Loosely based on a real-life story, this 1930s depression-era gangster flick stars Charles Bronson in the titular role, as a sadistic killer. A bank robber leading a motley band, Kelly is goaded into more elaborate crime by his ambitious wife who craves media attention and basks in her husband’s notoriety. Alas, Kelly decides to hold the daughter of a wealthy industrialist for ransom. Things go badly when a fractious gang member seeks revenge on his leader. Despite its B-movie credentials, “Machine Gun Kelly” impresses as a claustrophobic crime drama, marking Corman’s move into big-league movie making.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
319289
Languages
Dutch
English
English
Audience classification
M (15+)
Subject categories
Action & Adventure → Action films
Courtroom, Crime, Espionage & Thrillers
Courtroom, Crime, Espionage & Thrillers → Crime films
Courtroom, Crime, Espionage & Thrillers → Gangster films
Crime, Espionage, Justice, Police & Prisons → Crime
Crime, Espionage, Justice, Police & Prisons → Murder
Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Sadism
Feature films → Feature films - United States
Food, Health, Lifestyle, Medicine, Psychology & Safety → Men - Psychology
Food, Health, Lifestyle, Medicine, Psychology & Safety → Sadism
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Black and White
Holdings
DVD; Access Print (Section 1)