There's nothing hugely significant going on in this film, but it's a fun vehicle for James Cagney has him as a former hood who decides to "go straight" by working as a photographer for a sleazy tabloid. His boss, Ralph Bellamy, has a drinking problem and a woman problem (Alice White). He falls in love with a journalism student (Patricia Ellis), whose father happens to be the cop who sent him up the river to Sing Sing. After embarrassing the father (Robert Emmett O'Connor) by snatching a picture of an execution, Cagney and Bellamy must figure out a way to get back in his good graces and get hired at a real paper.Ellis is lovely, Cagney is full of fire, and although there's a few too many scenes of Cagney pushing White around, on the whole I thought it was a fun film with a lot of particularly amusing 1930s "slice of life" moments. Cagney plays his iconic character, a tough guy willing to compromise himself morally to get ahead, but this time he's less self-destructive and more the all-American go-getter. Very funny cameo with Sterling Holloway (as a nerdy journalism student), lots of interesting characterizations from lesser known performers like Ralf Harolde, who plays a "dirty rat" willing to expose his wife and children to danger to save himself. By no means a major classic, but will be a lot of fun for Cagney's fans.

How anyone can give this move less than 10 stars is beyond me. This movie has everything you could possibly ask for in a pre-code classic. Part gangster movie. Part prison movie. Part newspaper movie. Lots of great fast talking banter. An electric chair scene – the condemned a woman no less. Car chases. Car crashes. Machine guns. Children dodging bullets. Jealousy, rage, retribution. And dames-a-plenty (more on that later).Jimmy Cagney is at his absolute best as an ex-con who tries to go straight as a newspaper photographer at a less than reputable daily rag. Although he officially quit the old gang, Cagney uses his criminal instincts to get the shot (photo that is) that nobody else seems to be able to get. In the meantime, he falls for cute-as-a-button college girl, Patricia Ellis, whose father is a policeman – the same policeman that previously put Jimmy away for three years. No problem, Cagney gets Dad promoted to Captain and, temporarily at least, all is good.The women in this picture (except for good girl Ellis) throw themselves at Cagney with reckless abandon and with absolutely one thing on their mind. Nobody even tries to pretend otherwise. Alice White, who plays one of Cagney's colleagues at the paper, is incredible as one of Cagney's many seductresses. She has to be seen to be believed. Alice Jans, an old girlfriend from Cagney's mob days, is another beast. Cagney literally carries her into the bedroom (she practically orders him to do so), until Cagney finally beats it.To say this move was racy for 1933 is an understatement. Heck, it's racy for 2011! A must see.

The entire premise of "Picture Snatcher" is pretty weak, but put Jimmy Cagney in the lead role and you have the makings of an entertaining flick. Cagney shows all the energy and grit that made him a star as early as the 1930's, and here he's top billed as a former mobster going straight as of all things, a tabloid photographer and reporter for "Graphic News", described by journalism student Sterling Holloway as a 'filthy blot on American writing'. That pretty much sums it up, as Danny Kean (Cagney) uses all the street smarts and professional contacts he can muster to get the latest scoop.Before I ever saw the picture, I wondered what the term 'picture snatcher' might mean, and I guess I was pretty close. The story makes it clear that the job had to do with getting photos of down and out people who can't fight back, and in that regard, Cagney's character is a whiz. His very first job involved stealing a wedding picture of a couple that made front page news when the bride was caught cheating by her fireman husband. Stories like that wouldn't even raise an eyebrow today, but it sure looked sensational back in the day. We've come quite a way in seventy plus years.You know, I was curious about that invitation to an execution angle that revolved around the death of an inmate at the State Prison at Ossining, New York. The letter Danny Kean steals from a fellow reporter mentioned 'Sing Sing' by name in the letterhead; I wonder if that was for real. New Yorkers like myself, especially those from Westchester County will have fun with the place names and street addresses mentioned in the story. The harder part is trying to visualize them as they might have been back in the Thirties.It was way back in 1931's "Public Enemy" that Cagney gained notoriety for that grapefruit smackeroo in the kisser against Mae Clark. If anything, he's even rougher here sending Alice White flying into a chair using her face as a launch pad, and knocking her out and flipping her into the back seat of a car when his 'real' girlfriend (Patricia Ellis) approaches. Then of course there's all the sexual innuendo and banter that's strictly pre-code; how about "Keep in step, bedroom eyes". I had to rewind that one to be sure I heard it right.All in all, the whole tenor of the story is pretty unrealistic, even if you get past the part where Danny tells his mob he's going legit. But even so, it's vintage Cagney and that's good for something. Without him, the picture wouldn't even garner enough IMDb votes to give it much more than a five rating, but put the wise cracking hoofer in the lead and that's good enough for bonus points!

Frantic, fast-paced film of ex-con Cagney getting a job at a local scandal sheet working for Bellamy and producing exclusive photographs for the paper. First he poses as an insurance adjuster to steal a photo, then through chicanery he manages to obtain a forbidden photo of a woman in the electric chair. Satisfying story conclusion has Cagney getting the girl and Bellamy playing the chump--again.This film moves like lightning, guided along by Cagney's seemingly inexhaustible energy. Lots of snappy dialog, great acting, and fine direction make this quite a little gem. Great 1930s feel, and watch quickly for Sterling Holloway (wearing outrageous glasses!) as a journalism student. Highly recommended.