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 Making The Public Enemy, a story adapted from the book Beer and Blood about gangsters and booze-running gangs during prohibition, was a brave step by Warner Bros in 1931 that drew some flack at the time. Warner head of production Darryl F. Zanick said it was a way to expose the environment in which this type of crime took place; so in a way it was a public service. James Cagney's breakthrough performance in the film, his third, set the course for his career as an engaging and dramatic actor. The movie also stars Edward Woods, Donald Cook, Leslie Fenton, Jean Harlow, Joan Blondell, Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy and Mae Clark.
What seems humorous now, gangster type crime was quite serious in the 20s and 30s and Warner included a foreword announcement with the gangster drama The Public Enemy, and Little Cesar - which was also about prohibition and starred Cagney as Rico - that stated, "these two films made it clear of the violent effect that crime had on society, and that Tom Powers and Rico were not merely characters, but a problem that sooner or later the public must solve."
Good son - bad son is the scenario that makes The Public Enemy tick. James Cagney plays Tom Powers, a mommy's boy (after the death of his stern police officer father) who starts his path of crime with his friend Matt (Edward Woods, Dinner at Eight, 1933). Donald Cook (Bowery to Broadway) plays Tom's older brother and surrogate father Mike.
The story starts in 1909 where everyday life is featured with a spotlight on booze and saloons. When prohibition starts, the illegal rise of acquiring and selling booze fuels the increase in crime. Tom falls in with an unsavory gang - Samuels "Nails" Nathan (Leslie Fenton, Boy's Town, 1938), Putty Nose (Murray Kinnell, The Three Musketeers, 1935), Paddy Ryan (Robert Emmett O'Connor, Sunset Boulevard, 1950) and Miller (Snitz Edwards).
James Cagney
& Jean Harlow
While Tom's crimes increase in severity, his brother Mike becomes a Marine and goes off to fight in WWI. The story jumps in time to the 20s and 30s. Mike returns home, obtains an education, and continues to no avail to try to steer his brother away from crime.
Tom and Matt become fast buddies, both in doing crime and having a good time, which of course, includes picking up the gorgeous dames. Matt sets his sights on Mamie (Joan Blondell), and Tom falls for Gwen (Jean Harlow). Before Gwen, Tom was all over Kitty (Mae Clark), but in a very famous scene that is still talked about today, Tom tires of Kitty and (unscripted) pushes a grapefruit in her face.
Mae Clark & James Cagney
The grapefruit became a gag item for years after the film was released, and whenever Cagney would dine in restaurants, patrons would send a grapefruit to Cagney. With his inherent sense of comedy always present, he would happily respond by eating it.
As film historian Robert Sklar reports on the 2005 DVD commentary, Joan Blondell and Cagney arrived in Hollywood at the same time after appearing together in the play Penny Arcade, which later became the film Sinners' Holiday, that they also both starred in.
Beryl Mercer
As gang activity increases and rival gangs go after each other, it's no surprise when Matt gets killed, and Tom goes after the killers. Soon he's the one who has to cover his own back. All the while his mother, played wonderfully by Beryl Mercer (Jane Eyre), frets over Tom's safety, and poor brother Mike worries what will happen to ma, should anything bad happened to Tom.
Dialogue is the weak link in this film, as was many films made shortly after talkies came in, but director William A. Wellman does a good job with the production. In addition to an interesting drama, anyone who ever liked classic films will want to see this one just for Cagney's exceptional performance.
It's no secret that The Public Enemy launched Cagney's career. Oddly, Darryl F. Zanick had a big hand in this as he originally cast Cagney in a lesser role, but once he saw Carney's charisma with the screen, he made the wise move to put Cagney in the lead role. Cagney certainly showed off his acting chops in the film. His seemingly innocent smile could imply just a hint of depravity. Yet that same smile with a different inflection of his eyes, could cast Cagney as a warm and fun guy. His natural mannerisms in the film helped set his role as well, particularly his double fist jab used for several different scenarios during the film. Carney's amazing talent to express emotions through his facial features and body moments helped elevate him to one of cinema's greatest talents.
Director: Alfred J. Goulding, William A. Wellman
Writer: Harvey F. Thew, John Bright, Kubec Glasmon
Cast: James Cagney, Edward Woods, Donald Cook, Leslie Fenton, Jean Harlow, Joan Blondell, Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy and Mae Clark
Rating: No MPAA Rating (suggested violence)
Classic Movie Guide Rating: 5 stars out of 5
Run Time: 94 minutes
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
Format: Black & White, fullscreen
Photo credits: Warner Bros. Pictures
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