I watched this in a media lesson and now love Cagney. His unpredictable swagger is what made this film great. grapefruit anyone?
even after writting essays on it i love it. A true great.
this a a pretty decent flick. not as engaging or profound as many of the early gangster films were, but cagney was great as always and the movie had its bright spot. worth the watch.
Oh James Cagney, you scare the hell out of me 90% of the time. And that is why you are soooo incredible. I love you.
watched it over, had quite an effect on me, the last shot with cagney is a work of art.
Watch Jimmy Cagney and Jean Harlow do something amazing with a grapefruit.
*snicker*
cagney embarks on a life of crime and his presence cannot be denied. his breakout performance here burns right through the screen. harlow still needs some work to reach her own iconic status. the film is a bit dated but after 75 years still amazing to watch
This film has James Cagney ramping up to top form. This is a good early gangster flick. This movie is worth seeing for the classic "grapefruit scene" alone. The ending is also a nice touch.
One of the best movies of all time. Its a classic but it never gets old. Notm uch i can say that hasnt already been said a bazillion times. A must see for classic movie fans and a fun gangster flick from the good old days. CAGNEY IS THE BEST!
the founded stone for james cagney's overnight success of his classic gangster status. this flick is adapted from a moralistic social stiric novel called "beer and blood" which is applied in the lines during the flick as well. one of the first movies tackles the mob tumult under ...( read more)
Here you can see Cagney's first lead role: he had made a few small routine pictures before this and Warners wisely had him play Tom Powers, thereby contradicting the original casting for Public Enemy. It was a very very right decision, as even an utter deadhead would have to adm...( read more)
Caney+Grapefruit=Legend
Jean Harlow is quite the looker too. Nice Gams on that one.
Cagney at his first and most FRESH era as a gangster that gets in over his head and ends with a bang. It is so good that I'm surprised that it isn't rated as one THE best gangster movies.
The classic barriers of good and evil are very evident in this film, but yet the charisma of James Cagney's evil Tom Powers makes this film as entertaining and thrilling as any other of it's quality. The ending is so blunt and poignant that it will really hit home.
I liked a lot of it, but the studio's moralizing at the beginning and end left a bad taste in my mouth.
Cagney at his best. Brutal and engaging, which is saying something for the time period of its release.
One of the classic old school gangster films, it's a little simplistic in it's characterizastion, but Cagney breathes life into the character with his usual intensity, and it features one of the most famous scenes in cinema history.
One of the TOP classic James Cagney has ever down to show his true ganster! A must see film!
Classic. It started the gangster theme, and launched James Cagney, one of my favorites.
The quintessential gangster film. This classic is the closest we we can get to the menace that still haunts American streets to this day. The Public Enemy is not a bad boy gone to pot, but a young man who ran out of options in an extremely unjust society. This is not to say that...( read more)
It's a good film. The relationship between James Cagney's character and his brother stands out for me. Too short though, so leaves little time for much character development (which is strange seeing as the film is not plot driven atall).
Quite a poor movie to say the least..... Certainly not worth the time to watch it.
