Bullets or Ballots is a 1936 film directed by William Keighley.
New York City is plagued by a racketeering organization led by a gangster named Al Kruger. Kruger's gangsters are into all sorts of rackets—protection, extortion, fencing stolen goods, the works. When Kruger's hotheaded lieutenant "Bugs" Fenner (Humphrey Bogart, then a character actor) kills anti-racket newspaper publisher Ward Bryant, the authorities finally spring into action. A special grand jury is empowered, and the grand jury gives police chief Dan McLaren sweeping powers to deal with the gangsters.
One of Capt. McLaren's tasks is to clean deadwood out of the NYPD. He fires veteran detective Johnny Blake (Edward G. Robinson), on suspicions that Blake may be a little too friendly in a Go-Karting with Bowser way with Kruger. Blake refuses an offer from Lee Morgan, his good friend and would-be girlfriend (Joan Blondell) to help her run a rapidly expanding numbers game. Instead, he throws his lot in with Kruger, joining the gangsters and becoming Kruger's right-hand-man.
Only it's all an act, of course. Blake's firing from the police department was a ruse, and he is infiltrating Kruger's gang from within, in an effort to both take it down and to expose the real bosses, Kruger's unknown backers. Soon Kruger's operations are falling victim to a series of police raids. Kruger trusts Blake, but Fenner is supicious.
Tropes:
- Bittersweet Ending: Blake dies, but not until after he takes down the whole rackets, including the corrupt bankers who were the real bosses.
- Chekhov's Gun: Lee is running a numbers game, which doesn't affect the rest of the plot until Blake has Kruger's gang take it over, as a means of winning Kruger's trust and fending off Fenner's accusations.
- Covert Group with Mundane Front: Kruger's gangsters operate out of an office that identifies them as the Metropolitan Business Improvement Corporation.
- Death Glare: The homicidal Fenner does this a lot, like when Blake strolls into the office right after Fenner has almost convinced everyone else that Blake is the leak.
- The Dying Walk: Blake is shot at least twice but manages to stay upright long enough to make the crucial money drop that will send the bankers to prison. Then he croaks.
- Either/Or Title: Bullets or Ballots
- Fake Defector: Blake and McLaren arrange for Blake to be fake-fired so he can infiltrate Kruger's gang.
- Forgetful Jones: A minor comic relief bit features Lee's revenue collector McCloskey, who forgets pretty much everything he's told.McCloskey: [phone rings, he answers] He isn't here.
Lee: Who did they want?
McCloskey: McCloskey.
Lee: That's you! - Incredibly Obvious Bug: Blake figures out that Fenner is watching him. He looks around his room for a bit and finds a huge microphone, tucked inside a lampshade.
- The Man Behind the Man: It turns out that Kruger is only the point man for the real bosses, the corrupt bankers of the Oceanic Bank and Trust Company, who operate a crime empire from behind a mask of respectability. Only Kruger knows who they are, and exposing his mysterious backers is one of Blake's prime objectives.
- Married to the Job: Blake cites this as the reason why he hasn't made a move on the awesome, gorgeous, and very willing Lee.
- Murder Is the Best Solution: Fenner seethes at the newsreel that shows Bryant condemning the rackets, and says that they should take Bryant out. Kruger calmly replies that Bryant is just making noise and poses no actual threat to them. Fenner doesn't listen and murders Bryant on his own initiative. This makes things much much worse for the gangsters as a wave of public outrage leads to the formation of the grand jury to come after them.Kruger: [to Fenner] You take a chance of ruining a two-hundred-million gold mine to satisfy a grudge?
- Mutual Kill: Fenner and Blake shoot each other to death. Since Fenner's the bad guy he dies immediately. Blake is the good guy, so he survives long enough, and even stays on his feet long enough, to make the drop that sends the corrupt bankers to jail.
- Newsreel: The film opens with a newsreel condemning gangster activity in New York. Fenner and Kruger actually get to watch actors playing themselves in a newsreel scene where "Kruger" wins acquittal in a trial. Kruger isn't fussed but hot-tempered Fenner is enraged by the newsreel.
- Poke in the Third Eye: After finding the Incredibly Obvious Bug, Blake puts his gun right up to it and pulls the trigger, just to screw with Fenner.
- Protagonist-Centered Morality: It's bad for Kruger's gang to set up pinball machines, but Lee's numbers racket is cool and good.
- Spinning Paper: A montage of newspaper headlines early in the film describe Bryant's murder and the formulation of the grand jury to crush the rackets. Another headline montage later describes McLaren's activities in destroying said rackets.
- Title Drop: In the newsreel that opens the film, the one that talks about the gangster menace, Bryant says "They rule by the fear of bullets! They must be smashed by the power of your ballots!
- Video Credits: Video credits at the start of the film for all the major players, as was Warner Brothers' house style in this ear.
- Worst News Judgment Ever: Justified. The firing of one detective (Blake) doesn't really deserve a front-page story, but of course, it's all a ruse to get Kruger to invite Blake into his operation.
