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James Cagney, Edward Woods, Donald Cook, Joan Blondell, Jean Harlow ... see more see more... , Beryl Mercer , Robert E. O'Connor , Leslie Fenton , Murray Kinnell , Mae Clarke , Frank Coghlan Jr. , George Daly , Frankie Darro , Snitz Edwards , Rita Flynn , Douglas Gerrard , Dorothy Gray , Ben Hendricks Jr. , Robert E. Homans , Eddie Kane , Mia Marvin , Sam McDaniel , Helen Parrish , Lee Phelps , Russell Powell , Purnell Pratt , Landers Stevens , William Strauss , Charles Sullivan , Adele Watson , Clark 'Buddy' Burroughs , Nanci Price

William Wellman's landmark gangster movie traces the rise and fall of prohibition-era mobster Tom Powers. We are first shown various episodes of Tom's childhood with the corrupting influences of the b... read more read more...eer hall, pool parlor, and false friends like minor-league fence Putty Nose. As young adults, Tom (James Cagney) and his pal, Matt Doyle (Edward Woods), are hired by ruthless but innately decent bootlegger Paddy Ryan (Robert Emmett O'Connor). The boys quickly rise to the top of the heap, with all the accoutrements of success: custom-tailored tuxedoes, fancy cars, and gorgeous girls. All the while, Tom's loving (and somewhat addlepated) mother (Beryl Mercer) is kept in the dark, believing Tommy to be a good boy, a façade easily seen through by his older brother Mike (Donald Cook). Tommy's degeneration from brash kid to vicious lowlife is brought home in a famous scene in which he smashes a grapefruit in the face of his latest mistress (Mae Clarke). Some dated elements aside, The Public Enemy is as powerful as when it was first released, and it is far superior to the like-vintage Little Caesar. James Cagney is so dynamic in his first starring role that he practically bursts off the screen; he makes the audience pull for a character with no redeeming qualities. The film is blessed with a superior supporting cast: Joan Blondell is somewhat wasted as Matt's girl, Mamie; Jean Harlow is better served as Tom's main squeeze, Gwen (though some of her line readings are a bit awkward); and Murray Kinnell is slime personified as the deceitful Putty Nose, who "gets his" in unforgettable fashion. Despite a tacked-on opening disclaimer, most of the characters in The Public Enemy are based on actual people, a fact not lost on audiences of the period. Current prints are struck from the 1949 reissue, which was shortened from 92 to 83 minutes (among the deletions was the character of real-life hoodlum Bugs Moran). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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84% liked it

6,778 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

26 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 24 min.

Directed by: William A. Wellman

Release Date: April 23, 1931

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DVD Release Date: September 11, 2001

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The Public Enemy Edward Woods and James Cagney Leslie Fenton and James Cagney Clarke and Cagney The Public Enemy Public Enemy poster Edward Woods, James Cagney and Beryl Mercer Cagney and Mercer The Public Enemy The Public Enemy The Public Enemy The Public Enemy Edward Woods James Cagney James Cagney Leslie Fenton
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Flixster Reviews (480)

  • garyX
    February 1, 2011
    garyX
    James Cagney's breaking role sees him as one of the original "hoodlums", tracing his steps from young tearaway to enforcer during the prohibition years. Pretty much the template for every gangster film to come after, The Public Enemy was a groundbreaker that inevitably had its ha... read morends tied by the strict moralistic code that straight jacketed the industry at the time, which in retrospect can be seen to have been rather counterproductive. Without seeing the consequences of his violent crimes on-screen, the cocky and charismatic Cagney is actually quite an appealing character compared to his moralistic but seemingly self righteous and pompous brother. Particularly in the face of such a ridiculous law as prohibition. It has some very memorable scenes, especially the infamous "grapefruit" scene in which the lovely Mae Clarke (who is usurped by the vampish and rather dreadful Jean Harlow) is assaulted with her breakfast, and Cagney's revenge upon the rival mob. It's more of a quaint period piece by today's standards, but Cagney's cocksure performance means it still entertains to this day.
  • ajv2688
    September 3, 2010
    ajv2688
    Typical gangster story, predictable, but with an unexpected ending.
  • 76Majikat
    February 16, 2010
    76Majikat
    I am a fan of Jimmy Cagney and this one seems to be one of his very early works. Quite typical of the mob style films of it?s time, but for me not enough storyline to separate this from any other mob movie of it?s day.
  • sanjurosamurai
    March 28, 2008
    sanjurosamurai
    this a a pretty decent flick. not as engaging or profound as many of the early gangster films were, but cagney was great as always and the movie had its bright spot. worth the watch.
  • kenstachnik
    January 16, 2008
    kenstachnik
    Watch Jimmy Cagney and Jean Harlow do something amazing with a grapefruit.

