SimonJack For as big a star as James Cagney was in his day, he is one of the least remembered or watched in the 21st century. That's because the type of films he made were so set in their time and not of enduring entertainment. Cagney was a very talented actor who could sing and dance as well. He made some very good movies, a few of which carry on with audiences. But for the most part, the bulk of his tough-guy criminal and convict character films are a thing of the past. That said, "Lady Killer" is something unique in that it has Cagney in that role but then transitioning to a guy who goes straight. Hollywood came calling, and his Dan Quigley soon makes his mark in films. Some of his former associates in crime catch up with him and try to use him to pull off jewel robberies of the famous of Hollywood. Douglass Dumbrille is Spade Maddock, whom Dan eventually helps bring down. Another different aspect of this Cagney character is that he didn't go for killing, which some of his cohorts didn't worry about. In many of his gangster films, he portrayed a mad or crazed tough guy who would just as soon shoot somebody as argue with them. Some others of the cast here are good as well. This film doesn't have particularly good production qualities. Unlike the films with set stages that came across quite well, when Hollywood sent to the outdoors it was iffy in these early years. The problems with staging, shooting and editing really show up here in the car chase scenes. Overall, this is a light comedy crime film in which James Cagney is a good guy – well, better than most of the rest, at least.

Robert J. Maxwell Warner Brothers used to grind out these programmers with all the players, crew, writers, and directors under studio contract as if the films themselves were White Castle hamburgers, one after another, all the same except for a twist here, a variation there. This is a nearly perfect example.I don't know how many times I've seen clips of this movie in documentaries dealing with Warner Brothers or James Cagney's career. Here's Cagney being stopped by a bum on the streets of 1933 Los Angeles and asked for enough to buy a cup of coffee. Cagney slaps a bill into hand and barks, "Here! Now go buy yourself a PERKALATER!" Cagney dressed as an Indian riding a fake horse. Cagney, after having shoved a grapefruit in Mae Clark's face in a previous picture, dragging Clark by the hair through two rooms and kicking her in the behind when he throws her out. Cagney, having ridden a bouncing wooden horse for hours, is too sore to sit down, and when a passing woman asks how he feels, Cagney answer in Yiddish.The story begins in New York, with Cagney part of a gang of thieves. With the police closing in, the others betray Cagney and he finds himself alone and broke in Los Angeles. Then he's hired as an extra and has much more luck than I did, although I'm more handsome and by far the better performer. "Three bucks a day and a box lunch a horse wouldn't eat!" He wangles his way to stardom before his ex partners show up and begin hounding him. It ends in a car chase and shoot out.It's a 30s gangster movie -- and why not? It was the era of the "motorized bandits" -- Pretty Boy Floyd, Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde. It's Cagney at his most cocky and graceful. He spins around with a gun in one hand, the other hand dangling loosely at the wrist. He smiles, he sneers, he looks doubtful. He's kinetic all over. The very hairs on his head do a little toe dance.

AaronCapenBanner Roy Del Ruth directed this gangster comedy as Jimmy Cagney plays a recently fired movie usher named Dan, who ends up with criminals, learning their ways, but who takes the rap for one of their crimes, and goes on the run to Hollywood where he becomes a famous movie star, attracting the attentions of his old associates who want in on the action, or they'll expose him... Mae Clarke plays his love interest, and has an amusing scene that reminds you of the famous "grapefruit" sequence from "The Public Enemy". Good Cagney Performance, but film isn't particularly funny as comedy, and overly familiar as a gangster picture. Innocuous and mostly forgettable.

lastliberal When you think of James Cagney, you think of a gangster in films like The Public Enemy, where he smashed that grapefruit into Mae Clarke's face. But Cagney won his Oscar for Yankee Doodle Dandy. He also received nominations for Angels With Dirty Faces and Love Me or Leave Me. Here he shows just how far his range extends in a romantic comedy which also includes Mae Clarke in a bigger role.There is a lot of action in this 76 minute film. Cagney is a theater usher who gets fired and ends up following Mae as she is trolling for suckers to get fleeced by her partners in a card game. He joins the group and they pull more cons until a trigger happy gang member kills a maid. He and Mae head to Los Angeles, where he gets picked up for a series of bit parts because of his scruffy looks.One of the fascinating bits here is seeing how movies were made at the time. He hooks up with star Margaret Lindsay and uses his conning skills to make himself a star. (As an aside, Lindsey made 12 films that year, her second year as an actress.) Soon, Mae and the gang find him and they pick up where they left off. He tries to get them out of town, but they see dollars in LA. They hit Lindsey, who is his girlfriend, and he strikes back, but ends up back in jail. But, he ends up turning the tables at the end.Like I say, a lot of action for 76 minutes and Cagney really shows he can do romance, comedy, and gangster all in one film.