Film & Television Studies: The Gangster Film

Advanced level investigations into the critical study of film and/or television. May be repeated for credit. Topics vary by offering; periodic offering at intervals that may exceed four years. Prerequisite: FTS 1400, FTS 1420, or FTS 1430; FTS 2050.

Prereqs enforced by the system:(FTS 1400, or FTS 1420, or FTS 1430) and FTS 2050; PACE students with permission and override

We start this seminar with a question: Are gangsters a war machine? If they are, what do they wage war against? What does this warfare look like? What is the side of our society that this war machine reveals? Gangster films provoke us to answer these questions. More importantly, through this inquiry process, gangster films invite us to ask: What kind of society we are living in, and what kind of world do we desire to construct, not just in films, but in our lives? If we are aiming at a world where universal ideals, such as freedom, are possible, we must delve into these questions. In so doing, we find an opportunity to imagine the shape of human existence, such that we might prevail in the struggle to construct this world on film and in reality. In this course, we will cover various modes of gangster films, from the classical and contemporary Hollywood to global versions of the genre from Europe to Asia. Be prepared to delve in serious readings and discussions.