58. Public Enemy (1931)

Directed By William W. Wellman

Synopsis

Kid is a gangster since a very young age. The absence of ASBO's forces him into a life of crime, the prohibition helps. Kid grows up to be a pretty violent bloke. Gets his commeupance.

Review

This is a pretty good gangster film, I've seen it considered the best 30's gangster film, which I can't really confirm or deny, as I haven't seen all of them, but it surely must be up there.

Fortunately the Hays code wasn't being enforced strictly yet, which allows this film to get away with loads of things that later would have been impossible. And it is not only the violence, but also the sexual content. Of course all these things are done quite subtly, there is no actual sex or nudity, this is not French, but there are allusions to stuff that happens off screen. The same happens with the violence, it is brutal but except for the famous grapefruit scene, there is little violence on-screen. The camera pans out, and what you hear are shots, screams and death rattles. Still, it is very effective indeed.

Something must be said about the direction as well, Wellman is quite a brilliant director, without really overwhelming the film, his angles are great as is his camera technique. Two good examples of this are the "revenge" scene and the ending, where the camera is a floor level, and all we see are the legs and feet of Tom's brother coming in our direction.

But the great plus of the film is definitely James Cagney. Few actors before him are as natural in cinema, or have such screen presence. Cagney is not a pretty man, but he is a great actor, he captures the whole screen with his performance, not only is his movement naturalistic but his way of delivering the lines as well. And while he is sorrounded by a very so-so cast - Jeane Harlow isn't that good here - his performance just eclipses everything else. So buy it from Amazon UK or US.

Final Grade

8/10

Trivia

He can dance too:



Wikipedia:

* It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story.

* The rocket-paced film was such a smash that it ran 24 hours a day at a theatre in Times Square during its initial release.

* Edward Woods was originally playing Cagney's role until the director switched them, which is why the children's appearances are reversed in the flashback sequences, since those scenes were shot before the switch. The studio promised Woods that they'd make it up to him, then dropped his contract when it expired.

* Mae Clarke's ex-husband had the grapefruit scene timed, and would buy a ticket just before that scene went onscreen, go enjoy the scene, leave, then come back during the next show just in time to see only that scene again. (Source: Cagney's autobiography.)

* The film has been deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.