"Angels With Dirty Faces" 1938 review! Whaddya hear, whaddya say?

Genre: Crime, Drama, Film-Noir, Gangster
Starring: James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, Humphrey Bogart, Ann Sheridan, George Bancroft, Billy Halop, Bobby Jordan, Leo Gorcey, Frankie Burke, William Tracy, Gabriel Dell, Huntz Hall, Bernard Punsly.
Year Of Release: 1938
Certificate: PG (UK)
Runtime: 97 minutes
Director: Michael Curtiz

Synopsis: A priest tries to stop a gangster from corrupting a group of street kids. IMDB

I remember the first time I seen this film, I was 13 and my Religious Education teacher in school made up watch it, well we ended up watching the first 40 minutes then he never mentioned it again. I still to this day do not have a single clue as to why he made us watch it, he was an odd fellow to say the least. After he never put it back on for us I decided to rent it to finally watch the whole thing this was when I was about 16/17, and it is safe to say this is one of the movies that made me fall in love with movies to this day!

Gangster films flew to the top of the watch lists during the great depression era in America, there was so many released during the 1930's it was obvious that they would be the more favoured films. James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson paved the for gangsters on the big screen. Cagney was a perfect choice to play Rocky Sullivan, he had the swagger of a gangster, the fast talking of a con man, had unbelievable comic timing along with these great traits he was also an intense actor with real raw talent.

In my honest opinion this is one of the greatest Gangster flicks of all time, and I genuinely think people will be saying that in another three quarters of a century!

Rocky Sullivan and Jerry Connelly played by Frankie Burke and William Tracy respectively are a pair of New Yorker youths who grew up on the very poor Lower East Side end up caught up in the robbery on a railroad car (a railway carriage to us Brits ha). Jerry escapes without any difficulty I mean boom this kid is gone, Rocky on the other hand is not as lucky. Staying true to his tough upbringing Rocky upholds his "code of silence", refusing to snitch on the identity of his accomplice which leaves Rocky stuck in a reformatory before he will be bumped into a full prison.

After realising how bad Rockys fate actually is, Jerry turns his life around and becomes a man of the cloth. After many years pass, Rocky returns to his old neighbourhood now being played by Cagney he looks up his old friend Jerry to find out he is no Father Jerry (Pat O'Brien) whom has taken in on himself to look after a rag tag bunch of boys played by Billy Halop, Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell who would all go to become The Dead End Kids. The boys are overjoyed that they get to meet a big-time gangster like Rocky, they pretty much worship the ground he walks on, much to the disappointment of Father Jerry who is trying to guard the boys from a life of crime.

Cagney pays a call to his Lawyer, played by Humphrey Bogart who has been keeping $100,000 (which according to DollarTimes is roughly $1.6 million today) stashed away for him. He meets racketeering boss Mac Keefer (George Bancroft), both of whom promise to cut Rocky in on a highly lucrative operations, however this is where we hit a twist they are plotting to have him whacked (MY WHOLE LIFE have I wanted to use that phrase and it too actually work, and now I think it fits! ha) Father Jerry runs a campaign over the radio and newspaper against Rocky and his partners, with Rockys blessing that is. Laury by now played by the beautiful Ann Sheridan has fallen in love with Rocky.

When Rocky learns of the plot to kill Father Jerry due to his smear campaign, Rocky kills both men which results in him being caught in a shoot-out with the police in a warehouse. His trial is quick and he is sentenced to death, before Rocky is about to be executed Father Jerry turns up asking for possibly the BIGGEST favour in movie history. He wants Rocky to die like a coward so the boys will go on the straight and narrow, Rocky refuses, however as he is being put to death Rocky suddenly breaks down an loses it crying and pleading for his life!

The paper the next runs the story "ROCKY DIES YELLOW!" to help the boys cement the belief that he well and truly is coward.

