The forefather of *Goodfellas* and other gangster film. What's remarkable is that Cagney's intensity and viciousness still has an impact.

wellman is no walsh

solid character piece. cagney does a great job here portraying a simple story of an unlikable guy with sympathetic qualities. would have done a bit better with more exploration of cagney's mindset after the climax.

The first ten minutes are a total waste, complete with awful child acting and pointless scenery.A short while later, we see an unarmed thief being shot to death from behind by a cop. Seriously? Things get marginally better from here, and Cagney is great, although the rest of the actors range from good to atrocious. However, the rest of the movie is filled with thin, often pointless scenes,and a primitive representation of criminals and their activities. It's almost like a cartoon sometimes.

Some of the acting is pretty spotty and most of the characters are one-dimensional as all hell, but it's still a decent watch thanks to Cagney's performance and a pretty bleak ending. Might have liked it a bit more if I hadn't seen the far superior (but very similar) The Roaring Twenties beforehand.

As most of the early talkies it suffers from the pacing issues. And because of that it gets quite dull at the times. What makes this film special, i think, is superb performance by James Cagney. He looks so natural, I can't imagine American gangster from prohibition era in any other way.

It's incredible how James Cagney seems to update the form of movie acting in this classic crime film. He is viral, intesive and explosive and totally opposite of then common theater -based acting style. The movie itself is somewhat dated but Cagney mesmerizes viewer in every scene he is in.

A classic with Cagney exploding onscreen with his kinetic Irish gangster portrayal. A dynamite opus -- and catch that famous "grapefruit" scene.

The picture itself shows its age a little, but Cagney's vitality still leaps from the screen.

Cagney's acting is top-notch, but everything else hasn't really stood the test of time.

This is the first film where Jimmy Cagney shed his reputation as a second-rate on-screen doily-crimper and started shooting people who asked him, "Hey small guy, where be my doilies?" Doesn't sound likely? Imagine this: the film was originally meant to be a farcical commercial for Bavarian Cream Stout. William Wellman, seeing the potential pay-off in Cagney's horrific murder spree, decided to roll with the punches and even on two occasions strangled PAs who questioned what the hell was going on.

Great early gangster classic from which a lot of genre films over the years have borrowed. Strong performance from Cagney and a great ending.

This film has James Cagney rising up to top form. This is a good early gangster flick. This movie is worth seeing for the classic "grapefruit scene" alone. The ending is also a nice touch.

Not the best ganster film out there but this movie is very early in the game. Even though presented as a "public service announcement," James Cagney is a shining example of a dirty rat. The image of Tommy Power dropping dead at the end is a shocker. I loved it.

Good, but surprisingly underwhelming. The storytelling is so stilted the film plays as a huge montage and the acting comes off as mediocre in part due to the somewhat primitive sound editing. Cagney makes something out of it and the final scene is great but I expected a lot more.

Not a bad flick, but I feel like I could take it or leave it. It's possible I'll revisit it one day but it'll be many years before that happens.

A great depiction of a time and place. Surprisingly bleak and violent, and Cagney is the embodiment of it. His screen presence and charisma are off the charts. It's one of the best performances I've ever seen. This movie hasn't been ravaged by age like the similarly themed Little Caesar, and it's a lot more fun to watch.

See FitFortDanga's review.

Sure this has the grapefruit, but witness Cagney's little jig upon meeting Jean Harlow, whose brief performance is simultaneously wooden and magnetic.

Yikes--one of the bleaker endings you'll ever see (sort of like The Harder They Come cranked up a couple notches).

Classic.

I seriously have nothing to say about this. It's got some characters and they do some stuff, and it ends. It's a movie. Not that boring, not that exciting. You watch it and say "well, that was okay" and forget about it.

Cagney's performance alone merits this score, in an otherwise slightly above-average movie.

I'm surprised at myself at how not excited I was by this film

Along with "Monkey Business," the highest scoring film of 1931.

Dull and meandering,

In between Cagney falling in the gutter and his "return home" (those of you who have seen this will know why I use quotation marks), the movie falls incredibly flat. I would have liked to see more, but what is there is very good. And, of course, Jimmy Cagney is awesome.

James Cagney turns in a great performance as Tommy Power. The film may be quite dull at times, but there is no denying the influence the Public Enemy has had on gangster films for generations to come. It is quite a gruesome look at the gangster lifestyle, especially given the time period. Definitely worth watching to see where gangster films have sprouted from.