Gang Busters

1942
Approved
4h 11m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Detective lieutenant Bill Bannister is assigned to run down an unknown gang of terrorists who have spread a net of crime over the city.Detective lieutenant Bill Bannister is assigned to run down an unknown gang of terrorists who have spread a net of crime over the city.Detective lieutenant Bill Bannister is assigned to run down an unknown gang of terrorists who have spread a net of crime over the city.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

133

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
In Chapters: 2 and 3, when the car plunges down into the elevator shaft, this scene is used again in The Mysterious Mr. M (1946), Chapters: 2 and 3. This scene is originally from Republic's Dick Tracy Returns (1938). Universal purchased this footage and used it in several of its serials.

Goofs
Chapter 10: Bill and Tim are pursuing Haskins who has boarded a freight train, as Tim pulls up along side, the police car turns into a black coupe which strongly resembles 'Green Hornet's' "Black Beauty.' This short bit of scene is from The Green Hornet (1940).

Quotes
Announcer: [first lines in each chapter]
Announcer: Universal presents "Gang Busters". Calling the police, calling the G-men, calling all America to war on the underworld. Gang Busters, with cooperation of law enforcement officers of the United States, presents a picture of the endless war of the police on the underworld, illustrating the clever operation of the law enforcement officers in the work of our citizens - the All-American crusade against crime!

Connections
Edited from The Last Express (1938)

User reviews4

Review

Featured review

3/10

In order to enjoy their resurrection

It's not really fair of me to review movie serials because I'm not a big fan of them in general. As for specifics I can get into those as far as Gang Busters is concerned.

In a curious way this is actually relevant to today's times because what is being dealt with her is terrorism. But I'd like to think that some more realistic methods are being used today.

The head of the terrorists is Dr. Ralph Morgan who is both a scientist and a criminal. He's perfected a method of bringing folks back to life and in order to enjoy their resurrection he has to give his subjects little booster pills. When you've resurrected some hardened criminals that guarantees some absolute loyalty.

For a guy with this kind of power Morgan certainly thinks small. He only wants a change in the city administration for Mayor George Watts and Police Commissioner Joseph Crehan to resign and turn the city presumably over to him. I'd have aimed bigger than that, in fact Morgan is in a role that calls for Bela Lugosi or Boris Karloff type ghoulishness.

The lead cop on the case is Kent Taylor with sidekick Robert Armstrong. Tagging along is Lois Lane type reporter Irene Hervey who seems just to get in the way.

I watch these things and can hardly believe we took this stuff so seriously. Gangbusters takes its title from the popular radio show of the same name. The title and little else are taken.

I hope we deal with terrorists better today than what I see here.