So overall this movie is action filled, full of laughs, full of great performances all across the board giving us viewers an unbelievable movie experience! A little fact I learnt while writing this review is that during the warehouse scene, LIVE AMMO was used, how on earth did they get away with that ha. All these parts come together cultivating in what is one of the greatest movies of all time! This will be one of the easiest ratings that I will give to a film, if I could go any higher than 10 I would! "Whaddya hear, whaddya say?"

10/10

"Sin City: A Dame To Kill For" pushed back

"Sin City: A Dame To Kill For" has took a huge blow this week, the studio has took the films release date back nearly a whole year. The film was set to release this October but has been pushed to November, 2014.

The film will be releasing the same two week period as "Guardians Of The Galaxy", Universals "Dracula" and even "The Expendables 3" too. I've got a feeling the film will be moved again and will be keeping my eyes open an letting you guys know the second I hear anything.

Top 10 films of 2012

I guess this is going to be a little bit more than just a "Top 10" list, I'm going to make it into my own personal "Academy Awards" which I was going to Christen "The Chrissy's" until I realised that sounds like a name for a group of female girls with similar names ha ha, I decided to go with "The WAFA's" The Wilson Appreciation of Film Awards, not very catchy I know but work with what you got I guess.

10 - "Red Dawn"

"A group of teenagers look to save their town from an invasion of North Korean soldiers."

 9 - "The Dark Knight Rises"

"Eight years on, a new evil rises from where the Batman and Commissioner Gordon tried to bury it, causing the Batman to resurface and fight to protect Gotham City... the very city which brands him an enemy."

 

8 - "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter"

"Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, discovers vampires are planning to take over the United States. He makes it his mission to eliminate them."

7 - "Prometheus"

"A team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a journey to the darkest corners of the universe. There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race."

6 - "Skyfall"

"Bond's loyalty to M is tested when her past comes back to haunt her. Whilst MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost."

5 - "End Of Watch"

"Shot documentary-style, this film follows the daily grind of two young police officers in LA who are partners and friends, and what happens when they meet criminal forces greater than themselves."

4 - "Looper"

"In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent 30 years into the past, where a hired gun awaits. Someone like Joe, who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by transporting back Joe's future self."

3 - "The Avengers"

"Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. brings together a team of super humans to form The Avengers to help save the Earth from Loki and his army."

2 - "Chronicle"

"Whilst attending a party, three high school friends gain superpowers after making an incredible discovery underground. Soon, though, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bond tested as they embrace their darker sides."

1 - "Lawless"

"Set in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a bootlegging gang is threatened by a new deputy and other authorities who want a cut of their profits."

Not one Comedy film made the list, "Ted" was pretty close but there wasn't even another Comedy that would make my Top 25 probably even Top 50 of the year. Hollywood seems to have lost their talent for making films that make me laugh, I watched "Goon" don't think I laughed once, same goes for "Wanderlust" or "Bachelorette", however I had a giggle or two at "The Campaign" scene when they are eating their dinner an confessing their sins.

Best Film Award - "Lawless"

Has to go to "Lawless" in my opinion it was a much better film than anything released last year, yeah "The Avengers" was incredible but we all expected an incredible film give me a quarter of a Billion dollars and a comic series that spans over 5 decades an I could make a pretty good film, not that I am trying to take anything away from Wheddon.

Best Director Award - "Josh Trank"

This decision had me stumped for a little while, should it go to Wheddon a man I have been an admirer of for a long time who made two pretty good films in "The Avengers" and "The Cabin In The Woods". However Josh Trank has just came on the scene an his first feature film was "Chronicle" one of the better Science Fiction films in recent years. He is also the youngest first time director to have their film go number one in the Box Office.

Overachiever Award - "Chronicle"

"Chronicle" I was expecting a pretty good film, but what we got was a pretty great film. After watching this film I put it straight into my personal top 100, nearer the top 10 mark than most films get.

Best Performances Male - Shia LaBeouf

Shia LaBeouf in "Lawless".

Best Performance Female - Judi Dench

Judi Dench in "Skyfall".

