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James Cagney - The Signature Collection : Angels With Dirty Faces / Public Enemy / Roaring Twenties / White Heat (4 Disc Box Set) [1931]


RRP: £39.99
Our Price: £10.98 (subject to change)

Four of Cagney's best = great value!
Review date: 2008-11-18 Rating: 10 out of 10

This has my two favourite Cagney movies and is worth buying just for those two (White Heat,Roaring Twenties). Throw in the other two and it's a steal.

If you like Cagney, old noir, gangster movies in general of just like old films then this is a terrific purchase. It's a proper set as well, with each DVD in its own case and not some cheap fold out sleeve.

Excellent films.

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Reviews


A great introduction to the world of James Cagney.
Review date: 2008-05-19 Rating: 10 out of 10

When I first bought this box set I hadn't ever seen any of James Cagney's films. What made me want this box set then? Well, I'm a fan of Martin Scorsese's movies and I saw in some interview with him that two of his favourite movies were 'White Heat' and 'Angels With Dirty Faces'. So, I figured they're worth checking out.

So that leads me to amazon.co.uk were I found both of the films in the same box set. Perfect.

I can say I enjoyed all the movies quite a lot. I watched a movie a day for four days in a row. Starting with the earliest (The Public Enemy) to the most recent (White Heat).

The Public Enemy - This was probably my favourite. Stylish and very well shot. I was surprised with it being made in 1931. I think as of yet this is the oldest movie I have seen. SO, I was expecting it to be terrible and look just the same. I was wrong and happy to be. The movie is worth seeing just for the grapefruit scene. Absolutely hilarious.

Angels with Dirty Faces - Very good film with a great ending. Still has me thinking about that one. Another film which was well shot, again to my surprise. You'd think I'd have learnt by now. The only bad thing I could say about this film was that the "dead end kids" were quite annoying.

The Roaring Twenties - Another good one. I enjoyed this one more than Angels With Dirty Faces.

White Heat - Probably the most classic and well known film of the bunch. The film that contains the "Made it ma, top of the world!" line. Strange that I had always known this line or some variation of it yet never seen the movie or heard of it. Possibly know it from Delboys impression on Only Fools and Horses. I think that this may be the case for a lot of people also. Strangely enough, with this film probably being the most well known it was my least favourite.

All the movies were enjoyable and I'm definitely happy I bought this box set. My only problem was, and this may be my problem alone. But all the films seemed to blend into each other. I look back and find myself getting confused about which scenes were in which movies. I find the stories and characters bleeding into one another. I would guess though that this is my problem because I watched them all a day after each other and I'm not that used to watching movies that are this old. So I'll have to go back and watch them again.

About this box set, the dvd's are in normal size boxes and can be taken out and say put in a dvd stand for example. Which is what I've done. Each DVD box is individual and each dvd has special features including interviews with Martin Scorsese....

All in all a great box set and some absolutely wonderful movies. A great place to start in James Cagney's career.

Cagney, Top of the World
Review date: 2008-03-03 Rating: 10 out of 10

Rarely can an actor have merited the accolade "star" more than Jimmy Cagney. He brought to the screen a consistencey of performance which is unequalled to this day. His versatility ranged from song and dance (Yankee Doodle Dandy)through comedy (The Strawberry Blonde) to serious bio pics (Man of a Thousand Faces). Although it is as a screen tough guy he is perhaps best remembered.

This collection features probably his four finest perfomances as the ultimate gangster of the american screen.

In "Public Enemy" he gives a touching portrayal of the kid from a good background gone wrong who pays the ultimate price for aspiring to the wild side of the law.

"The Roaring Twenties" is yet again another moralistic tale with a social conscience about prohibition era America. Cagney plays the returning dough boy who finds not a hero's welcome but rather doors being closed in his face. Out of desperation he resorts to boot legging with savage consequences.

Cagney's performance as Rocky Sullivan in "Angels with Dirty Faces" is a wonderful dichotomy of venom from a soft heart. Pat O' Brien's final exhortation to "pray for a boy who couldn't run as fast as I could" encapsulates the whole theme of the environmental determinism on the growing child. Cagney's final scene in the gas chamber must rank amongst the silver screens finest moments.

Finally, in "White Heat" Cagney surely brings to the screen the most frightening human being ever in the guise of mother fixated, psychotic gangster Cody Jarret.This is a towering performance which evokes a real sense of fear as the audience empathises with everyone who crosses Cody's path. The final scene atop the blazing gas tanks is legendary as Cagney screams his final epitaph "Made it Ma, top of the world"

This collection represents wonderful entertainment from a true movie great. If you are not familiar with Cagney's work and believe he can be stereotyped as the one dimensional character who's best line is "you dirty rat", why not educate yourself and experience the depth and intensity of perfomance which was unique to-Jimmy Cagney

Top Class Cagney!
Review date: 2007-10-09 Rating: 10 out of 10

This boxed set contains four of James Cagney's best films. They are all superb, with great stories and strong performances. Each is a classic in its own right. It's nice to see a set that is not padded out with work of lesser quality. This is a must buy for all Cagney (and gangster film) fans.

box sets dont get much better than this!!!!
Review date: 2007-07-30 Rating: 10 out of 10

cinemas greatest ever tough guy,in all four of his classic gangster movies.to any fan of james cagney,or to anyone who enjoys classic movies,this box set is about as good as it gets.james cagney had an energy,charisma and presence that was hard to match-in any cinematic era.each of the four films is a five star classic on its own,so to get all four in one great box set makes this a great addition to anyones dvd collection!

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Humphrey Bogart
James Cagney

Creators:
James Cagney (Primary Contributor)
Humphrey Bogart (Primary Contributor)

Recording label: Warner
Manufacturer: Warner
EAN: 7321900686457
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 4
Format: Black & White, PAL,
Release date: 2006-06-19
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2

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