#714) The Public Enemy (1931)

The Plot: Tom Powers and Matt Doyle (James Cagney and Edward Woods) are two street hoodlums in 1920 Chicago who have been committing petty crimes for local lowlifes since they were children. Once Prohibition goes into effect, the two are hired by bootlegger Paddy Ryan (Robert O’Connor) to be enforcers for his business, as well as that of mobster “Nails” Nathan (Leslie Fenton). As business thrives, Tom and Matt both become wealthy, though Tom’s older brother Mike (Donald Cook) disapproves of Tom’s line of work and urges him to go straight. As the mob turf wars of the 1920s escalate, so too does Tom’s lust for money, women, and power. Oh, and Jean Harlow’s in this too for a couple of scenes. Also, there’s a grapefruit that figures prominently at one point.

Why It Matters: The NFR calls the film “[r]aw and brutal”, singling out Cagney’s “incendiary star-making portrayal”, as well as the “fierce machismo” William Wellman adds with his direction. The write-up also correctly acknowledges that Jean Harlow’s performance “gives viewers little indication of the superstar she’d become”.

But Does It Really?: I guess so. “The Public Enemy” is one of those movies that’s not so undisputed a classic that its NFR induction seems inevitable, but it is popular enough that its absence from this list would seem conspicuous. As a standalone film The Public Enemy” neither over or underachieves but has enough exciting elements to hold your interest. This is all aided by the film’s historical significance as the introduction to James Cagney’s screen persona, as well as the concept of a grapefruit as a weapon. “The Public Enemy” holds its own alongside the other gangster movies of the time and has remained iconic enough to warrant a spot in the NFR.

Seriously, Oscars?: At the 4^th annual Academy Awards, “The Public Enemy” received one nomination: Best Original Story (the long gone third screenplay category) for John Bright and Kubec Glasmon. They lost to the WWI drama “The Dawn Patrol”.

• The story goes that Edward Woods and James Cagney were originally cast in each other’s parts, with Woods starring as Tom and Cagney in support as Matt. Shortly after production began, Wellman had them switch roles, and the rest is history. While this has been disputed, it would explain why the child actors playing their younger counterparts (presumably filmed before the switch) match this original casting; young Matt in particular looks a lot more like a young James Cagney than a young Edward Woods. By the way, the actor playing young Matt is Frankie Darro, who would go on to star in William Wellman’s “Wild Boys of the Road“.
• Cagney is great in this, though for the life of me I have no idea what he’s saying. But it doesn’t matter because it’s fun watching him clearly relishing this breakout part. And even at the beginning of his career he was finding ways to sneak in a little hoofing into his pictures. Side note: This is not the movie where Cagney calls someone “You dirty rat.” He says that line in…oh wait, he never actually said it.

• As Matt’s girlfriend and later wife Mamie, Joan Blondell is her usual charming screen presence, even in a thankless part like this. Mae Clarke fairs a little better as Tom’s girlfriend Kitty. Speaking of…
• Like many a classic movie moment, the scene where Tom smashes a grapefruit into Kitty’s face has many people claiming it was their idea. William Wellman said that he came up with it while he was arguing with his wife during a grapefruit breakfast, producer Darryl F. Zanuck also claims credit for the moment, but both James Cagney and Mae Clarke attest that Cagney did it as a gag to amuse the crew, never thinking it would make the final cut. Regardless, the scene is the film’s most memorable moment, partly because up to this point there’s been a restraint in on-screen violence. And while we’re talking about this scene, can we acknowledge Cagney’s line right before the smash: “I wish you was a wishin’ well, so that I can tie a bucket to ya and sink ya.” That’s not how wishing wells work.

