The film is about the rise and fall of two young hoodlums in Chicago who become top-tier gangsters during the early days of Prohibition only to find themselves in a gang war with rival mobsters. It is a film with a simple premise that plays into two men who work as hoodlums since they were boys for a local boss only to grow up as men who would work for another boss as they would rise and make money through bootlegging alcohol. The film’s screenplay by Harvey F. Thew is based on an unpublished screenplay by John Bright and Kubec Glasmon is straightforward as it spans 15 years from 1905 to 1920 when Prohibition begins. The protagonists in Tom Powers (James Cagney) and Matt Doyle (Edward Woods) are two Irish-American men who would do small jobs and rise the ranks working for a local hood in Putty Nose (Murray Kinnell). After an incident that made Nose flee, the two would work for the more prominent Paddy Ryan a few years after World War I had ended.
Once Prohibition begins, Powers and Doyle get rich while remaining loyal to Ryan as they also get women and all the good things in life. The script also plays into conflict between Powers and his older brother Mike (Donald Cook) who is a strait-laced man that does everything expected in society including joining the marines in World War I as he would struggle to make ends meet for himself and the family despite Powers giving their mother (Beryl Mercer) money. It would play into tension where Powers knows he is not an honorable man but does not tell his mother what he really does yet he shoots back at his brother for what he has done while at war. Powers would eventually cope with the chaos of conflict following the death of a colleague as it plays into the intensity of violence that occurs during Prohibition.
William A. Wellman’s direction is engaging in the way he captures a period that are the early days of Prohibition just a few years before it ends. Shot on location at the Warner Brothers studio backlot at Burbank, California along with additional locations in Los Angeles, Wellman does create an atmosphere of a world that is finding itself in a new century though some struggle to get by with Powers and Doyle doing things for this local hood as they live in the poor side of Chicago with their families. Wellman’s direction does have some wide and medium shots to get a scope of the locations in in its 1:37:1 aspect ratio. Even as he would do unique camera movements in a medium shot during a conversation while also using close-ups in a few scenes to play into the drama and suspense. Wellman also play into the way bootleggers steal from breweries before they close and how they transport alcohol in secrecy as well as the lifestyle the gangsters have. There are also moments that are violent though Wellman chooses to shoot scenes involving the intense violence by having it be shown offscreen.
The usage of sound is a key element in the offscreen violence while the death of a friend of Powers and Doyle would also be shown offscreen as it would mark the fall for both men. The film’s third act is one filled with suspense and drama as it plays into Paddy Ryan becoming concerned for everyone around him as he also knows he is a target from rival gangs. Its climax would involve Powers with an aftermath in which his brother realizes the severity of what his brother had been trying to do as well as the danger. The final image is shocking as it plays into the world of gang violence as well as it is followed by a postscript that explains the futility of the gangster life and the failures of Prohibition. Overall, Wellman crafts a gripping and intoxicating film about two young men who rise into the gangster world during the early days of Prohibition.
Cinematographer Devereaux Jennings does brilliant work with the film’s black-and-white photography in the way the exterior scenes at night are lit as well as the usage of shadows for some of the nighttime interior scenes. Editor Edward Michael McDermott does excellent work with the editing with its rhythmic cuts to play into the drama and suspense along with some lively cutting for some of the energetic scenes. Art director Max Parker does amazing work with the look of the nightclub Powers and Doyle go to as well as the family home of the former and the hotel suite the two men live in with their partners.
Costume designer Edward Stevenson does fantastic work with the costumes in the suits the men wear as well as additional wardrobe designed by Earl Luick in the dresses that the women wear. The sound work of Oliver S. Garretson is superb for the sound effects in how gunfire sounds as well as the way natural sound is presented on set. Title music by David Mendoza is wonderful in its orchestral piece to play into the air of suspense and drama while its music soundtrack features music from that period that is performed by the Vitaphone Orchestra.
