Review of White Heat (1949) by John T — 26 Mar 2013

James Cagney stars as Cody Jarrett, a psychotic murderer who, despite being the ruthless leader of a gang of robbers, is overly attached to and controlled by his mother ("Ma"). Margaret Wycherly plays Ma and is as amoral as any killer of the genre. This plot line dominates the first half of the film and includes many memorable scenes. We are shown Cody sitting on Ma's lap while being given whiskey to ameliorate his chronic headache. She gives him the toast, "Top of the world." Later, Ma visits Cody in jail and vows to kill Big Ed, a member of his gang who tried to have Cody killed, herself. Finally, when Cody learns that Ma was murdered, he goes berserk in the prison mess and is eventually diagnosed with as psychotic.

After breaking out of prison with the undercover federal agent played by Edmund O'Brien, we are shown numerous acts of violence and cruelty. When reunited with his wife, he knocks her off a chair while showing him her new fur. This scene was probably more shocking at the time than that in which Cagney smashes a grapefruit in Jean Harlow's face in The Public Enemy. He also has a number of callous one-liners, none more heartless than the one which follows his silencing of a stool pigeon's muffled cries as he riddles the trunk of a car with bullets, "Oh, stuffy, huh? I'll give you a little air.".

The final scene, in which Jarrett climbs to the top of a gas storage tank after being cornered by the police, is classic Cagney. Jarrett starts firing at the tank and shouts, "Made it, Ma! Top of the world!" The tank and several adjoining ones explode, killing Jarrett before the police's gunshots can.