This very entertaining visit to the world of the con presages 1987's equally good "House of Games."
Here we have a highly engaging young James Cagney as Bert "I'm not built for work" Harris and his ambivalent sidekick, Ann, played well by the lovely Joan Blondell.
We learn a lot here about all kinds of chicanery perpetrated on savvy and gullible alike. It's a fun ride. Bert and Ann have wonderful chemistry, and their unfolding love story's a bonus.
I hadn't seen much of Cagney before, and I liked him here. His "dirty double-crossing rat" snarl seems to foreshadow the tough-guy persona for which he's well-known.
The movie ends on an ethereal note: "If I had the wings of an angel, honey, over these prison walls I would fly." You go, guy. I guess love really did mean something in Bert's life...
Here we have a highly engaging young James Cagney as Bert "I'm not built for work" Harris and his ambivalent sidekick, Ann, played well by the lovely Joan Blondell.
We learn a lot here about all kinds of chicanery perpetrated on savvy and gullible alike. It's a fun ride. Bert and Ann have wonderful chemistry, and their unfolding love story's a bonus.
I hadn't seen much of Cagney before, and I liked him here. His "dirty double-crossing rat" snarl seems to foreshadow the tough-guy persona for which he's well-known.
The movie ends on an ethereal note: "If I had the wings of an angel, honey, over these prison walls I would fly." You go, guy. I guess love really did mean something in Bert's life...