t, secret blades pop out of the handle damaging the hand that is holding it. This series of movies are another good example of how the Japanese katana has become very popular in the movies.

Gladiator (2000) is a good example of how the weapons of the high Roman era have made their mark on movies and on the collecting of swords. The Roman Gladius wielded by Maximus (Russell Crowe) is a good example of the weapon that was wielded at the time and it is still a popular choice of weapon collectors.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy of movies (2001 – 2003) have had an impact on the collecting of movie swords that goes beyond all other movies. This movie returned the collector to the art of the pure fantasy sword much like the Conan sword. While the trend in movies was to create period accurate replicas this series of movies moved the whole trend toward the creation of fantastic blades that represented the wielders personality. Each major character in the movies has his own or her own weapon. Each weapon is unique, and easily available on the mass market for collectors.

Eragon (2006) continues the tradition of unique fantasy sword in that the main character wields a beautiful sword called Zar’roc. This sword has a blue Sapphire mounted at the base of the hilt and the sword itself has significant power and symbolism. It plays an important role in the movie and an important role in the replica collection world.

The past twenty-five years of filmmaking has given us a wonderful selection of fantasy swords that are both accurate reproductions from the real swords of the past and exciting creations of fantasy that never existed except in the minds of writers and blacksmiths. This trend was first started with Conan and over the next twenty-five years we are sure to get an even more incredible selection of weapons and swords in the movies.

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If you are eager to get Wanted movie, you might have known the synopsis of the movie. I bet you can’t wait to watch this movie anymore. Today you can get Wanted Full Movie Download at legitimate site that is safe and legal, where to find such site? Read on to find out more.

Wanted tells a story about Wes, 25 years old one of the world’s best assassin’s son. He begins his journey as an assassin after his father is killed. Trained by a foxy and sexy woman named Fox (Angelina Jolie) and the leader of the assassin gang, Sloan (Morgan Freeman), he improves very rapidly. He is trapped between heroism and vengeance, and then learns what no one could ever teach him.

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Swords have been used by our species for a very very long time. Also’ ever since we started making movies’ swords have always been used in depicting battles of the past (Ben-Hur’ Gladiator’ etc) as well as battles of the future (Star Wars’ etc). A large number of people are now avid sword collectors owing to their passions that received a kick start due to the swords used in many such movies.

There are a number of replica movie swords that any movie or sword aficionado must have. A great many come to mind’ and amongst the first are swords from the movie ‘Lord of the Rings’. What makes these swords especially special is that all the swords used during the entire trilogy were made using moulds that were used in making the movies’ props.

Other popular movie swords include Zelda’s sword (which isn’t even out yet) and the Excalibur. While there have been a number of movies made involving the Excalibur’ amongst the most recent one to use it was ‘King Arthur’ in 2004. This is the sword that King Arthur is said to have used in asserting his right to the throne.

Swords from the movie ‘300′ are also finding an increasing number of buyers. This movie depicts the story of the Battle of Thermopylae through computer generated animations’ and shows King Leonidas and his army of 300 Spartans fighting the Persians in trying to persuade the Greeks into fighting for their independence.  

Buffs of the game ‘Legend of Zelda’ are anxiously waiting for the movie to come out’ and rumor has it that production has already started in Australia. While one could already get Zelda swords based upon the game’ many people are already waiting for the movie versions to come out. If you are a ‘Legend of Zelda’ fan’ you might just have to wait for some more time for the movie and the movie swords to come out.

Buying a movie sword can get to be confusing’ especially with the large number of manufactures and dealers that are trying to get your attention. With movie swords available to suit almost any budget’ make sure that you carry out an extensive search in trying to get yourself the best deal possible. The internet is home to a large number of movie sword dealers and the increased competition often leads to some great deals.

One aspect that you should pay particular attention to in buying a movie sword is the material that is used in making it. Most movie swords are merely replicas and cannot be used in real life. Therefore’ if you wish to get yourself a functional sword’ you might have to think carefully about the sword that you wish to buy.

Remember that buying a movie sword is no longer limited to nerds or kids’ and you could be quite amazed at seeing how intricately some of these swords have been worked upon. Also’ with there being so much to choose from’ you could very well choose to display just what you like inside your home through these great movie sword offerings.

A Time to Kill – film

Here is the schedule of Philippine holidays and long-weekends for 2010 based on RA 9492 and Proclamation 1841:

• January 1 (Fri) – New Year’s Day (five-day long weekend from December 30 to January 3)
• February 22 (Mon) – EDSA Revolution Anniversary
• April 1 (Thu) – Holy Thursday
• April 2 (Fri) – Good Friday (four-day long weekend from April 1 to 4)
• April 9 (Fri) – Araw ng Kagitingan (three-day long weekend from April 9 to 11)
• May 1 (Sat) – Labor Day
• June 14 (Mon) – Independence Day (three-day long weekend from June 12 to 14)
• August 23 (Mon) – Ninoy Aquino Day (three-day long weekend from August 21 to 23)
• August 30 (Mon) – National Heroes Day (three-day long weekend from August 28 to 30)
• September – Eid’l Fitr (to be announced, calculated September 10, possible three-day long weekend from September 10 to 12)
• November 1 (Mon) – All Saints Day (three-day long weekend from October 30 to November 1)
• November – Eid ‘l Adha (to be announced, calculated November 16)
• November 29 (Mon) – Bonifacio Day (three-day long weekend from November 27 to 29)
• December 24 (Fri) – Non-Working Holiday
• December 25 (Sat) – Christmas
• December 27 (Mon) – Rizal Day (four-day long weekend from December 24 to 27)
• December 31 (Fri) – Non-Working Holiday
• January 1 – (Sat) New Year’s Day (three-day long weekend from December 31 to January 2)

After a few years of waiting, finally the Sequel of the controversial book of Dan Brown “The Da Vinci Code” is out! This book has been expected to come out since 2006 and the planned title was The Solomon Key. But the date was pushed back multiple times until today.

According to the ever reliable Wikipedia. The story takes place over a period of 12 hours in Washington, D.C., with a focus on Freemasonry. Robert Langdon is summoned to Washington by his mentor, a Mason named Peter Solomon. When Solomon goes missing and a ghastly clue is left, Langdon is sent on a rapid chase through the concealed passages of the city. He joins forces with Solomon’s daughter, Noetic scientist Dr. Katherine Solomon, while matching wits with a tattooed and brilliant villain who is in search of an ancient source of power.

Thanks to Pinoydad.Com by providing us a good list of long holidays. Feel free to choose any date and start filling out those leave forms.

• April 4-6 (3 days, Saturday to Monday) : Araw ng Kagitingan
• April 9-12 (4 days, Thursday to Sunday) : Holy Week/Easter holidays
• May 1-3 (3 days, Friday to Sunday) : Labor Day
• June 12-14 (3 days, Friday to Sunday) : Independence Day
• August 21-23 (3 days, Friday to Sunday) : Ninoy Aquino Day
• August 29-31 (3 days, Saturday to Monday) : National Heroes
• October 31-Nov 2 (3 days, Saturday to Monday) : All Saints/Souls
• November 28-30 (3 days, Saturday to Monday) : Bonifacio Day
• December 24-27 (4 days, Thursday to Sunday) : Christmas season
• December 30/31-January 3, 2010 (5 days, Wednesday to Sunday) : New Year holidays/Rizal Day