The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre

The Roaring Twenties Chicago underworld erupts into a violent struggle over bootlegging, gambling, and protection money. Capone’s Southside Gang and Moran’s North Side Gang battle for control, spreading intimidation and violence across speakeasies and illicit operations.

Moran’s lieutenants, Peter and Frank Gusenberg, use threats and intimidation to force owners to do business with Moran’s faction in exchange for 'protection'. The tactic expands Moran’s reach while sowing fear among rival crews and owners alike. Myrtle, Peter’s moll, becomes entangled in disputes over lavish spending.

An attempt on Jack McGurn, Capone’s key enforcer, fails, underscoring the perilous balance of power in Chicago. The botched hit signals that both sides are willing to escalate violence to break the deadlock. The violence intensifies as plans to target Moran take shape.

The film recalls Capone's past eliminations as Moran reminds his men of Capone’s long reach, specifically O’Banion’s killing in November 1924 and Weiss’s murder in October 1926. These memories frame the feud as a long history of violent turnover. The flashbacks heighten the stakes of the present confrontation.

In a lunchtime ambush at Cicero's Hawthorne Hotel, Hymie Weiss and Moran attempt to strike, leaving Capone to reckon with the fragility of his security. The attack is remembered in Capone’s later discussions as a pivotal close call. It demonstrates how quickly violence could erupt over a simple meal.

Capone explicitly assigns Jack McGurn to eliminate Moran, signaling a decisive shift in the strategy of the Chicago mob war. He shows ruthless pragmatism, indifferent to whether Moran’s lieutenants also fall in the crossfire. The decision sets the stage for a high-stakes confrontation.

Moran plans to replace Patsy Lolordo with an envoy more sympathetic to his cause, enlisting Joe Aiello to carry out the hit. The internal politics of the North Side deepen tensions as alliances shift ahead of the next strike. The stage is set for a deadly internal purge.

Lolordo is gunned down in his own apartment after his guards are corrupted, catching Moran’s faction off guard. The killing demonstrates how betrayals and compromised security can quickly destabilize leadership. Moran’s control begins to fracture as the power struggle intensifies.

Capone’s men locate Aiello and personally execute him as he tries to flee the state aboard a train. The hit removes a dangerous rival who could challenge Moran’s plans. The method underscores Capone’s hands-on approach to consolidating power.

To distance himself from the violent events, Capone withdraws to his winter home in Miami and prepares a public alibi. The retreat buys him time while the Chicago war continues without his direct presence. The move demonstrates strategic use of geography to influence public perception.

Two Capone henchmen dressed as police raid Moran’s Northside garage, while two more enter with Tommy guns to eliminate Moran’s men. Five members of Moran’s gang are killed, along with two nearby civilians, as Moran survives by ducking into a diner. The onslaught marks a brutal turning point in the war.

Capone personally dispatches John Scalise and Albert Anselmi after learning of their betrayal and plans to kill him. The act serves to purge the shows of loyalty to Moran while consolidating Capone’s control. The violence demonstrates the brutal calculus by which power is maintained.

Ultimately Moran is forced out of Chicago by Capone’s domination, forced to flee and carry on from outside the city. Years later, he dies of lung cancer in Leavenworth Prison. The feud effectively ends with Moran’s removal from the city he once controlled.

Capone is released after serving a prison term and later dies of syphilis, ending his infamous era. No one is ever charged for the mass murders, as the perpetrators vanish or are killed in retaliation or in hiding. The cycle of violence fades from public life, though the memory of the feud lingers.