Original artwork, not a still
Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?
— Little Caesar · 1931
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The tough guy who has feared nothing dies asking, with real bewilderment, how it came to this. Robinson plays it as pitiful and chilling at once, and it helped set the template for the doomed gangster ending. The cadence is one impressionists still reach for.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Little CaesarShow the scene
The last line of Little Caesar (1931). Rico Bandello, a hoodlum who rose from small-time crime in Chicago to the top of the underworld, is cornered by police led by Sergeant Flaherty. He refuses to surrender and hides behind a billboard advertising the dancers Joe and Olga. Flaherty shoots him, and with Flaherty standing over him Rico asks the line as his final words. Directed by Mervyn LeRoy, the film was Edward G. Robinson's breakthrough and one of the first fully-fledged gangster films.
Sources (1)
- Wikipedia: Little Caesar (film)Plot and introReference checked
Context reviewed