Review of The Public Enemy (1931) by Roberto U — 10 Feb 2004

[size=3]The great gangster icon of the cinema, James Cagney, was forever typecast after his dynamic performance in William A. Wellman's raw and suprisingly brutal [i]The[/i] [i]Public Enemy[/i]. The film undoubtably was an influence on all of the gangster films that followed it.

..from [i]Angels with Dirty Faces [/i]to [i]Once Upon a Time in America [/i]to [i]Goodfellas[/i]. Its greatest influence was in linking childhood with a gangster movie...something that has by now become almost cliche.

[i]The Public Enemy [/i]follows the lives of Tom Powers (Cagney as an adult) and his neighbourhood friend Matt Doyle (Edward Woods as an adult). The two begin as similarly mischievous children, but there are darker elements in Powers' life: his father, a stern policeman, frequently beats him as punishment for his misdeeds.

As the two develop into adults, it is clear that Powers is a sociopath while Doyle (although a criminal) appears more grounded. The budding criminals shift to more ambitious projects and begin to get involved in robbery and prohibition.

[i]The Public Enemy [/i]chronicles this life of crime with a remarkably fluid, fresh and engaging style that constantly keeps the viewer riveted. It manages to be both funny and disturbing, often at the same time.

There are few better examples of this unique tone than Cagney's now famous "grapefruit scene". [i]The Public Enemy [/i]does tend to veer a little toward romanticizing its gangsters, particularly when it contrasts the magnetic Cagney with his uptight older brother Mike (Donald Cook).

Despite the manipulation, the ending of the film is genuinely tragic...and surprisingly tough (the movie was made before the Hollywood Production Code was enforced). [i]The Public Enemy [/i]is not only the movie that influenced gangster films for decades to come, it is an excellent example of the genre's unsettling appeal.

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