The Public Enemy

All his life he took what he wanted...Why not women?
The Public Enemy
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Format:  DVD
item number:  J6KX
on most orders of $75+
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DVD Details

  • Leonard Maltin Hosts Warner Night at the Movies 1931 with Newsreel, Comedy Short The Eyes Have It, cartoon Smile, Darn Ya, Smile and Theatrical Trailers
  • New Featurette Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public
  • Commentary by Film Historian Robert Sklar
  • Subtitles in English, French and Spanish
  • Rated: Unrated
  • Run Time: 1 hours, 22 minutes
  • Video: Black & White
  • Encoding: Region 1 (USA & Canada)
  • Released: January 25, 2005
  • Originally Released: 1931
  • Label: Warner Home Video

Performers, Cast and Crew:

Starring &
Performer: , , , , &
Directed by
Edited by
Screenwriting by &
Written by
Composition by
Cinematography by
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Director of Photography:

Entertainment Reviews:

Fresh100%

TOMATOMETER
Total Count: 30

Upright84%

AUDIENCE SCORE
User Ratings: 7,499
Rating: A -- 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
EmanuelLevy.Com
Aug 12, 2011
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
Variety
Oct 30, 2007
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
Chicago Reader
Jan 1, 2000
The approach is direct and unpretentious, the pace is brisk, the whole thing lasts eighty-four minutes and it has more in it than a half-dozen of those lethargic three-hour-plus epics we get nowadays. Full Review
Esquire Magazine
Jul 30, 2019
Rating: 9/10 -- 1931's The Public Enemy is still at this stage one of the best gangster films ever made. Full Review
Starburst
Sep 21, 2017
Rating: 4/4 -- 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
LarsenOnFilm
Jul 5, 2009
[S]eductively enthralling...
Entertainment Weekly
Jan 28, 2005

Description by OLDIES.com:

The Public Enemy showcases James Cagney's powerful 1931 breakthrough performance as streetwise tough guy Tom Powers - but only because production chief Darryl F. Zanuck made a late casting change. When shooting began, Cagney had a secondary role but Zanuck soon spotted Cagney's screen dominance and gave him the star part. From that moment, and indelible genre classic and an enduring star career were both born. Bristling with '20s style, dialogue and desperation under the masterful directorial eye of William A. Wellman, this is a virtual time capsule of the Prohibition era: taut, gritty, hard-hitting - even at breakfast when grapefruit is served.

Product Description:

In William Wellman's classic crime film THE PUBLIC ENEMY, James Cagney does a star turn as 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. He picks fights. He slaps women around. He roughs up speakeasy owners and tells them whom they'll get their hooch from and how much they'll order. Fists, kisses, and guns are the only things Tom knows. He eventually gets promoted to become the muscleman of mobster Nails Nathan (Leslie Fenton). 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. Known as the picture that launched Cagney into stardom, THE PUBLIC ENEMY doesn't hold back from exposing the violence and tedium underscoring this ostensibly sexy life of crime. The screenplay, based on a story entitled BEER AND BLOOD by John Bright and written by Harvey F. Thew, was nominated for an Academy Award.

Description by Warner Home Video:

James Cagney gives a tour-de-force performance in his tough-guy portrayal of a petty hoodlum who rises to big-time gangster.

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A great edition of Public Enemy Movie Lover: from Pittsburgh, PA US -- November, 9, 2005

Re my review of Little Ceasar - these very highly recommended prints are in excellent condition; the extra attractions on the DVD are fabulous - a 1931 night at the movies experienced through a newsreel, comedy short, trailers and cartoon, before going into the film itself - and it's heartily advised to watch the commentary version of the main feature first when so familiar with this most famous of the Depression-era gangster film cycle, The Public Enemy. It would be wonderful if this fine treatment of commentary, documentary, and Leonard Maltin's hosting could be applied to a vault of classic genre films of the era- I know Leonard Maltin hosted a Pre-Code Hollywood series on VHS some ten years ago, but we've only been able to locate a few of those films.


Product Info

  • Sales Rank: 119,112
  • UPC: 012569690622
  • Shipping Weight: 0.3/lbs (approx)
  • International Shipping: 1 item

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