SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

FeistyUpper If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Bo Buchanan I watched this movie in search of the best Mafia movies of all time. For some reason, this film is in many of those lists and it doesn't belong there. There is nothing mafia, mobster or gangster about this movie. Except taht it's about a bunch of criminals. As an old school black and white action movie - this movie stands heads and shoulders above most. Sometimes the pace of these older movies is hard to take by newer generations when they are used to a much faster storytelling pace. Throughout the pic, I'm on the edge of my seat wondering what happens next and it never really slows down. When Virginia Mayo is in the scene, I am in awe of her beauty. I wonder how stunning she must have been in person. James Cagney plays an excellent deranged killer and I believe it the whole way through. A feature that doesn't get much attention in other reviews is the way this film highlights technology. Coming off the glut of military movies after World War II, this movie brings in some of the technology from WWII. The directional radio beacons in the police cars and the phone handsets must have been awe inspiring to audiences back in 1959. This part of the storyline in addition to the raw action and film noir qualities, make it a Sunday Afternoon must see. It's worth whatever you have to pay for it.

Antonius Block This gangster film has it all – well-planned heists, cold-blooded murders, fast cars, double-crosses, snappy dialog, sophisticated criminals, and just as sophisticated cops. It's very smart, and Director Raoul Walsh keeps us on our toes without wasting a single moment in telling this story. Most of all, it has James Cagney, who is just fantastic. The film is both dark both in how it's shot, a classic film noir, and in its tone, as Cagney's character is sociopathic, wracked by migraines, and possibly insane. He is supported by a great cast, including Margaret Wycherly in the memorable role as his mother, whose toughness and depravity is gradually revealed. Edmond O'Brien is also strong in the role of the undercover G-man.One theme in the film is how easily (and violently) criminals will betray one another. Another is how advanced forensic and crime-fighting technology was in 1949, which is both impressive and may make you smile. The two of those put together serve as a strong anti-crime message, likely influenced by the production code, and yet, the film is gritty and pushes boundaries, so that it doesn't feel like a morality tale. Character motivations feel authentic. There are several iconic moments, the ending of course, but also Cagney returning and surprising his wife (Virginia Mayo) in the garage, and later staring at a rival (Steve Cochran) through the crack of a door. He is absolutely chilling when angry, and one can't help but be impressed by the great range he showed over his career. If you're in the mood for action and a dark crime film, 'White Heat' is very satisfying.

Hitchcoc This a portrait of a psychotic. James Cagney plays an ugly, amoral gangster, who is fixated on his mother. She is his foundation, his go to, but their relationship is sick. It is a classic Oedipus complex. Cagney's Jody is about as dangerous as one gets because when cornered, he will attack. When crossed, he will kill. The movie involves the infiltration of his gang by someone with his own agenda. When Jody's mother dies, he seems to embrace a death wish. This movie has one of the most famous final scenes in cinema history. Watch the film for that very reason. This is probably the performance of a lifetime by one of America's greatest actors. While type cast as a gangster, he was a man of incredible talents.

jacobs-greenwood It's hard to say what the best acting performance (captured on film) by James Cagney was. Initially typecast as a tough little "bad" guy from the streets of New York (e.g. Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)) with something to prove, he exhibited terrific range, particularly later in his career, from his Best Actor Oscar winning portrayal of George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) to another biographical performance as Lon Chaney in Man of a Thousand Faces (1957), and even in more sophisticated comedies like Billy Wilder's One, Two, Three (1961).But I believe two of Cagney's best performances were captured in films released after he'd turned 50, even though both were roles in which he returned to that original type, because he showed us something more each time. One was opposite Doris Day's portrayal of Ruth Etting in Love Me or Leave Me (1955), and the other was in this picture.Cagney's portrayal of 'Cody' Jarrett allows him to play a particularly nasty gang leader, utilizing his many physical gifts, whose character is actually a "Momma's boy" who's mentally unbalanced. Given an Oscar nominated story (by Virginia Kellogg, her first of two Academy Award nominations) to work with, the actor gives us a convincing psychopath in his best of four collaborations with action director Raoul Walsh. Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts wrote the screenplay.Margaret Wycherly plays Ma Jarrett while Virginia Mayo plays his beautiful dumb blonde wife. Edmond O'Brien is given the only other meaty role, as a government agent who's put in the same prison as Jarrett, in on a minor charge, to befriend Cody and catch him doing something that would mean "the chair". Once O'Brien's character earns Cody's trust, they're able to escape together.Besides the famous "top of the world" ending, two other memorable scenes occur when Jarrett learns of his mother's death while in prison, and the act (once they've escaped) which gives O'Brien's character what he needs.This movie was added to the National Film Registry in 2003. "Made it, Ma! Top of the world!" is #18 on AFI's 100 Greatest Movie Quotes list.