For fans of Cagney, the flick's a showcase. Though not a gangster, Hollywood's favorite tommy-gunner is feistier than ever. Then too, the results amount to a real tribute to WB's professionalism as the cast, pacing, and humor come together in engaging fashion. And that's despite slim material and a plot that doesn't kick in until the last half-hour. Up to that point, it's strictly a personality storyline- a feisty Cagney, a demure De Havilland, a coquettish Hayward, a boisterous Hale, and finally, a slippery Carson. It looks like the production was hastily put together, perhaps to capitalize on the Cagney persona and promote a stable of rising stars.
Fortunately, the cast plays off Cagney and one another in effective fashion, a real reflection of thespic talents and director Walsh's skills. Note too how Biff's (Cagney) black-eyes and bruises are carried over to his subsequent scenes, an attentive touch that studios seldom bothered with. It also underscores Biff's combative personality. Too bad this belligerant trait makes it difficult to cease being his own worst enemy. And how about Bloomer Girl Amy (De Havilland). To hear her support of free love, women's equality, and counter-cultural values in 1941 seems strange, even if finessed in the story. It wouldn't surprise me if the screenwriters, the Epstein Bros., dropped in that exotica to spice up Amy's innocent demeanor and bait the censors.
Anyway, can the boy-girl pairing up and various relationships get straightened out despite the various mis-matches and conniving. Stay tuned. And, oh yes, catch TV's Superman, George Reeves, as a rough-tough Yale man of all things; that is, until Cagney decks him.
Fortunately, the cast plays off Cagney and one another in effective fashion, a real reflection of thespic talents and director Walsh's skills. Note too how Biff's (Cagney) black-eyes and bruises are carried over to his subsequent scenes, an attentive touch that studios seldom bothered with. It also underscores Biff's combative personality. Too bad this belligerant trait makes it difficult to cease being his own worst enemy. And how about Bloomer Girl Amy (De Havilland). To hear her support of free love, women's equality, and counter-cultural values in 1941 seems strange, even if finessed in the story. It wouldn't surprise me if the screenwriters, the Epstein Bros., dropped in that exotica to spice up Amy's innocent demeanor and bait the censors.
Anyway, can the boy-girl pairing up and various relationships get straightened out despite the various mis-matches and conniving. Stay tuned. And, oh yes, catch TV's Superman, George Reeves, as a rough-tough Yale man of all things; that is, until Cagney decks him.