1949
Directed by Raoul Walsh
This is probably the most violent film on the list so far. I suppose that they got away with it because bad guys get their comeuppance. Still, I was shocked; I mean, a man does gets his face steamed off.
This film is about Cody Jarrett who has some serious mommy issues, as psychopaths usually do. He does psychotic things, gets put in jail, breaks out, and then proceeds to do more psychotic things.
We haven't seen a good gangster film in awhile and this brought me back to the glory days, in the early thirties, where we had one every five movies. Besides the sheer shock value, this is actually a really good movie; exciting to the end with really excellent lines. Just goes to show that you don't have to watch a Scorsese movie to have a bad guy blood bath.
RATING: *****
Interesting Facts:
The bizarre relationship between Cody and his mother was based on the relationship that bank robber Kate Barker had with her sons.
Ranked #4 in AFI's top 10 gangster films.
