Oh, a wise guy, eh? Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most intelligent choices made by fictional characters from organized crime films.
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00:00 It's the smart move.
00:02 Tessio was always smarter.
00:04 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most intelligent choices
00:11 made by fictional characters from organized crime films.
00:14 We're excluding decisions made by real-life gangsters or the people surrounding them.
00:19 Are you trying to get a rise out of me, Agent Kooyan?
00:23 I just want to hear your story.
00:26 Number 10.
00:27 Phone Calls - Casino
00:29 When you're involved with the mob, you have to be careful about talking on the phone.
00:33 This inspires Sam Rothstein and Nicky Santoro to get creative with their conversations.
00:37 Hello.
00:38 Listen, I gotta meet Clean Face right away.
00:40 What about the Chez Paris?
00:41 No, you can't.
00:42 You gotta make a reservation.
00:44 It's all booked up.
00:45 Knowing that the authorities are listening, the friends devise various codes and parameters
00:49 for conducting a call.
00:50 It's okay.
00:51 I'll use the service entrance.
00:52 I'll see you at nine.
00:53 They employ seemingly mundane phrases in order to send messages, causing unaware listeners
00:58 to think they're having an innocent talk.
01:01 The associates also use their partner to disguise part of a call, throwing the FBI off their
01:05 scent.
01:06 So on routine calls, they have to click off after a few minutes.
01:09 Yeah, I got a sprained fucking elbow.
01:12 Yeah.
01:13 Meet me at three.
01:14 Hello, Caesars?
01:15 A hundred yards further down the road.
01:16 Why?
01:17 Don't ask questions.
01:18 Just be there.
01:19 Both methods allow the Vegas mobsters to avoid any evidence of the ever-conducted unsavory
01:24 business over the phone.
01:27 Number 9.
01:28 Young Don, sexy beast.
01:31 Trying to enjoy his retirement, Gary Dove thinks he's left the criminal life behind
01:35 before Don Logan shows up.
01:37 Look, Don.
01:38 Look, Don.
01:39 It's like this.
01:40 Like what?
01:41 Um, retired.
01:42 Oh, yeah.
01:51 The latter gangster wants the former man for a job and doesn't take no for an answer.
01:56 After suffering through Logan's verbal and physical abuse, Dove and his allies decide
02:01 to fight back.
02:02 I'll have that.
02:03 There you go.
02:12 Their revenge might be brutal, but it's the only way they can guarantee their safety.
02:16 It also means they don't have to hear the menacing characters speak or threaten them
02:20 again.
02:21 The group gets rid of the body, realizing that they've probably done the best thing
02:24 for all of them in the long run.
02:26 You were right, Don.
02:29 Technically speaking, you were right.
02:32 But you're dead.
02:34 So shut up.
02:40 Number 8.
02:41 Using Bernie Bernbaum, Miller's Crossing.
02:45 In this lesser-known Coen Brothers gem, Gabriel Berne's Tom Reagan finds himself in the middle
02:49 of a power struggle between two dangerous mob bosses.
02:53 Sorry, Casper.
02:55 Bernie pays for protection.
02:57 Listen, Leo, I ain't asking for permission.
03:02 I'm telling you as a courtesy.
03:04 I need to do this thing so it's gonna get done.
03:06 The plot is a spider web of deceit and alternating allegiances, and Tom intricately plays both
03:12 sides against each other.
03:14 The bow that neatly ties his plan together is Reagan's climactic murder of Bernie Bernbaum,
03:19 something he'd wisely chosen not to do earlier in one of the film's most pivotal scenes.
03:24 Shut up.
03:25 You have to disappear.
03:26 You have to blow for good.
03:27 No one can see you.
03:28 No one can know.
03:29 God bless you.
03:30 Go somewhere no one knows you.
03:32 Anyone sees you, you really are dead.
03:33 I don't care.
03:34 You're not my problem anymore.
03:35 Of course not.
03:36 Of course not.
03:37 You've done your share.
03:38 Thank you.
03:39 Don't worry.
03:40 Tom successfully manipulates Bernie into killing the rival Italian gang leader.
03:43 He then puts Bernbaum to bed with the fishes, using him as a fall guy and effectively ending
03:48 the turf war.
03:49 So what's in it for you?
03:50 There's no angle.
03:51 You can't just shoot me like that.
03:54 Jesus Christ, it don't make sense.
04:02 There's a lot of cunning play in Miller's Crossing, but Tom Reagan always remains one
04:06 step ahead of everyone else.
04:09 Number seven, getting out of the car, a Bronx tale.
04:13 Caught between the influence of his father and local criminals, the young Calo Jaro lives
04:17 on the edge of good and evil.
04:19 His teen friends want him to become a gangster, taking him along as they prepare to cause
04:23 chaos.
04:30 The benevolent boss, Sonny, stops them in time to get his protege out of their car.
04:34 By following his mentor's advice, the hero avoids a grisly death by Molotov cocktail.
