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From Amazon.co.uk
This superb 1949 crime drama takes elements of plot, character and theme familiar from 30s melodramas and orchestrates them as an existential tragedy noir. James Cagney, in a towering performance, is Cody Jarrett, a transparently psychotic robber with a molten temper, feral cunning, and mercurial charm that are finely calibrated extensions of the doomed gangsters he played a decade before, this time coiled not around a Depression-era impetus of greed or class rivalry, but an Oedipal bond. Cody's beloved, calculating "Ma" (Margaret Wycherly) is the compass for his every move, her iron will and long shadow acknowledged not only by Cody but by his gang, his bored, restless wife (Virginia Mayo, radiating sensuality and guile), and the undercover cop (Edmond O'Brien) planted in Jarrett's path.
Director Raoul Walsh propels the story from a rolling start, a tautly paced train robbery that goes awry, culminating in the leader's capture. An ambitious henchman (Steve Cochran) plots a behind-bars hit foiled by O'Brien, who's infiltrated the prison to befriend Jarrett, a goal handily accomplished with the rescue. Jarrett's paranoia, murderous anger, and longing for his mother are interwoven with intermittent, incapacitating headaches that underline and amplify his core of inner rage; Cagney makes these seizures harrowing, revealing purely animal pain and terror at once frightening and pathetic.
Jarrett's escape, the gang's reunion with fellow escapee O'Brien aboard, trusted by Jarrett but not his partners, and the big score that unravels in a climactic gun battle in an oil refinery are conducted with a gritty economy, and Walsh and his cast evoke a criminal life devoid of glamour, noteworthy for the undercurrents of distrust that keep tempers flaring. The final showdown, and Jarrett's crazed, taunting battle cry in the face of death ("Top of the world, Ma!"), achieve a sense of tragic inevitability that deservedly make this a defining moment in Cagney's screen career. --Sam Sutherland, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By J. M. Harman
Format:DVD
This,without doubt,is an outstanding film, for it draws together several complex issues. Right from the start, when we are introduced to Cody Jarrett (James Cagney) Verna (Virginia Mayo) & "Big Ed" (Steve Cochran) we learn several things. Cody is subject to fits & has a mother fixation; also, "Big Ed" is his rival for gang leadership & for Cody`s wife, Verna. The U.S. law enters the story in the person of Officer Hank Fallon (Edmund O`Brien) masquerading as gang member Vic Pardoe, whose object is to obtain enough information to ensure the capture of Jarrett.
There is one sequence in which the viewer is made aware of the link between Cody & his mother. In the prison cell Jarret remarks that Ma always sees to it that he gets his full share of any robbery, & immediately the scene dissolves from Cody`s image directly onto Ma, thus emphasising their emotional bond, especially when she declares: "Get one thing clear...anything we get, Cody`s in for his full share" There is one visual point to note: all the gang members are dressed in light suits, with the exception of "Big Ed" who always seems "odd man out" these are things which are subconciously registered by the viewer.When Ma takes a vote on Cody`s share, she queries "Big Ed`s" willingness to agree, in fact it is so out of character that it arouses her suspicions & leads to Ed`s subsequent downfall.
Perhaps the most outstanding scene in the movie takes place in the prison canteen when Cody receives news of his mother`s death. He goes hysterical, & is carried out shrieking.... Read more ›
There is one sequence in which the viewer is made aware of the link between Cody & his mother. In the prison cell Jarret remarks that Ma always sees to it that he gets his full share of any robbery, & immediately the scene dissolves from Cody`s image directly onto Ma, thus emphasising their emotional bond, especially when she declares: "Get one thing clear...anything we get, Cody`s in for his full share" There is one visual point to note: all the gang members are dressed in light suits, with the exception of "Big Ed" who always seems "odd man out" these are things which are subconciously registered by the viewer.When Ma takes a vote on Cody`s share, she queries "Big Ed`s" willingness to agree, in fact it is so out of character that it arouses her suspicions & leads to Ed`s subsequent downfall.
Perhaps the most outstanding scene in the movie takes place in the prison canteen when Cody receives news of his mother`s death. He goes hysterical, & is carried out shrieking.... Read more ›
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
To put it simply James Cagney is Cody Jarrett, a mama obsessed psychopath.Cagney is at his brilliant best as the leader of a gang of crooks who first rob a train and then when the heat from the Feds starts to burn sets himself up to go down for a crime commited on the same day as the train robbery.This is just a trumped up charge to act as an alibi so he can't be charged for the train job.The story revolves around a Fed agent being placed in with Cody to befriend him and to join his gang and be in on the setting up of the gangs next heist.James Cagney made this film to starve of money problems for his own production company, he also felt typecast as a villian and crook, but if anybody can show me a better gangster than Cagney i'll eat my hat.Cagney was brilliant at improvisation just adding little things to each scene to make his character more real and frightening.One of the best of these improvisation is when after a seizure(Cody is an epileptic even though the caracters never say so) Cagney is comforted by his mother and he sits on her lap!!Another is the seizure scene in prison when Cagney finds out his mother has died he rolls over tables, punches the lights out of about three guards , he based that scene on when he was younger visiting a relation in an insane asylum. One thousand words are not enough to do this film justice I haven't even mentioned the attempts on Codys life, the betrayal of his gang, the plan the Feds have to catch Cody, the dramatic realisation when Cody finds its a set-up, and that final scene which is one of the most classic scences in movie history.This is one of the top five gangster movies of all time and that includes The Usual Suspects and Resivour Dogs.Simply put if you have a few spare pound buy it!!!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
I told you to keep away from that radio. If that battery is dead it'll have company.
