Criminal kingpin Joe Krozac (Edward G. Robinson) returns from Europe with a new bride. Before long she's pregnant. But no sooner does she find out than Joe is arrested for income tax evasion. Before their son is born, Joe goes to prison. While he's in stir, his wife falls in love with a reporter (Jimmy Stewart) and divorces Joe. When Joe gets out, he plans to get his son back. But his old gang have plans of their own for Joe.Robinson is the main attraction and shines in a role he could do in his sleep. But he's got able support from the likes of Lionel Stander, John Carradine, Edward Brophy, and Sidney Blackmer. Jimmy Stewart is fine but nothing special in an early role. This is a gangster flick with MGM polish. It was great entertainment any time Eddie G. was in a movie like this. Give it a shot and I'm sure you'll love it.

Last Gangster, The (1937) *** (out of 4)Strange but highly entertaining gangster film from MGM has Edward G. Robinson marrying a woman who doesn't know about his deadly pass. Robinson eventually has a son with her but before he meets the child he gets sent to prison for ten years. The mother then finds out about his past and decides to kidnap the kid so that he doesn't turn out like his father. She eventually marries another guy (James Stewart) but soon Robinson is out of jail and looking for revenge. This is certainly a lot tamer than the Warner gang pictures of the time but that's a good thing because there's a lot of heart and emotion in place of the violence. Robinson is very good and incredibly touching in the end and Stewart shines in his role. John Carradine has a very good part as a man picking on Robinson inside prison. The ending is predictable but the film still works very well.

MGM imported Edward G. Robinson over from Warner Brothers to star in The Last Gangster. Robinson brought over his Little Caesar character with him for this film.Imagine if you will Little Caesar going back to the old country and importing a wife. We don't see anything of the courtship of Robinson and his bride Rose Stradner. My guess is that Robinson wants a dutiful stay at home wife to raise his children and the Twenties flappers that he would encounter in the illegal booze business don't fill that bill.Anyway to say Rose is fresh off the farm is an understatement. She hasn't a clue what Robinson is involved in. And when Robinson goes off to Alcatraz like another well known mobster of the era for income tax evasion, she doesn't know what to make of it.In the criminal business it's impossible to be nice to those on the way up, so when you're on the way down, it's a given people are going to dump all over you. A concept Robinson can't quite get into his head. But that's what happens.The loyalest person to him is Stradner, but Robinson in no uncertain terms tells her the only function she has is to raise HIS son to whom she's given birth. After that Stradner takes up with James Stewart who plays a newspaper reporter and she marries him.After Robinson serves his ten year stretch the story takes a maudlin and rather unrealistic turn. I won't say any more lest you care to see it the next time it's broadcast.I think Edward G. Robinson knew what kind of inferior material he was in so he simply reverted to type and snarled his way through the film. James Stewart was certainly up and coming at MGM at this time, but he's given very little to do in the film, but be Rose's faithful second husband.Best performances in the film are that of Lionel Stander as Robinson's number two guy who is not someone you want as a friend and Alan Baxter as the surviving brother of a family that Robinson ordered a hit on.The sad thing was that at Warner Brothers Robinson was desperately trying to expand his range of parts and when he gets a loan-out assignment it's more of the same.

This is an excellent gangster film from the 1930s and the only major surprised is that this film was NOT made by Warner Brothers--a studio that held Edward G. Robinson's contract AND made a habit of making LOTS of gangster films. However, in this case, he was loaned out to MGM and it's one of the few gangster films from this glossier and slightly more prestigious studio. Well, the end result is difficult to distinguish from the Warner product--except that the supporting characters differ (Frank McHugh, Alan Jenkins, Humphrey Bogart and Barton MacLane are nowhere to be seen). And, saying that it resembled a Warner film is NOT a criticism--as Warner had perfected this style of film and always entertained.Edward G. is the head of a crime syndicate--much like Al Capone. And, like Capone, he is eventually sent to prison for tax evasion. His foreign-born and raised wife is pregnant and Edward's son is born a short time later. At first, the wife believes all of Robinson's claims that it "was all a setup--I ain't done nuthin' wrong". But, later when she meets reporter Jimmy Stewart, she realizes her hubby is pond scum and decides to leave him and start a brand new life for herself and her baby.Ten years pass and Edward is STILL a blow-hard who plans on leaving prison and picking up with his family as if nothing had occurred. However, they are in hiding and Robinson is in for a few other surprises. The film's final ten minutes or so do an excellent job of tying it all together.