04:45 The protagonist also sets himself on a better path that doesn't involve crimes and violence.
04:50 He could have gotten back in the car, but he ultimately knows that his friends will
04:53 only keep leading him into danger.
05:00 After reassessing his life, C comes to realize the important values of a moral code.
05:05 Number six, robbing banks, road to perdition.
05:09 On the run and looking for the man that killed half of his family, Tom Hanks' character
05:13 and his surviving son are in a jam.
05:32 He engineers a scheme that will get them some money, infuriate his enemies, and hopefully
05:37 draw out the killer.
05:38 Sullivan robs several mob-connected banks across the Chicago area.
05:49 Doing so accelerates the plot against him, but eventually it does lead him to avenge
05:53 his family.
05:55 Almost every choice the hero makes in this film has a positive and negative result, with
05:59 this one being one of the more effective of them all.
06:15 Up against the wall, the gangster's plan buys him enough time and influence to set
06:19 the final act in motion.
06:21 Number five, killing Fennucci, The Godfather Part II.
06:25 As Flashback said in early 20th Century New York, The Godfather Part II partly tells the
06:30 story of Vito Corleone's rise to power.
06:33 He first has to assassinate the corrupt Don Fennucci in order to free the neighborhood
06:37 of their oppressor.
06:38 Watching him from the rooftops, Corleone rightly stalks his prey to an apartment building
06:43 without being seen.
06:44 He even adjusts the light to keep himself hidden in the shadows.
06:55 With fireworks outside and a towel concealing his shot, the hero takes out Fennucci without
07:00 drawing any attention to himself.
07:02 You can see how this guy later becomes Don with all of his street smarts.
07:12 Not only that, the killing creates a power gap that allows the young gangster to become
07:16 the boss.
07:18 Number four, Colin Calls Queen in Cell Phone Contact, The Departed.
07:23 Undercover cop William Kosigan wants to quit, but his boss Oliver Queen in dies before he
07:27 can officially resign.
07:35 This all happens as police mole Colin Sullivan tries to track the trooper down.
07:40 Sullivan has the bright idea to take Queen in's phone and dial his last number, leading
07:44 him to Kosigan.
07:45 The treacherous officer becomes one step closer to his man with this stroke of genius.
07:50 Who knew such smart work could be conducted with a flip phone?
07:56 Ultimately, this leads the two to meet after the death of the mob villain Frank Costello.
08:03 Before setting up a violent climax, Sullivan makes a significant break in the case with
08:07 the help of some basic 2000s technology.
08:15 Number three, Calling the Wolf, Pulp Fiction.
08:18 After Vincent Vega unintentionally shoots Marvin, Jules Winfield stashes their suspicious
08:23 vehicle at his friend Jimmy's house and seeks the advice of Marcellus Wallace.
08:32 The crime boss makes the smart choice of hiring the punctual fixer Winston Wolf.
08:38 Brought in to clean up the mess before Jimmy's wife returns, the cool character puts everybody
08:42 to work in order to resolve the situation.
08:52 His expertise allows for the hitman to clean up and dispose of the body, ensuring that
08:56 each part of the plan goes off without a hitch.
08:59 Nobody ends up arrested or divorced due to the quick thinking of Samuel L. Jackson's
09:03 character, his well-connected employer, and Wolf's cleanliness standards.
09:17 Number two, Verbal makes up his story, The Usual Suspects.
09:22 Whether or not you know the twist beforehand, you have to admit that The Usual Suspects
09:26 finishes on a clever note.
09:28 Everything about Verbal Kint's story seems to add up to investigators, until it doesn't.
09:40 A quick inspection of the board reveals the mastermind's strategy, complete with all
09:44 the random details he uses in his fake confession.
09:47 The real Kaiser Soze gets to walk out the door after the performance of a lifetime.
10:02 Having planned it out perfectly, his storytelling skills come in handy as he convinces the authorities
10:06 long enough to evade them.
10:08 In a stroke of evil genius, the villain walks away a free man.
10:12 It's a clever trick that you also shouldn't try at home.
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10:39 Number one, Taking out the rival leaders.
10:42 The Godfather In this scene, Michael Corleone spends a seemingly
10:46 normal day at his godson's baptism.
10:49 Little do his rivals know the truth about his real motivations.
10:53 While Corleone stands at a church, the other crime bosses are slaughtered by the new Don's
10:58 associates.
11:09 He chooses to do it all whilst having an alibi in a house of worship.
11:13 Call it daring or Machiavellian, the ruthless plan ensures a complete takeover of New York.
11:24 It's also a surprise attack that nobody has any time to retaliate against.
11:29 While he might have a corrupt soul, the war veteran understands the mops or playbook well
11:33 enough to eliminate the competition.
11:35 This isn't the only smart decision in the movie either, as there's also the famous
11:39 planting of a restaurant bathroom gun.
11:42 Did we forget another smart decision from a gangster movie?
11:45 Let us know in the comments below.
12:00 [music]
12:10 (upbeat music)