Overview
In a world where the law is just a suggestion, ambition and betrayal intertwine.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- hard-edged
- tense
- fatalistic
- classic cinema night
- crime movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly regard Raoul Walsh’s gangster drama as a forceful, expertly made classic with strong performances and enduring genre impact.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Eddie Bartlett builds a cab fleet through bootleg liquor before rivalry and changing circumstances threaten his position.
Eddie, George, Lloyd, and Jean are caught between affection, friendship, professional loyalty, and competition.
Bootlegging, cab delivery networks, and organized rackets flourish against the backdrop of postwar instability and the Great Depression.
The Warner Bros. production presents gangster ambition and moral decline through the hard-edged style associated with early American film noir.
Films like The Roaring Twenties, and why
The Public Enemy
classic gangster drama centered on organized crime, ambition, loyalty, and betrayal
Angels with Dirty Faces
stylized crime saga combining prohibition-era criminality, romantic rivalry, and tragic consequences
Little Caesar
American gangster film pairing criminal power struggles with moral conflict and doomed relationships
Movie Details
- Director
- Raoul Walsh
- Release Date
- 1939-10-28
- Runtime
- 104 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (276)
Cast
- James Cagney
- Priscilla Lane
- Humphrey Bogart
- Gladys George
- Jeffrey Lynn
- Frank McHugh
- Paul Kelly
- Elisabeth Risdon
- Edward Keane
- Joe Sawyer
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Roaring Twenties about?
- An ambitious cab driver turns Prohibition-era bootlegging into a criminal empire, only to see friendship, love, and rivalry pull it apart.
- What is The Roaring Twenties like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Roaring Twenties as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Roaring Twenties violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Roaring Twenties as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Roaring Twenties?
- Critics broadly regard Raoul Walsh’s gangster drama as a forceful, expertly made classic with strong performances and enduring genre impact.
- Which films are like The Roaring Twenties?
- Films with a similar feel include The Public Enemy, Angels with Dirty Faces, and Little Caesar.
- How long is The Roaring Twenties?
- The Roaring Twenties runs 104 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Roaring Twenties?
- In United States, The Roaring Twenties is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