Best Supporting Performance Male - Dane DeHaan

Dane DeHaan in "Lawless".

Best Supporting Performance Female - Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Mary Elizabeth Winstea in "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter".

Best Special Effects

Another hard choice, it fell down to a toss up between "The Avengers" and "Prometheus". I ultimately decided to go with "Prometheus"

Best Original Screenplay - "Cabin In The Woods"

"Cabin In The Woods".

Best Adapted Screenplay - "Lawless"

"Lawless".

Worst

5 - Battleship

"A fleet of ships is forced to do battle with an armada of unknown origins in order to discover and thwart their destructive goals."

4 - Chernobyl Diaries

"Six tourists hire an extreme tour guide who takes them to the abandoned city Pripyat, the former home to the workers of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. During their exploration, they soon discover they are not alone."

 3 - Silent House

"Trapped inside her family's lakeside retreat, a young woman finds she is unable to contact the outside world as events become increasingly ominous in and around the house."

2 - The Bourne Legacy

"An expansion of the universe from Robert Ludlum's novels, centered on a new hero whose stakes have been triggered by the events of the previous three films."

 

Films I Missed

Unfortunately, there is a quite a few films I missed last year. I will be catching up on these films over the next few weeks and months. That is why they are not included in my list, here they are;
"Zero Dark Thirty",
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey",
"The Raid",
"Lincoln",
"Silver Linings Playbook",
"Les Mis",
"Argo".

100 Movie Challenge

So last night I started my "100 Movie Challenge", over the course of the next year I am going to try and watch at least 100 movies that I haven't previously seen before. If you guys want to recommend some films for me to watch email me at ChrisMovieCorner@gmail.com I am open to all suggestions. So back to last night, well I started off with "Lawless" then I watched "In Time" today I am watching "K-Pax" with Kevin Spacey. After watching each film I will attempt to do a review of the film, something I haven't personally done yet.

New logo...

A good friend of mine designed a logo/banner for our site, here it is below.

I love it! Just need to work out how to set it up perfectly on our site, I am no good when it comes to the HTML coding an stuff like that. So might take me a few days before it is set up perfectly. Hope you guys and girls like it.

Happy Birthday to...

ME! Well the blog ha ha. It's been a year since I started this blog, an I just wanted to say thank you to everybody who visits my site. I would never have guessed that when I started this I would have nearly 14,000 hits and reach countries like Russia, Australia, Egypt and even more obscure places like Taiwan, Algeria and Philippines.

Here's to another great year in the movie world, look out for some BIG movies coming soon. I also hope you keep coming back here for your movie updates, if the popularity continues I might move to a proper website an start doing some giveaways an stuff! An if you don't return then "Frankly, my dear. I don't give a damn" but "Go ahead, make my day" ha ha.

"Who Framed Roger Rabbit 3D" possible sequel???

"Who Framed Roger Rabbit" was one of my favourite films growing up, I must have seen it about 50 times growing up. The film also has great cinematic acclaim, reviews and a pretty nice box office record. The film was funny, witty and appealed to both children and adults alike, it is very surprising that there isn't already a sequel.

"Zemeckis has always been on board for a sequel, but the project has been stuck in development hell for over a decade. Meanwhile, Hoskins announced this August (2012) that he is to retire from acting after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
However, Zemeckis has yet to give up hope on Who Framed Rabbit 2. Talking to Showbiz411.com at the New York Film Festival on Sunday (October 14), he revealed that he has a script ready.
After expressing sadness about Hoskins’ retirement, the director said: “I have a script at Disney, and we’re just waiting for all the executive changes to settle down there.”
Meanwhile, Disney is planning a 3D re-release of the original Who Framed Roger Rabbit next November (2013) to mark the film’s 25th anniversary."

Going to be 100% not really interested at all in a 3D release, but the idea of a possible sequel catches my attention. I've been hearing/reading rumours of a sequel for a few years now, lets hope it doesn't drag out.