Cagney goes ballistic in ‘White Heat’
WEEKENDER for Jan. 9, 2009
Violent, psychotic killers are a staple of modern movies.
Remember the demonic Joe Pesci in “Good Fellas,” who had a quick temper and with a gun usually in the hand, made the outburst fatal for somebody.
That character and so many others can be traced to the film noir classic “White Heat.”
If you've never seen this film, or it's been awhile, it's time to revisit this giant 1949 gangster film.
It was a combination of the times the film was made, the changing Hollywood and the people who were dedicated to its excellence that made it such a prize.
James Cagney plays Cody Jarrett, a psychological time bomb who can only see short-term solutions. Nobody dares cross Cody Jarrett.
The film opens with Jarrett and his gang robbing a train. When one of his henchman refers to him as “Cody,” they both realize the two workers on the train must be killed. Lots of people die in this film.
When one henchman is badly burned from steam and the gang wants to leave their cabin retreat, Cody promises to send a doctor to care for him. But the specialist turns out to be another henchman with a gun.
God old Cody.
Among those in the gang is his equally devious mother, who cares for him when he goes into one of his violent fits that might somehow explain his deviant personality.
There's also his lovely wife, played by Virginia Mayo, who exchanges glances at other henchmen, and maybe more than that when Cody goes to prison.
Edmund O'Brien plays a federal agent who poses as a fellow inmate and Cody's cellmate who wants to find out what happened to the money from a big heist.
When Cody breaks out, the O'Brien character goes along for the ride.
You can bet Cody seeks revenge for his mother's death, for who has made time with the wife he neglected and any guy who talks to or dances or especially marries his 18-year-old sister.
At this point, hold on for a jarring, bloody, pulse-pounding good time. Early in the film Mom says, “Top of the world, Cody,” for which he replies, “Top of the world, Ma.” The phrase returns in the electrical — literally — and violent ending.
The DVD also includes the alternate ending the studio wanted, in which Cagney's character dutifully goes through the judicial process and meets his appropriate fate. The studio ending wouldn't have gotten the repeat showings in best-of clips show as the original does.
The DVD also includes a Warner Brothers night at the movies, with a short subject, Bugs Bunny cartoon, coming attractions and newsreel.
It is part of the whole Warner Bros. Pictures “Gangsters” DVD package, which includes other great films like “The Public Enemy,” “Angels with Dirty Faces,” “Little Caesar,” “The Petrified Forest” and “The Roaring 20s.”
This is Cagney at his best, and that is saying something.
WHITE HEAT • Directed by Raoul Walsh • Story by Virginia Kellog and screenplay by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts • Runtime: 113 minutes • Not rated, but not for young children • 4 stars out of 4
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