The Doorway to Hell

E939604

The Doorway to Hell is a 1930 American pre-Code gangster film often noted as an early example of the genre that helped pave the way for later classics like Little Caesar and The Public Enemy.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
The Doorway to Hell canonical 3

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (43)

Predicate Object
instanceOf American film
film
gangster film
basedOn story by Rowland Brown
blackAndWhite true
cinematographyBy Barney McGill
countryOfOrigin United States
director Archie Mayo
distributor First National Pictures
Vitaphone (sound system branding)
linked to: Vitaphone

Warner Bros. Pictures
editedBy William Holmes
era pre-Code Hollywood
linked to: Pre-Code Hollywood
featuresActorInEarlyRole James Cagney
format sound film
genre crime film
gangster film
hasMainCharacter Louie Ricarno
hasNotableRecognition cited by film historians as a precursor to later classic gangster films
hasTheme gang warfare
organized crime
rise and fall of a gangster
influenced Little Caesar
The Public Enemy
isPreCodeFilm true
language English
motionPictureRating pre-Code era (before strict enforcement of Hays Code)
musicBy David Mendoza
notableAs early example of the Hollywood gangster film genre
originalLanguage English
plotSummary A young Chicago gang leader tries to retire from crime but is drawn back into gang warfare.
producer Hal B. Wallis
Jack L. Warner
linked to: Jack Warner
productionCompany Warner Bros.
releaseDateUS 1930-10-18
releaseYear 1930
runtimeMinutes 78
screenwriter Rowland Brown
setting Chicago
starring Charles Judels
Dorothy Mathews
James Cagney
Lew Ayres

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Archie Mayo notableWork The Doorway to Hell
Archie Mayo directed The Doorway to Hell