    *snicker*
  • rubystevens
    January 3, 2008
    rubystevens
    cagney embarks on a life of crime and his presence cannot be denied. his breakout performance here burns right through the screen. harlow still needs some work to reach her own iconic status. the film is a bit dated but after 75 years still amazing to watch
  • groaningbitch
    December 12, 2007
    groaningbitch
    the founded stone for james cagney's overnight success of his classic gangster status. this flick is adapted from a moralistic social stiric novel called "beer and blood" which is applied in the lines during the flick as well. one of the first movies tackles the mob tumult under ... read morethe prohibition in the 20s.

    cagney's character tom is a hoodlum who's been meddling with the "wrong kind of people" since childhood with his pal matt, he's learned how to steal, intimidate and rob, generally an incorigible man who takes what he wants without hesitation. as tom's relationships with family, a spoilt younger son with mother fixation, hostile toward the paternal prestige: his father and senior sibling mike, thus he defies authority and contempts the government as he remarks on his brother's diligence on schooling "he's learning how to be poor!" and also his disapproval on patriotism which is serving your country in the war, he dismisses as getting medals for killing people, just as rotten as his success made by the brutal violence of blood, especially when mike shows tom his disdain on tom's unjust fortune by thrashing the beer cask aside...by contemporary standard, those family dramas upon postwar social condition seem dated, hardly to be resonated with empathy. but public enemy has its own relevant importance by being one of defining evidences of this decade's spirits as some historical residual with characters in simplistic archetypes.

    the mere timeless element which contributes "public enemy"' as one mighty unshakable classic is james cagney's conspicuously ballistic performance as the cocky gangster who growls and curses like a machine gun, a misogynist who smashes a grapefruit to mae clark's facecheek after quibbing "i wish you were a wishing well, so i could tuck a bucket and sink it"....also delivers the famous line "i aint so tough!" after being shot down to loblolly in the rain.

    jean harlow also makes her cameo as cagney's mistress after tossing away mae clarke out of abhorrence...harlow says her lines bluntly like "oh, my bashful boy...i could love you to death"...harlow is more like decorative vase as gangster's eagerness to boast his flamboyance. but harlow's wardrobe is glamous enough to nuance her screen time. one trivia is that the role tom was assigned to co-star ed woods but director demands the exchange as temporal trial, then woods' carrer became luckluster after public enemy, cagney remained ace still.

    typically the public enemy is enclosed with a moralistic ending just as your parents would preach: you would end up no good being a gangster.
  • mjgildea
    October 27, 2006
    mjgildea
    THE gangster movie.
  • michaelneumann
    September 20, 2007
    michaelneumann
    Just filling in movie ratings, folks. A couple of James Cagneys and some airplane flicks. Wish I had more to say. What's up with that, anyway? Not having the energy for journals anymore? To speak freely like so many of us once did? The activity on these things has sharply decline... read mored on an aggregate level, I imagine, coinciding with the exodus of departing vets for lives of non-RTness. Are we collectively growing less bored with our age or perhaps more tired of each other? What happened to that urge to be that proud monolith in the crashing sea of internet noise? What hath killed the desire to be defiantly bored and ramble on and on and on and on and on in these (eventual) online epitaphs, all for the world's attention? Movies are to blame! There are some good ones, sure, but so few to really champion among our online brethren. Nothing seems capable of sending our blood to a boil anymore. Where have all the quality juggernauts gone? C'moooon, PJ! Let's rock The Hobbit! That'll lure 'em back to the yard! Just...a few more years of...quiet leaves scuttling on the porch, the gentle breeze of yellowing days our only measurement...

