A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist.A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist.A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 1 win & 2 nominations total
Joel Allen
- Operative
- (uncredited)
Claudia Barrett
- Cashier
- (uncredited)
Ray Bennett
- Guard
- (uncredited)
Marshall Bradford
- Chief of Police
- (uncredited)
Chet Brandenburg
- Convict
- (uncredited)
John Butler
- Motorist at Gas Station
- (uncredited)
Robert Carson
- Agent at Directional Map
- (uncredited)
Bill Cartledge
- Car-Hop at Drive-In Theatre
- (uncredited)
Bill Clark
- Guard
- (uncredited)
Leo Cleary
- Railroad Fireman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe character of Cody Jarrett was based on New York murderer Francis Crowley, who engaged in a pitched battle with police in the spring of 1931 at the age of 18. Before his execution in the electric chair on 1/21/32, Crowley's last words were, "Send my love to my mother."
- GoofsThe gas station attendant removes the radiator cap with his bare hand.
- Quotes
Cody Jarrett: Made it, Ma! Top of the world!
- Crazy creditsMax Steiner altered the Warner Brothers familiar introductory theme to segue directly into his theme for the opening credits,
- Alternate versionsAlso Available in a Colorized Version.
- ConnectionsEdited into Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982)
- SoundtracksFive O'Clock Whistle
(1940) (uncredited)
Music by Josef Myrow, Kim Gannon & Gene Irwin
Played on a radio
Featured review
If you like James Cagney and you like the film noirs of the late 1940s, well, it doesn't get much better than this.
Cagney, who was always great at playing wild gangsters, makes this film interesting all the way through its two hours. Despite being a half-century old, he was still not far from being at the top of his game. His character, Cody Jarrett, is one of the most famous of the many he portrayed on film, which is saying a lot.
Who could sit on his mother's lap and still look like a tough guy? Not many, but Cagney pulled it off here with his tough mama, played really well by Margaret Wycherly. This was a new type of role for Wycherly, who was used to doing Shakespeare. You wouldn't know it from this "Ma Jarrett" role!
The "hoods" in here are all realistic tough guys and gals. Cagney's two-faced wife is played well by Virginia Mayo, who plays the typical (for this genre) floozy blonde whom you can trust about as far as you can throw.
The final scene - "Top Of World, Ma!" - is one of the most famous in all of film history. It's nice to see a nice print of this out on DVD now and some of the features are very informative. Included is an interview with Mayo, who still looks pretty good for an old lady!
Cagney, who was always great at playing wild gangsters, makes this film interesting all the way through its two hours. Despite being a half-century old, he was still not far from being at the top of his game. His character, Cody Jarrett, is one of the most famous of the many he portrayed on film, which is saying a lot.
Who could sit on his mother's lap and still look like a tough guy? Not many, but Cagney pulled it off here with his tough mama, played really well by Margaret Wycherly. This was a new type of role for Wycherly, who was used to doing Shakespeare. You wouldn't know it from this "Ma Jarrett" role!
The "hoods" in here are all realistic tough guys and gals. Cagney's two-faced wife is played well by Virginia Mayo, who plays the typical (for this genre) floozy blonde whom you can trust about as far as you can throw.
The final scene - "Top Of World, Ma!" - is one of the most famous in all of film history. It's nice to see a nice print of this out on DVD now and some of the features are very informative. Included is an interview with Mayo, who still looks pretty good for an old lady!
- ccthemovieman-1
- Dec 16, 2005
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Alma negra
- Filming locations
- 198th Street and Figueroa, Torrance, California, USA(final scene at Shell Oil plant)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,300,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $5,534
- Runtime1 hour 54 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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