Gang War (1940)

A Disappointing Continuation

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I just watched a 50-minute version of this low-budget "race" movie. It stars Ralph Cooper as a gangster having a couple of rivals killed so he takes over the town. Gladys Snyder is the singer Cooper's in love with but she's more of the kind willing to call the police if she knows how much in trouble he's in especially if one of them is an old buddy of Cooper's. I'll just now say that while there are some exciting fights and chase scenes, this seemed like a by-the-numbers take on the gangster genre. Still, Gang War is worth a look if you're curious about these kind of movies made when much of the country was segregated meaning movies like this would only be shown in those theatres meant for the black audience. P.S. IMDb lists Ernie "Sunshine Sammy" Morrison as playing a gang member in this one but I haven't seen anyone who resembles the former Our Gang member as an adult. Maybe when I watch some of his East Side Kids movies, I'll be able to identify him in this movie later on.

This film is very enjoyable. I think anyone will enjoy it who sees it. This film is a gangster film and very entertaining. You would think your watching Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, John Garfield or Edward G. Robinson, but really its Ralph Cooper and Monte Hawley. Ralph Cooper, Reginald Fenderson and Monte Hawley were very popular in the Black cast films. They usually played hard-nose gangsters but with a weak heart for the women. They were great actors and very appreciated in the Black community. Their all forgotten, sadly since they were not Belafonte and Poitier, but Cooper, Fenderson, and Hawley was the first to show real dramatic acting and be in substantial roles made by blacks for black without Hollywood stereotypes but it seems your only remembered if you cross over which has a lot of missing figures from Black History because of that. Shouldn't we remember the ones who stayed stars within the Black race and helped the progress in Black Cinema who didn't need white acceptance or help? Black cast films like this were popular in the Black community, it gave Black people a break from the stereotypical roles in Hollywood. Ralph Cooper wrote, directed and starred in some of the best movies of the Black cast films. These films made you forget color and look at talent, the same way you would white actors/actresses. What he did do was appreciated. He was the son of Harlem. This film is about 60 minutes long but very jam-packed. Gorgeous, babyfaced black jean harlow look alike Gladys Snyder is regal and elegant in the movie. Anyone who wants to see what life was like in Harlem in the 1930s. This is one of them. The glamour, talent and beauty. This isn't some "B" movie. It's really action-packed with non-stop entertainment.

This is a routine crime melodrama with amateurish acting, but it is still an interesting movie for a couple of reasons.It is one of a genre produced in the 30's and 40' that were called "race" pictures. These were movies that featured all black casts that mirrored lesser white "B" movies of the period. It is important to realize that the acting and script were not very polished, but that they were honest efforts to portray blacks in a more positive light. Looking back on that period and recognizing the stereotyping blacks suffered, one has to applaud the efforts that Popkin and the other producers put out.Ralph Cooper, playing the gangster, was a regular in these features but I thought he would look more at home in a board room than a pool room. His love interest, played by Gladys Snyder was a pleasant surprise. I found her to be believable and quite appealing. I was disappointed to find that she only appeared in one other movie also made in 1940.All in all, given the budget and distribution restrictions these pictures were subject to, I think they were a brave effort to reach a hungry and ignored audience. Not only do I think they did it well, but I think they displayed a pride in the black race that Hollywood has forgotten about. Even talented black actors and directors like Spike Lee seem to revel in the violence, drugs, and misogynism of "the hood". I honestly think the industry should take another look at these pictures and try to recapture the tenderness and emotions they invoked. Black viewers can take pride in these features and white viewers might develop a better understanding of black pride - without the violence.

Ralph Cooper, Lawrence Criner and Maceo Sheffield are three gang leaders in Harlem vying for control of the jukebox business, but none of them had a flair for acting like a tough gang boss. As a result, I never did get involved with the goings on. I guess I am spoiled by portrayals by James Cagney, Edward G. Robinson, Paul Muni and Humphrey Bogart in some of the mainstream crime movies of the 30's. This film has its fistfights, car chases and shootouts, and a love interest in Gladys Snyder, but it somehow left me cold.This was a "race" film with an all black cast, intended for black audiences, and it's interesting to note that Ralph Cooper was often called "The Bronze Bogart" in ads. As tough guys, there's no comparison.