Angels With Dirty Faces starring James Cagney
Director: Michael Curtiz

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Gangster Rocky Sullivan (James Cagney) returns from prison to make a name for himself in the crime world. He's soon discovered by the Dead End Kids, who idolize him, and childhood pal Father Jerry Connolly (Pat O'Brien). The good Father has taken a different turn from Rocky and is struggling to bring the Kids around; while still friends with Rocky, he tries to persuade him to steer clear of the gang of urchins. Rocky runs afoul of the law, however, when he guns down his former partners Frazier (Humphrey Bogart) and Keefer (George Bancroft) after they betray him over a cut of crime-related profits. Seen as a whole, Angels with Dirty Faces may seem dated to many viewers, but its ending is still enough to bring chills. Director Michael Curtiz infused this gritty l938 effort with an amazing amount of energy and pacing; the Dead End Kids, in their screen debut, supply a fair amount of comic relief along with their dramatic roles. It's also worth noting that at the time, the notion of a criminal being a product of his environment was a controversial one. The swaggering bantam-rooster role played by Cagney, one of the screen's greats, helped define how he would be perceived (and parodied) for years to come. This movie easily stands along with The Roaring Twenties and Little Caesar as one of the most important, archetypal gangster films of the '30s.

Synopsis
A street criminal and small-time gangster is the hero of all the "dead-end-kids" from the neighborhood where he grew up. The criminal's boyhood best friend has become the local parish priest, and he wants to convince these kids to choose a different path with their lives. When the gangster is sentenced to death for his crimes, the priest persuades his friend to feign fear and cowardice as he is taken off to the electric chair in hopes that the boys will stop emulating the criminal and his life.

Video Description
A parish priest and a hardened criminal find themselves at odds when the hood returns to his old neighborhood and threatens to destroy all of the hard work the priest has done. Academy Award Nominations: 3, including Best Actor--James Cagney, Best Director, Best Original Story.

Video Annotation
Film marks second pairing of James Cagney and Pat O'Brien since Cagney's leaving Warner Bros. The actors playing the street children were known as "The Dead End Kids" and were featured in a number of studio productions. Jo Graham is credited as the dialogue director. Director Michael Curtiz received two Academy Award nominations for Best Director in 1938, one for "Angels with Dirty Faces," the other for "Four Daughters."

 

 

 

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