Blonde Crazy

source: Blonde Crazy

Trailer—Blonde Crazy

Blonde Crazy

This here flick is a real gas. Crackerjack fun and stands the test of time. Imagine Cagney and Blondell playing off each other these days when the implied is used with a hammer. These guys aim to rattle the teeth with sharpness not sledgehammer subtlety which is all writers can afford these days. The bath tub gag is typical. Swing that door Jimmy boy. The cons are bad as cons go and I bet some artists are still trying them on today just in a more sophisticated way. Nice to see a young Ray Milland before the eyes popped. I wish I had me a dame like Blondell....

Bert Harris (James Cagney) is a hotel bellhop with all the hookups. Ann Roberts (Joan Blondell) arrives for a maid job. Bert is taken with the blonde and gets her the desired linen job. She's initially leery of the smooth operator but eventually, she joins his schemes. This is a pre-Code crime romance. It's famous for Cagney's line "That dirty, double-crossin' rat!" although his Taxi line may have a slightly better phrasing. The movie is good in the hotel section when Bert and Ann are circling each other. Once they separate, the story loses a bit of steam. In addition, the romance struggles without time together for the two leads. This is good Cagney.

this movie positively crackles with the banter and the chemistry between cutie-pie joan--a woman that i've tried to emulate all my life, as should all good girls--and quick on his feet, handsome jimmy. i love these two as a couple no matter what they're in together and in this film they're particularly good. the dialogue is the kind that bubbles like good champagne, the gowns are exquisite, and there's even a touch of pathos when you realize that the conman is getting conned himself. towards the end the film takes a somewhat scary turn and i felt myself getting pretty nervous that we weren't going to have a happy ending, but all's well that ends well in the movies, at least in this picture. a forgotten gem that shines like the diamonds you know bert wants to shower his beloved anne with. watch this one, you'll love every second of it.

I saw this movie a couple of months ago on Turner Classic Movies. I'm a sophomore in high school, so I wasn't really into the historical value of the film or anything. I just really enjoyed it. It's basically about this guy(James Cagney), and his chick friend who team up to con people. They're really good at it, but one day they get conned themselves. The plot unravels from there. The romance is so sweet and sad. They both want each other, but they end up with other people. The characters are well developed and interesting. The acting is wonderful on everyone's part. It's just an all-around great film. Oh, and did I mention James Cagney is beautiful...

"Blonde Crazy" was one of the first films James Cagney made after becoming a big star. The plot is pretty straightforward but Cagney and Joan Blondell push this film well above being average with their on-screen chemistry. They play a couple of hustlers who circulate amongst the more wealthy clientèle in various hotels. At one stage, both the leads are on the receiving end of a notorious card shark who steals their ill gotten gains. The way Cagney and Blondell exact their revenge is brilliant! Things get a bit more complicated between the two leads in the latter half of the film. Very entertaining.

Pre-Coder starring James Cagney as a hotel bellboy with a knack for conning people who falls for Joan Blondell and gets more than his fair share of trouble for it. Mixed bag but enjoyable enough. Jimmy's the main reason to recommend this one. He's delightfully cocky and energizes every scene. The way he moves and talks throughout the picture is fascinating to watch. He was still relatively new to movies but you would never know it by how confident his performance is here. Starts out like a comedy but turns more serious when Louis Calhern and Ray Milland enter the picture. It's not quite as enjoyable from that point on.

This is the kind of film the Hays Office was established to prevent. Jimmy Cagney as a charming, likable con man. Adorable Joan Blondell in the bathtub. Glamourization of (still illegal) alcohol. Fraud, theft and assault all served up cool and bubbly as champagne. I loved it! If you ever wondered why Cagney became such a big star, just watch him in this early effort. He was truly one of the most magnetic personalities of early Hollywood. Turner Classic Movies print in pretty good shape, which can't be said of a lot of films of this vintage. Watch, enjoy!