    And so it is autumn.
  • gator681
    January 7, 2006
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]In "The Public Enemy", Tom Powers (James Cagney) and Matt Doyle(Edward Woods) are childhood friends in Chicago whose lives of crime start in their youths as shoplifters. As they get older, they move on to armed robbery and eventually murder. Once prohibitio... read moren starts in 1920, even more criminal opportunities come their way.[/font]
    [font=Century Gothic][/font]
    [font=Century Gothic]"The Public Enemy" is a fairly good crime melodrama. The acting is okay except for James Cagney's extraordinary starmaking performance. And the finale is unforgettable.[/font]
    [font=Century Gothic][/font]
    [font=Century Gothic]The movie does not go so far as to condemn prohibition but it admits it made matters worse in the criminal world. Its moral is that the public cannot be naive and ignore criminal activity that is happening right under its nose.[/font]

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Critic Reviews

Variety Staff
October 30, 2007
Variety Staff, Variety

There's no lace on this picture. It's raw and brutal. It's low-brow material given such workmanship as to make it high-brow. Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

James Cagney's portrayal of a bootlegging runt is truly electrifying (he'd made five films, but this one made him a star), and Jean Harlow makes the tartiest tart imaginable. Full Review

Emanuel Levy
August 12, 2011
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

This early sound film, which made a star of James Cagney, remains one of the most influential crime-gangster films ever made, establishing the basic narrative format of the popular genre. Full Review

Josh Larsen
July 5, 2009
Josh Larsen, LarsenOnFilm

Crime may not pay, but The Public Enemy was one of the first pictures to recognize that it sure can be exciting to watch. Full Review

Steve Crum
March 2, 2008
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com

Top notch Cagney gangster flick with memorable final scene.

Dennis Schwartz
December 15, 2007
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

The film's juiciest scene has the misogynist Tom squeeze a half a grapefruit in his nagging girlfriend Kitty's (Mae Clarke) kisser. Full Review

Jake Hamilton
October 30, 2007
Jake Hamilton, Empire Magazine

Still a classic of the gangster genre, showing neither glorifying the life nor pulling its punches. Full Review

Mark Bourne
April 9, 2006
Mark Bourne, DVDJournal.com

Its success proved, if by then there was any doubt, that audiences will go for a charismatic lowlife over a dull hero any day of the week, a lesson Hollywood never forgot. Full Review

Philip Martin
February 20, 2006
Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The implication is that there are hundreds, maybe thousands of guys like Tom Powers, little criminals living fast and dying hard.

Geoff Andrew
February 9, 2006
Geoff Andrew, Time Out

Cagney's energy and Wellman's gutsy direction carry the day, counteracting the moralistic sentimentality of the script and indelibly etching the star on the memory as a definitive gangster hero. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Tom Powers: Nuts to that stuff (breakfast)! Ain't ya got a drink in the house?
    • Tom Powers: Hiding behind Ma's skirts, like always.
    • Mike Powers: Better than hiding behind a machine gun.
    • Matt Doyle: Gee, she's a honey. I could go for her myself.
    • Tom Powers: Whatdya mean, you could go for her yourself? You could go for an eighty year old chick with rheumatism.
    • Tom Powers: Hello baby. What are you gonna have?
    • Kitty: Anything you say, big boy.
    • Tom Powers: You're a swell dish. I think I'm going to go for you.
    • Tom Powers: Hey, stoop, that's got gears. That ain't no Ford.
    • Tom Powers: Why that dirty, no good, yellow-bellied stool. I'm gonna give it to him right in the head the first time I see him.
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The Public Enemy Trivia

  • Because of the famous grapefruit scene in this film, for years afterward when dining in restaurants, fellow patrons would send grapefruit to actor James Cagney, which - almost invariably - Cagney would happily eat. Which movie?  Answer »
  • The infamous grapefruit scene in this movie caused women's groups around America to protest the on-screen abuse of Mae Clarke.   Answer »
  • who was the star of A Public Enemy  Answer »
  • James Cagney shoved a grapefruit in Mae Clarke's face in this 1931 gangster classic.  Answer »
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