I have never seen "White Heat" which apparently is a precursor to this; but this movie seems to stand well enough on its own.Cagney, of course, makes the movie. At the end, where he is shot by one of his girl-friends (Holiday Carlton played by Barbara Payton), his face reacting to the shooting as he falls dead says it all about the movie. At the moment when Ralph Cotter (Cagney) is about to receive his wildest ambition he is killed. And shot to death with the oldest motive in the world--a woman scorned.That Cagney (Ralph Cotter) is a sociopathic killer goes without saying, he shoots in the back of the head his convict buddy; the story they hang around him is believable and works. There needs to be two women in Cotter's life in order for the denouement. The other woman, the lovely Helena Carter playing Margaret Dobson. (And again brings back that old bromide from Chekov--a gun visible in the first act, must go off by the last act.) And the director makes the movie work as it unfolds with one surprise after another.It wasn't just the story line that worked. The sense of cinéma vérité helps. That scene in the beginning where the prisoners are unlocked from the bed from that one ankle chain is chilling. The sense of total corruption in the city and its richest citizen, Margaret Dobson's father, Ezra Dobson--gives the film that sense of injustice that the convict knows so well. The convict got caught while lots of people--the cop, the mayor, the governor, the pillar of the community stink from corruption--but the convict is imprisoned. But worse, the convict who knows how to play people for his own benefit, as when he rejects a $25,000 check suspecting there is much more to be had. Not only smart but manipulative in that way a person can be who understands unspoken psychological nuances. But HE is in prison!That is what Cagney's acting conveys. Not just a sociopathic killer, but a killer who suspects that others would do what he did if they thought they could get away with it as Margaret Dobson does with her speeding.The movie works for all the reasons, not so obvious.

As far as early-1950's Crime/Thrillers go, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (KTG, for short) was definitely something of a major let-down.This film, which starred veteran actor James Cagney (who at 51 was clearly too old and too tired-looking for his part), had the distinctive feel of being a "quickie" written all over it.And, speaking about James Cagney, I think (in his latter years) that he made for a mighty poor leading man. And here in KTG the viewer was expected to believe that this 5' 6" pipsqueak was a real lady-killer who was able to juggle, not one, but 2 hot, young babes (who were both bitterly jealous of each other) at one time.I mean, c'mon, this "lover-boy" business was just too unconvincing for words, especially since Cagney's character was such an unlikable, little bully with a huge chip on his shoulder to begin with.KTG's story was primarily a courtroom drama where each of the characters got their chance to recall (in extended flashbacks) their involvement in a payroll caper. This predictable, little tale featured the usual line-up of crooked cops, slimy lawyers and, yes (get this!), even newlyweds who slept in separate beds.My advice would be to pass on this dud. With there obviously being so many superior films from that era to chose from, there's no point in one wasting their time watching something as mediocre as this.

This gangster movie opens in a court room where seven people including two police officers, a lawyer and a prison officer are on trial for murder or being accessories to murder; the prosecuting attorney explains that really there should be eight people on trial but the worst of the bunch isn't there. We then flash back to when the story really starts; with the Eighth Man, Ralph Cotter, in a prison farm. He isn't there long though; he escapes and is picked up by the sister of a man he was meant to escape with; she doesn't know it but he killed her brother during the escape.Once away from the prison he doesn't lay low, he robs a store, savagely beating the manager in the process. It looks like he will be quickly caught when the police turn up but it turns out they are as corrupt as he is. They take his cut of the proceeds and tell him to get out of town. He has other ideas and sets about blackmailing them by recording second meeting where he outlines another robbery. He sends one copy of the recording to his brother and plays another to the police; now it seems he can work with impunity so long as the cops get their cut. Things are complicated though as he gets involved with two women; the blonde who helped him get away from prison and a brunette who is the daughter of a wealthy and powerful man… she could be his salvation if he doesn't cross the wrong people.This less well known James Cagney film isn't up to the standards of his better known works like 'White Heat' and 'The Public Enemy' but it is still fairly entertaining. Cagney himself puts in a solid performance as Cotter; the sort of character he has played many times before. Barbara Payton was good enough as blonde Holiday Carleton and Helena Carter was delightful as brunette Margaret Dobson. The rest of the cast were pretty solid. The story was gripping even though anybody familiar with this sort of film will have guessed Cagney's fate long before it happens. For the most part I thought the film had aged well although the scene where Cagney and Helena Carter are shown in separate beds on their wedding night seemed rather silly… if rules of the time forbade them from sharing a bed on screen it would have been better to not show them in bed! Overall I'd say that while this might not be a classic fans of films of this era and particularly fans of Cagney are likely to enjoy it.

So you liked White Heat, with psychotic mamma's boy Cody Jarret going way over the top? Well, here's one just like it, only without any pretense at psychological probing of Cagney's character. Ralph Cotter is just plain evil, that's all there is to him. Unfortunately any comparison with White Heat shows up the deficiencies of this movie. There's simply no real reason to be all that interested in any of the characters. They rob and steal, scheme and cheat, but there's no real drive to their actions. You keep wondering why you should spend any time with these nasty people; even Cagney lacks that vicious charm he usually gives to these gangster roles.If you can watch Cagney do anything you may like this movie, for me it held too little appeal.