The Public Enemy (1931) | |
| Director(s) | William A. Wellman |
| Producer(s) | Darryl F. Zanuck (uncredited) |
| Top Genres | Action, Crime, Drama |
| Top Topics | Alcohol, Book-Based, Brothers, Gangsters, Pre-Code Cinema, Prohibition, True Story (based on) |
Featured Cast:
The Public Enemy Overview:
The Public Enemy (1931) was a Action - Crime Film directed by William A. Wellman and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck.
The film was based on the novel Beer and Blood written by John Bright published in unpublished.
SYNOPSIS
This is Wellman's brutal pre-Code depiction of Young Chicago hoodlums in the '20s. His last-minute casting of Cagney as the lead mobster launched his career as the movies' gangster king and typecast him for years. Two Irish boys (Cagney and Woods) grow up hard on the South Side, taking part in small-time heists until they kill a cop. With Prohibition comes the opportunity for more money and they become bootleggers, splurging on booze and women, including floozies Blondell, Clarke, and Harlow. When Cagney tires of Clarke, their argument leads to the infamous grapefruit scene in which a surprised Clarke get half a grapefruit in the kisser. the hoodlums come to a bad end, of course, but not before a truly shocking amount of gunplay. This and Little Caesar (1930) are the twin pillars of the gangster genre.
(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).
.The Public Enemy was inducted into the National Film Registry in 1998.
Academy Awards 1930/31 --- Ceremony Number 4 (source: AMPAS)
| Award | Recipient | Result |
| Best Writing | John Bright, Kubec Glasmon | Nominated |
BlogHub Articles:
The Public Enemy (1931): Did They have to Rub Out the Horse?
By FlickChick on Nov 7, 2022 From A Person in the DarkThis is my entry in the Classic Movie Blog Association's Movies are Murder Blogathon. Click here for more movie murder and mayhem.The Public Enemy: The Killer Must Be KilledThisAs most likely know, there are murders aplenty in The Public Enemy (1931). There are those anonymous gang members caught in... Read full article
Revisitando o “Inimigo P?blico” (1931) / Revisiting “The Public Enemy” (1931)
By L? on Dec 9, 2018 From Critica RetroRevisitando o “Inimigo P?blico” (1931) / Revisiting “The Public Enemy” (1931) ESTE ARTIGO TEM SPOILERS THIS ARTICLE HAS SPOILERS Assim como a maioria dos adolescentes, eu era rebelde e nem sempre me dava bem com a minha fam?lia. Ao contr?rio da maioria dos adolesc... Read full article
DOUBLE BILL #12: The Public Enemy (1931) and Angels With Dirty Faces (1938)
By Carol Martinheira on Mar 9, 2018 From The Old Hollywood GardenDOUBLE BILL #12: The Public Enemy (1931) and Angels With Dirty Faces (1938) On March 9, 2018 By CarolIn Uncategorized James Cagney once said about acting, ?Learn your lines, find your mark, look ?em in the eye and tell ?em the truth.? And he did. That was the thing abo... Read full article
Pre-Code Crazy: The Public Enemy (1931)
By shadowsandsatin on Feb 1, 2015 From Shadows and SatinI love gangster movies from the 1930s, but for reasons that are not quite clear to me, I usually don?t watch them over and over like I do with so many of my other favorites. (Hmm.) As a result, when I recently watched?The Public Enemy?(1931), my Pre-Code Crazy pick for this month, I felt almost as i... Read full article
The Public Enemy*: the Crime Flick with No Glamour?
By Judy on Jul 31, 2014 From Cary Grant Won't Eat YouHaving attacked James Cagney in a previous post, but seen few of his films, I thought I owed it to him to watch one of his hits. I found The Public Enemy on a streaming site and rec list (thanks, John!) and was instantly sucked into this understated gem. The hyperbolic title of the film suggests it... Read full article
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Quotes from
Mike Powers: Do you think I care if there was just beer in that keg? I know what's in it. I know what you've been doing all this time, how you got those clothes and those new cars. You've been telling Ma that you've gone into politics, that you're on the city payroll. Pat Burke told me everything. You murderers! There's not only beer in that jug. There's beer and blood - blood of men!
[Mike throws the keg into the corner, smashing Mrs Powers' table and causing a racket]
Tom Powers: [Stands] You ain't changed a bit.
[Tom walks away, but turns for the last word]
Tom Powers: Besides, your hands ain't so clean. You killed and liked it. You didn't get them medals for holding hands with them Germans.
Tom Powers: [Tom stumbles from a gun fight gone wrong with the rival gang. He's barely walking and soaked from the rain] ... I ain't so tough.
[Tom collapses in the gutter]
Tom as a boy: [Tom grabs his pants just as his father is about to spank him] How do you want 'em this time, up or down?
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Facts about
Ranked #8 on the American Film Institute's list of the 10 greatest films in the genre "Gangster" in June 2008.
According to James Cagney's autobiography, Mae Clarke's ex-husband, Lew Brice, enjoyed the "grapefruit scene" so much that he went to the movie theater everyday just to watch that scene only and leave.
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