1 April 2011
By Spike Owen
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:DVD
White Heat is directed by Raoul Walsh and adapted by Ivan Goff & Ben Roberts from a story suggested by Virginia Kellogg. It stars James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Edmond O'Brien, Steve Cochran & Margaret Wycherly. Music is by Max Steiner and photography by Sidney Hickox.
Cody Jarrett (Cagney) is the sadistic leader of a violent and ruthless gang of thieves. Unnervingly devoted to his mother (Wycherly) and afflicted by terrible headaches since childhood, Cody is one bad day away from being a full blown psychotic. That day is coming soon, and everyone in his way is sure to pay.
Around the time of White Heat being released, two things were evident as regards its star and its themes. One is that it had been a long time since a gangster, and a truly vicious one at that, had thrilled or frightened a cinema audience. The Production Code and a change in emotional value due to World War II had seen the genuine career gangster all but disappear. Second thing of note is that Cagney was stung by the disappointing performance of Cagney Productions. So after having left Warner Brothers in 1942, the diminutive star re-signed for the studio and returned to the genre he had almost made his own in the 30s. He of course had some say in proceedings, such as urging the makers to ensure a crime does not pay motif, but all told he needed a hit and the fit with Raoul Walsh and the psychotic Jarrett was perfect. It may not be his best acting performance, but it's certainly his most potent and arguably it's the cream of the gangster genre crop.
The inspiration for the film is mostly agreed to be the real life criminals: Ma Barker, Arthur "Doc" Barker and Francis Crowley. A point of worth being that they were all 30s criminals since White Heat very much looks and feels like a 30s movie.... Read more ›
Cody Jarrett (Cagney) is the sadistic leader of a violent and ruthless gang of thieves. Unnervingly devoted to his mother (Wycherly) and afflicted by terrible headaches since childhood, Cody is one bad day away from being a full blown psychotic. That day is coming soon, and everyone in his way is sure to pay.
Around the time of White Heat being released, two things were evident as regards its star and its themes. One is that it had been a long time since a gangster, and a truly vicious one at that, had thrilled or frightened a cinema audience. The Production Code and a change in emotional value due to World War II had seen the genuine career gangster all but disappear. Second thing of note is that Cagney was stung by the disappointing performance of Cagney Productions. So after having left Warner Brothers in 1942, the diminutive star re-signed for the studio and returned to the genre he had almost made his own in the 30s. He of course had some say in proceedings, such as urging the makers to ensure a crime does not pay motif, but all told he needed a hit and the fit with Raoul Walsh and the psychotic Jarrett was perfect. It may not be his best acting performance, but it's certainly his most potent and arguably it's the cream of the gangster genre crop.
The inspiration for the film is mostly agreed to be the real life criminals: Ma Barker, Arthur "Doc" Barker and Francis Crowley. A point of worth being that they were all 30s criminals since White Heat very much looks and feels like a 30s movie.... Read more ›
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4.8 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic film
A good DVD of a classic film. They do not make them like this today and I am pleased to have added this to my collection.
Published 1 month ago by Richard C.D. Martin
5.0 out of 5 stars
Cagney's Finest
This is James Cagney's best movie and his best acting. His screen presence as the ruthless, violent and mentally unstable Cody Jarrett is mesmerising. Read more
Published 2 months ago by C. Cassidy
4.0 out of 5 stars
oldie
I love cagney and this is vintage cagney, maybe not his best but a good watch. Bring it on C
Published 3 months ago by Mr. M. Annable
5.0 out of 5 stars
white heat
good quality dvd with clear and good picture quality, i would recommend it , it has a good story line with excellent actors.
Published 3 months ago by richard preston
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent.
Excellent. Excellent. I would have no hesitation recommending these to both family and friends. Gorgeous. Amazing. Spectacular. I love it. Good.
Published 5 months ago by Meggie
5.0 out of 5 stars
dvd white heat
excellent dvd,best james cagney film.love it.package was well secure on arrival and quality is very good.arrived in very good time
Published 5 months ago by R. Anderson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Film Noir fan loved it
My friend who is a big gangster film fan and Film Noir fan received this from me as a present and really loved it. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Peter P
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jimmy Cagney the man.
The raw talent that is Jimmy Cagney, delivers his lines in his style that is unmistakabley Cagney, Top of the world mam.
Published 7 months ago by edward mitchell
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Gangster Movie
I'm not a big fan of gangster movies but this has always been a favourite since watching it on the TV as a very young lad (No colour for us). Read more
Published 12 months ago by Michael C. Holliday
5.0 out of 5 stars
This films top of the world!
What can I say? This film is truly one of the best, if not THE best, gangster films ever made. James Cagney's performance is electric, you are glued to the screen from start to... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Mr. M. Miller
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