Gangster survey analysis

Analysis of my Gangster Film Research Survey

By Daisy Newman

I conducted a survey via surveymonkey.com, on the 10th November to the 30th November 2014. The survey consisted of 10 questions based on the gangster film genre, that would allow me to get a deeper understanding of what the audience want and expect from a gangster film. I got 25 responses in the end; with a variety of age and gender.

Question 1.

“Do you watch/ever chosen to watch gangster films?”

Answer Choices Responses

Yes 16 (64%)

No 9 (36%)

Question 1.

“Do you watch/ever chosen to watch gangster films?”

From the results I understand that people do choose to watch gangster genre films and that it is a widely chosen film genre. The people who answered no, may have honestly never seen a gangster film, or they chose to not to watch them for other reasons. In order to look deeper into the audience I asked further questions…

Question 2.

“What is your age?”


0 - 8 0 (0%)

9 – 13 0 (0%)

14 – 17 15 (62.50%)

18 – 21 4 (16.67%)

22 - 30 0 (0%)

31 - 40 1 (4.17%)

41 - 50 3 (12.50%)

51 + 1 (4.17%)

Question 2.

“What is your age?”

From the results, most of the people who answered this questionnaire were between the age of 14-17. You can see from the chart that no one younger than 14 answered this questionnaire, leaving me to the assumption that gangster films are only watched by teenagers and adults; this can mainly be due to the violence. In contrast, I did collect the results through my friends and my social networking sites, which could be an answer to why so many are of the same age of me. However, I do still believe these results are accurate as stereotypically the gangster genre of film is watched by an older audience than children.

“What gender are you?”

Question 3.


Male 10 (40%)

Female 15 (60%)

Question 3.

“What gender are you?”

From the results, most of the people who answered this questionnaire were female. This is against the stereotypical audience as the gangster genre is mainly related to males.In contrast, I did collect the results through my friends and my social networking sites, which could be an answer to why so many are of the gender as me. Because of this I believe these results are incorrect as stereotypically the gangster genre of film is watched by a male audience, due to multiple reasons, which I discover in my later questions.

“What is your favorite sub-genre of gangster films?”

Question 4.


Any 8 (32%)

General British 6 (24%)

General American

4 (16%)

Detective 6 (24%)

Mob 1 (4%)

Question 4.

“What is your favorite sub-genre of gangster films?”

From the results I found that most people who watch gangster films typical like to watch a variety of sub-genre gangster films and popular sub-genres include detective and British gangster; with American gangster closely following. We have chosen to do an American generalize gangster film, which through research would prove to be popular and liked.

Question 5.

“What is your favourite gangster film?”

Answers Amount

Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels 4 (16%)

The Godfather 6 (24%)

Bugsy Malone 2 (8%)

The Godfather 3 1 (4%)

Football Factory 1 (4%)

Green Street 1 (4%)

Snatch 5 (20%)

Scarface 4 (16%)

Question 5.

“What is your favorite gangster film?”

The results show that the Godfather is the most recognized and favored film of the gangster genre; in contrast it is an American gangster film. Shortly following Scarface and Lock stock and two smoking barrels was also considered to be popular. These are all very typical gangster films, that follow the life in a gangster mob. It shows that my final production has the potential to also be popular and well-known because of the same conventions used within the film.

Question 6.

“What do you enjoy most about gangster films?”


Fast paced action 10 (40%)

Big named actors 3 (12%)

Realistic nature 2 (8%)

Comedy that is in twined

9 (36%)

*Dram in the conflict between characters*

1 (4%)

Question 6.

“What do you enjoy most about gangster films?”

From the results I found that most popular feature of gangster films was the fast paced action and also the comedy that is intertwined into the film. This can be debated due to the different types of gangster films, such as mickey takes and therefore, the results are very widely ranged. My final production will mainly consist of fast paced action and no comedy at all. This is to make the film more serious and realistic. I decided not to involve comedy because it could ruin this atmosphere, as it is hard to get the comedy right for the viewers.

Question 7.

“Do you enjoy the stereotypical features in these films (such as suits, cigars, etc.)?”


Yes 18 (72%)

No 7 (28%)

Question 7.

“Do you enjoy the stereotypical features in these films (such as suits, cigars, etc.)?”

Through the results from my survey, I found that people did enjoy the stereotypical conventions of a gangster genre as it made the film have character. In my own production we are using a lot of these, in order to appeal to the audience. The audience can then understand what the film is and can understand more of the storyline etc.

Question 8.

“Do you prefer extravagant credits or subtle, realistic credits?”


Extravagant credits 2 (8%)

Subtle, realistic credits 7 (28%)

Doesn’t bother me 16 (64%)

Question 8.

“Do you prefer extravagant credits or subtle, realistic credits?”

From the results, most people answered that they weren't bother by the titles in gangster films and the ones who were, preferred subtle titles. I have learnt that audiences are unaware of the effect of titles on the audience and therefore, I have concluded that through title research I will try and create subtle named titles with a large noticeable main title to grab the audiences attention.

“What music would you expect in a gangster film?”Question 9.


British Rock 5 (20%)

Hip Hop 2 (8%)

America Rock 4 (16%)

Pop Music 2 (8%)

Music of the era 14 (56%)

Question 9.

“What music would you expect in a gangster film?”

From the results, most people concluded that they expect music of the era of the film, due to the wide range of gangster films across the years. The audience then prefer for the whole film to feel realistic and follow the gangster conventions. I am going to use these in my final production by making a clear era through the film.

Question 10.

“What do you dislike about gangster films?”

Answers Amount

Violence is over the top 7 (28%)

Women being oppressed 1 (4%)

Plot lost in action 2 (8%)

Poor acting 2 (8%)

Poor stereotypical plots and accents 4 (16%)

N/A 9 (36%)

Question 10.

“What do you dislike about gangster films?”

From the results I found that most people who watch gangster films don't like when the violence is too much/too real. Other than that, people said they didn't mind too much, or couldn't think of reasons to dislike the gangster genre. I am going to follow the normal conventions of gangster films, but create suspense by not showing too much violence and leaving it to the audiences imagination; rather than showing them lots of violence.

In conclusion, the survey has shown me a clearer understanding of the audience that watch gangster films. I know to use popular gangster conventions and to use these as a positive to attract the audience. I also know not to show to much violence so the audience don't get put off.

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Gangster survey analysis