Long before the release of such memorable gangster films as "The Godfather "and "Bonnie and Clyde, " tough guys portrayed by Edward G. Robinson, Jimmy Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, and other pioneers in the crime genre were shooting up movie screens. This intensely readable summary of the best gangster films ever made spans the decades from the 1930s to the present day. Films cited in this book include: The Big Sleep * Bonnie and Clyde * Bullitt * Dillinger * Each Dawn I Die * Gangs of New York * The Godfather, I and II * L.A. Confidential * Little Caesar * The Petrified Forest * Scarface * This Gun for Hire * White Heat . . . and many more Films are presented in chronological order to illustrate the genreas development and the impact early artists had on later directors, actors, and technicians. Plot summaries are presented, casts and credits are listed, and illustrations include ad posters and evocative movie stills. More than 200 illustrations.

史蒂文•杰伊•施奈德（Steven Jay Schneider）是一位颇为内行的恐怖片鉴赏专家，其撰文著述、教学授课成果颇丰，涉及电影的方方面面，涵盖了审美学、心理分析，乃至血腥恐怖片的观赏乐趣。为编写《有生之年非看不可的1001部电影》及101系列电影丛书，他从世界各地集结了50余位最优秀的撰稿人、评论家、影评人、教授、影迷和电影人。这个团队由最出色的影评撰稿阵容组成，其成员既有巴黎《世界报》旗下的Jean-Michel Frodon，也有东京《潜流》杂志旗下的藤原敏史，其他成员分别来自《帝国》《视与听》《滚石》《纽约时报》《完全电影》《国际电影指南》《洛杉矶周报》《电影季刊》《华盛顿邮报》，以及CineAction, NME, Time Out, Filmmaker, Moviemaker等媒体。