The casting by Rufus Le Maire is remarkable as it feature some notable small roles from Mia Marvin as Paddy Ryan’s girlfriend Jane who would seduce Powers late in the film, Dorothy Gee as Nathan Nails’ girlfriend, Frank Coughlan Jr. as the young Powers, Frankie Darro as the young Doyle, Beryl Mercer as Powers’ mother, Mae Clarke as Powers’ first girlfriend Kitty, and Murray Kinnel as Powers and Doyle’s first boss in the hood Putty Nose. Robert O’Connor is superb as Paddy Ryan as a boss for Powers and Doyle who treats them like his children as well as be someone that is rational as he is aware of the intensity of the gang wars that is happening. Leslie Fenton is fantastic as Nathan Nails as a fellow gangster whom Powers and Doyle would befriend as he would get them some connections as well as some influence for them as well as for Paddy Ryan. Joan Blondell is excellent as Doyle’s girlfriend/future wife Mamie who would help and support Doyle at home while also being the one person to give Doyle stability despite his criminal activities.
Jean Harlow is brilliant in a small role as Powers’ second girlfriend Gwen Allen whom he would meet while driving with Doyle and later become someone that loves the lifestyle as well as giving him an idea of a future. Donald Cook is amazing as Powers’ older brother Mike who is a straitlaced man who is not fond of his brother’s criminal activities as well as lying to their mother where he is later forced to realize his own faults and the danger that his brother is in. Edward Woods is great as Powers’ friend Matt Doyle as a man who knows what he wants while is more low-key in his pursuits where he wants to make money to have a good life for himself and Mamie. Finally, there’s James Cagney in a tremendous performance as Tom Powers as this young gangster who likes to live the life of a criminal with all its rewards where Cagney displays charisma in every moment as he brings an energy that is insatiable to watch. Even as he knows he is a flawed man and does not apologize for it while is also someone that any crime boss or friend can count on as it is one of Cagney’s finest performances.
The Public Enemy is a phenomenal film by William A. Wellman that features an iconic performance from James Cagney. Along with its supporting cast, story of ambition and danger, its gripping presentation, and a fun music soundtrack. It is a pre-Code gangster film that is quite daring for its time in its presentation of violence as well as its approach in not glamorizing a world that is dark for its time. In the end, The Public Enemy is a spectacular film by William A. Wellman.
© thevoid99 2025
The film revolves around a carny who joins a carnival where he learns about a performance where he can know things as he falls for another performer where they create an act that gets the attention of a psychiatrist who would play into his downfall. It is a film that explores a man wanting to scheme his way into getting riches through the world of carnivals where he would play a part in helping a performer following an unfortunate event while falling for another performer whom he would help. Jules Furthman’s screenplay is straightforward in its narrative yet it is more about the schemes and journey of its protagonist Stanton “Stan” Carlisle (Tyrone Power) who is first seen as a carnival barker as he looks around where he notices an act performed by Zeena (Joan Blondell) who has the mental ability to know what is on that person’s mind as it is an act that she perfected with her alcoholic husband Pete (Ian Keith).
Stan befriends and woos Zeena but also notices that Pete is becoming unreliable where Stan would take over for Pete as he would use Zeena’s code and methods for his own show with another carnival performer in Molly (Coleen Gray). Upon taking his act with Molly to the cities and the big time, Stan becomes successful but he also gets the attention of the renowned psychiatrist in Lilith Ritter (Helen Walker) who decides to work with Stan based on recordings of her sessions as part of a bigger scheme that Molly doesn’t approve of. Even as it would play into the idea of faith and those who are ravaged in grief where the script play into the morals of trying to manipulate people with knowledge as it would play into Stan’s own downfall.
Edmund Goulding’s direction does have some style in some of the imagery and compositions that he creates from the craziness of the carnival circuits to the lavish world of the cities. Shot largely on location in California with a few bits in Chicago, Goulding creates a film that play into the contrasting world of the carnivals and the more high-class shows that Stan would play to a posh crowd. There are wide shots to play into the locations and places that the characters are where Goulding knows where to place the camera to get a look into what someone in the audience is seeing or an incident that Stan is witnessing. There are also medium shots and close-ups that play into some of the conversations including moments of Stan trying to flirt with a woman or moments that are dramatic as it play into some of the suspense in how Stan deals with his schemes and trying to manipulate people claiming he knows something about them as much of it is a guess. Goulding’s direction also play up this air of style in the way he play into presentation of the circus for some of the scenes at night such as the scene where Stan bullshits a local sheriff who was about to arrest Molly for indecent exposure.
