Film genres are tough to distinguish because of their cycles of change, as well as their constant intertwining and borrowing from each other. Commonalities are shared between a number of different genres whether they be visual symbols, character personalities, or overall theme and message. The Gangster film is one of those genres that incorporate a lot of the key aspects of other film groups, especially the Western and War and Combat. Although these genres seem extremely different, and are no doubt in a league of their own, they each bare a lot similarities to the gangster film in different ways. How they each relate to the Gangster will be discussed separately, but the main thread that ties the three genres together, and will continue to appear throughout this argument, is their central theme of masculinity.