• Finally, Jean Harlow! As Gwen, the woman Tom will leave Kitty for, Harlow doesn’t show up until about halfway through the movie, and like Joan Blondell before her, she doesn’t get much to do. Thankfully, Harlow’s breakout work at MGM was just around the corner. It’s worth noting that Wellman’s first choice for Gwen was Louise Brooks, the famous silent movie star synonymous with the flapper image. Having recently returned from Europe (making, among other films, “Pandora’s Box”), and reluctant to work in Hollywood again, Brooks turned the part down, a decision that is now considered one of the factors that led to her decline in stardom.
• Once Tom and Matt take out their one-time associate Puddy Nose, the movie picks up steam and becomes everything we associate with gangster pictures. This scene is followed immediately with “Nails” Nathan being killed off-screen in a horse-riding accident, which leads to Tom buying the horse that killed Nathan and having it shot! I can just imagine Mario Puzo seeing this scene and making a mental note to take his own revenge-based horse murder even further.
• Shoutout to Deveraux Jennings, the film’s cinematographer. The bulk of Jennings’ career was in the silent era (he was Buster Keaton’s cameraman), and his work in “Public Enemy” shows that he refuses to let these newfangled cumbersome sound cameras get in the way of his compositions. We get some wonderfully staged close-ups, as well as a memorable shot of Paddy’s car driving directly over the camera.
• There’s a very racy scene when Paddy Ryan’s girlfriend Jane (Mia Marvin), seduces and takes advantage of a very drunk Tom while he’s laying low at her apartment. It’s quite daring for a ’30s movie, maybe too daring because it was one of three scenes cut from the film’s 1941 Code-era re-release. Another cut scene involves an effeminate tailor taking Tom’s measurements, which I thought was pretty funny. I’m glad that these scenes have been reinstated into the film proper, albeit in significantly poorer picture quality.
• [Spoilers] The scene where Matt is gunned down in the street is the reason we need to end our reliance on coal. Also, I’m told that “The Public Enemy” (as well as other films of the era) used actual ammunition on screen. Based on my research, blank cartridges were invented in the early 1930s but wouldn’t have been readily available for a film production, and squibs wouldn’t be invented for another decade. I’m left wondering if this story is true. And if so, I have a lot of follow-up questions.
• [Spoilers] The ending was semi-spoiled for me years ago, or so I thought. I was under the impression that the scene where Tom gets shot in the rain and laments “I ain’t so tough” as he falls to the ground was the final scene in the movie (along the lines of “Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?“). Not only is that not the last scene, but we learn Tom actually survived getting shot! The actual final scene is an inevitable conclusion for a movie of this era, but still contains a striking, unforgettable final image.

• An animatronic of James Cagney from “The Public Enemy” was part of the Great Movie Ride at Disney-MGM Studios for many years. And with that, let me just check my notes here…yes, I have covered every NFR movie that was a set piece on that ride. The only one missing is the NFR-ineligible “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, but other than that I’ve got the whole set. This is second only to my 700^th movie as my greatest accomplishment on this blog.

Before we go, allow me a brief tangent. In the summer of 2009, there was a movie called “Public Enemies” directed by Michael Mann and starring Johnny Depp as John Dillinger. Obviously, the only connection between this film and “The Public Enemy” is the title (taken from the 2004 book it’s based on) and the overall gangster aesthetic, but it gives me an excuse to talk about one of my all-time favorite movie-going experiences. I don’t remember a lot about the movie itself, but what I do remember is seeing it with my grandpa, who grew up in Chicago in the 1930s. The joy of that day wasn’t watching the movie but rather watching my grandpa watching the movie. The son of a judge, my grandpa knew about Chicago’s crime scene and, as any child rebelling against their parents would, idolized all the notorious gangsters of the era. When Depp’s Dillinger would outsmart and evade the police in the movie, I would look over at my grandpa and see that eight-year-old kid grinning from ear to ear as his hero escapes capture. Afterwards, my grandpa told me stories about growing up during the film’s setting, and about sitting on his front stoop hearing the news that Dillinger had been killed. That day at the movies was one of the last times I saw my grandpa, who died less than two years later. Although “Public Enemies” itself didn’t make much of an impression on me, it gave me the wonderful opportunity to see my grandpa relive his childhood, and for that I am eternally grateful.