Public Enemy starring James Cagney
Director: William Wellman


Essential Actor / Actresses Here

Amazon.com
Director William Wellman (Wings), a World War I veteran who turned his experiences in battle into an insistence on unpretentious violence in his films, made Public Enemy a particularly brutal account of the rise and fall of a monstrous gangster (James Cagney). Cagney delivers one of the most famous performances in film history as the snarling crook who--in one of the film's most famous scenes--smashes a grapefruit into the face of Mae Clarke. The film's a bit dated, but its action scenes still pack an unusual wallop.

Synopsis
Tom Powers enjoys proving to others why he is the Prohibition era's public enemy number one. He picks fights. He slaps women around. He roughs up speakeasy owners and tells them who they'll get their hooch from and how much they'll order. Fists, kisses, guns -- the only three things Tom knows. He gets promoted to become the muscle man of mobster Nails Nathan. But Tom's violent acts are about to catch up with him. After Tom guns down a cop, he's on the run. Later, thugs dump him, beaten, on the doorstep of his estranged and horrified family. It's only then that Tom realizes his decision to live the gangster life has been an irrevocable and deadly choice.

Video Description
Cagney effectively plays the part of Tom Powers, a trouble-ridden individual who rises from the position of cheap thug to that of a powerful prohibition gangster. When his best friend is murdered Powers self-destructively seeks deadly retaliation. AKA "Enemies of the Public." Academy Award Nominations: Best Writing (Original Story).

 

 

 

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