Goulding’s direction would become stylized when Stan meets Lilith as she would take part in a scheme as a way to make money but also push Stan to his limits. Notably in a scene involving a man in a skeptic in Ezra Grindle (Taylor Holmes) following a performance where Molly is reluctantly involved as it is a key moment that begins the film’s third act. It would push the limits of what is moral and immoral as Stan is an immoral figure of sorts but even he would have his limits as he definitely found a match in Lilith who proves to be far more immoral as well as someone who is smarter than Stan in this idea of human nature. Overall, Goulding crafts an intoxicating yet eerie film about a carny who schemes is way to stardom and success only to meet his match in a devilish shrink.
Cinematographer Lee Garmes does incredible work with the film’s black-and-white cinematography with its stylish usage of shadows and light for some of the exterior scenes at night in the circus along with some vibrant lighting for the interior scenes in some of the posh shows that Stan and Molly perform at. Editor Barbara MacLean does excellent work with the editing as it is straightforward with some rhythmic cuts for some of the film’s dramatic and suspenseful moments. Art directors J. Russell Spencer and Lyle Wheeler, with set decorator Thomas Little, do amazing work with the look of the circus sets as well as the posh places and such that Stan and Molly would be in along with Lilith’s home apartment.
Costume designer Bonnie Cashin does fantastic work with the design of the costumes in the clothes that Zeena and Molly wear in their performances along with the stylish clothes of Lilith as well as the tuxedo that Stan wears in his performances. The sound work of Roger Heman Sr. and E. Clayton Ward do superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the carnivals with its crowd and such to the eerie and quiet moment during the scene where Stan tries to scheme Grindle. The film’s music by Cyril Mockridge is wonderful for its orchestral score that ranges from soaring and intense to play into the suspense as well as some somber pieces for the dramatic moments.
The film’s marvelous ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from Julia Dean as an old woman who is enchanted by Stan, James Burke as a sheriff, and Roy Roberts as a carnival owner late in the film. Ian Keith is terrific as Zeena’s alcoholic husband Pete as a man who helped perfect Zeena’s act but is burned out while Mike Mazurki is superb as Bruno as a carnival performer who is protective of everyone as he doesn’t trust Stan. Taylor Holmes is fantastic as Ezra Grindle as a posh friend of Lilith who is skeptical of Stan’s gifts while is also someone who is still dealing with his own crises of faith. Helen Walker is excellent as Lilith Ritter as a psychiatrist who is intrigued by Stan’s performances as she decides to take part in his scheme where Blondell displays a lot of charm to a woman who is truly a cunning and devious figure who is smarter than Stan.
Coleen Gray is brilliant as Molly as a young performer who joins Stan in his act while she is someone who is also a moral compass as she becomes troubled by his schemes as she felt that their act owes a lot to what Zeena has done. Joan Blondell is amazing as Zeena as a performer who has mastered the gift of manipulation in knowing people’s secrets while is also protective of her craft while lamenting over her husband’s issues. Finally, there’s Tyrone Power in a phenomenal performance as Stanton “Stan” Carlisle as a carny who is eager to make some big cash and do more as he charms his way to get what he wants as well as create the ultimate show only to later cope with guilt and the fact that he has gone too far in his schemes as it is a dark yet charismatic performance from Power in one of his career-defining performances.
Nightmare Alley is a sensational film from Edmund Goulding that features a great leading performance from Tyrone Power. Along with its ensemble cast, dazzling visuals, themes of morality and the power of knowledge to manipulate, and its sumptuous music score. It is a film noir suspense-drama that play into the fallacies of ambition as well as a man trying to manipulate those only to meet his match in someone far more immoral. In the end, Nightmare Alley is a spectacular film from Edmund Goulding.
Related: Nightmare Alley (2021 film)
Edmund Goulding Films: (Sun-Up) – (Sally, Irene and Mary) – (Paris (1926 film)) – (Women Love Diamonds) – (Love (1927 film)) – (The Trespasser) – (The Devil’s Holiday) – (Reaching for the Moon) – (Grand Hotel) – (Blondie of the Follies) – (Riptide) – (The Flame Within) – (That Certain Woman) – (White Banners) – (The Dawn Patrol) – (Dark Victory) – (The Old Maid) – (We Are Not Alone (1939 film)) – (‘Til We Meet Again) – (The Great Lie) – (Forever and a Day) – (The Constant Nymph) – (Claudia (1943 film)) – (Of Human Bondage) – (The Razor’s Edge (1946 film)) – (Everybody Does It) – (Mister 880) – (We’re Not Married!) – (Down Among the Sheltering Palms) – (Teenage Rebel) – (Mardi Gras)
© thevoid99 2021
