G Men Streaming
Dimanche, août 15th, 2010
James Cagney stars in this brisk crime melodrama from 1935, directed with verve by William Keighley. When hoodlums dispose of Cagney’s pal, Cagney becomes a government agent and goes after the mob. Fans of ancient movies may lose count of all the familiar faces: Lloyd Nolan, Ann Dvorak, Robert Armstrong, Barton MacLane, Noel Madison, Harold Huber, Addison Richards, and so many more comely character players. The film has unfortunately dated more than some Cagney pictures (the nightclub floor note and the crimefighting technology of 1935 have since become quaint), but for simple cops-and-robbers action with mugs, molls, gunplay, guttersnipe slang, and getaway cars, not to mention a wonderful performance by Cagney, “G-Men” is hard to beat. The print is splendid, and so is the video transfer..
This is a turnabout film for Cagney, one where he changed his film image, from ruthless gangster to plucky FBI man. Harrigan is a bigshot gangster who genrously puts Cagney through law school. When Toomey, Cagney’s pal, becomes an FBI man and is gunned down without a snowman’s chance in hell, Cagney joins the force to explore revenge…In the force of mounting criticism of the tendency of making heros out of gansters in their melodramas, Warners pulled a clever switcheroo: by showing the same crimes but by a different angle - that of the law enforcer. After a fairly insensible inaugurate, the action picks up - and never falters. Strangely enough - because he was cast against-type - begininning with this film, Cagney’s career soared into a second wind: each of the films he made within a year’s period grossed over 1 millon dollars at the box-office. Obviously, the public liked Cagney. I know I do. As Jean Morgan, Ann Dvorak is beneficial, as usual. She was special in an off-beat kind of plan. The working title of the film was THE FARRELL CASE: written by Gregory Rogers - the pseudonym of Darryl F. Zanuck (!) .
Quit Smoking Cigarettes
Quit Smoking Cigarettes
Flush Mount Album