The first film I have watched in this list that features many classic actors. These are actors I class as being seen as the greats of my mother's and her mother's generation. James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart star in this gangster film, but this has a twist. Its a very simple story; two friends, one ended up as a gangster, one as a priest (which is obviously going to cause friction) but when the gangster does wrong, the priest starts a campaign against the criminal underworld.
OK maybe the plot is not simple, but the acting is marvellous. James Cagney IS Rocky Sullivan, he is cheeky, rough and cocky as a gangster should be. For me the best actor was Pat O'Brien. Playing a priest has to be difficult, but playing a priest with a slightly dodgy background and a best friend who does not conform to the ideals of religion has to be pretty tough. But O'Brien pulls it off, you believe he cares for his friend but also cares for God.
I am not a fan of the 'Dead End' Kids. I hate kids, they annoy me, and one of them looked like a pig nosed boy from my secondary school, so they were not my favourite characters. But I did enjoy the joviality they added to the plot, their constant youthful vigour and more importantly, their little subplots that added a little variety to the movie.
Overall I really enjoyed Angels With Dirty Faces, and I like the idea that the only reason the priest didn't become like the gangster was because "he couldn't run as fast as me" This film gets a 7 out of 10 from me. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
No comments:
Post a Comment