Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

How sad is this?

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

That's what tough, gritty Warner Brothers was in the 1930's and'40's. Nobody made better gangster films and this is one of their best. It is a fast-paced, crisply-paced entry in the genre with lots of gun-play and action. Cagney plays a good guy in this one and he is at the top of his game. He is ably supported by a good supporting cast that includes good work from Robert Armstrong, Barton MacLane and Lloyd Nolan in an early role. Ward Bond can also be briefly seen as a trigger-man. One can see how this film influenced such later crime films like "The Cotton Club" and "The Departed." For anyone who likes gangster films, this is a must-see.

James "Brick" Davis (James Cagney) is a street-wise New York City lawyer who decides to join the US Department of Justice and become a G-Man after his friend Eddie Buchanan (Regis Toomey), also a G-Man, is gunned down by mobsters.The concept that Davis had his law school tuition paid for by a guy "in the rackets" is clever, and as soon as he gets accepted by the FBI, he tells the guy about it. Even more surprising, the guy supports this decision, despite knowing that would make him and his associates a target. Such an odd relationship.The people behind the film sought the FBI's approval, particularly since they were fictionalizing real events. After the acceptance by J. Edgar Hoover, the partnership lead to the new beginning being tacked on in 1949 for the FBI's 25th anniversary. Today, the film is rarely (if ever) seen without the bonus segment.Because of its basis in real life, crime buffs will enjoy what they see and see it coming before the rest of the audience. At one point, rackets boss Mac (William Harrigan) plans to retire and start an inn in northern Wisconsin. The crime fans will see a veiled reference to the April 1934 shootout at Little Bohemia between Dillinger and the FBI, and this foreshadowing comes to fruition... (Harrigan, incidentally, was not a prolific actor and had last appeared on screen two years prior in "The Invisible Man".)This is classic Cagney. It may not be anything like what the real FBI was like in the 1930s (or 1920s, as the case may be). But it has Cagney being his punchy little self, this time on the side of the good guys. (Apparently Cagney wanted to be a "polished gentleman", but the studio wanted him to be a "mug" more like his role in "Public Enemy", and this was probably wise on the studio's part.)Professor Richard Jewell provides commentary on the DVD. He may not be the most eloquent speaker, but he is quite informed and knowledgeable in general. He could be more informed about the Kansas City Massacre, though.

Recently, I've watched a lot of James Cagney's gangster movies. Usually, he plays the gangster. He is always the mafia leader. But in this one Cagney is a FBI agent. That's right. This time, James Cagney is fighting against the gangsters. At first, it sounded weird, but it works quite well.The movie tells the story of Brick Davis, a lawyer related to the mafia that decides to join the FBI force, known as 'G-Men' after his friend, also a 'G-Men', is killed.As usual, James Cagney gives a fine performance as Brick Davis, regardless his better works, like in 'White Heat' and 'Public Enemy'. The other members of the cast do a normal job, just like William Keighley's direction. A supporting member of the cast that did a great job was Barton MacLane, as the villain.The movie sounds more like a propaganda to the FBI force, but this isn't a bad thing. For 1935's, the movie has great action scenes, with car chases, shooting, kidnapping, robbery, etc, and they are all very well filmed for its period. Even though I prefer the action sequences in 'Scarface', they are great here also.In resume, another great gangster movie from the 1930's.8 out of 10.

Until this movie appeared in 1935, Jimmy Cagney had played roles in which he was a con man or a gangster of some sort. The formula having grown a little weary, Warners put him in "G Men," in which he joins the FBI and pursues murderers and other people guilty of moral terpitude. Saw this for the first time tonight after having waited a good number of years and was satisfied but a little disappointed.What a cast -- Stu Erwin, Loyd Nolan, Robert Armstrong, Ann Dvorak (pronounced roughly "Dvor-zhock", like the composer, although her real name was McKim). Then there was Barton MacLane as a bad guy, Margaret Lindsay as a good girl. And the performances are about what you'd expect -- that is to say, pretty good, with the exception of Robert Armstrong of "King Kong" fame who would be better put to use as a traffic signal, only instead of "go", "caution", and "stop," he could transmit "surprise", "remorse," and "anger." Whatever happened to Ann Dvorak? She's unconventionally stunning, was a gay, sexy, recklessly clumsy dancer, had the biggest, most expressive eyes in the business, and -- as we all know -- the eyes are the windows of the hootchy cootchy.Lamentably, the story is a crazy quilt of barely related plots stapled together out of old scripts and recent newspaper clippings. It might have made a good comic book. You can pretty much tell from the moment they're introduced who's going to be toast. There's the personal animosity between Cagney and the gang he knows back home, some stuff that tries to capture the headlines of the early 1930s about Midwestern gangs, and a faux history of the FBI's reactive development. Scenes alternate between rather dull and talky, and speedy, unimaginatively staged ambuscades. I think the same car crashes through the same store window twice.I felt more nearly complete after having watched it. Cagney's performance alone makes it worth watching. He lacks some of his usual mannerisms, the shrug of the shoulders, the hitch of the pants, but he's bouncy and smart-alecky. It's only the narrative and the direction that seems lacking or leaden. I mean, after all, I waited about twenty years to see it, and I think the Warner Brothers owed me more than they delivered.