Two movies dealing with The Barbary Coast and vigilantes were made in 1935. The Barbary Coast with Edward G: Robinson and Frisco Kid with James Cagney. Despite the fact that Howard Hawks ( one of the Best Directors in History) did the Robinson movie and Lloyd Bacon the Cagney movie, the Cagney film is the better choice. Cagney is well Cagney, playing Bat Morgan a sailor who works his way to the top in San Francisco because of his fists ( a great fight between him and hook armed Shanghai Duck ( perennial villain Fred Kohler)), guile and brains. He is given a love interest in Jean Barrat ( Margaret Lindsay) who loves Bat despite the fact she is a classy lady newspaper woman and he is an anti-hero from the wrong side of the tracks. She is also much better ( looks and acting) then the female lead Mary "Swan" Rutledge ( Miriam Hopkins) in The Barbary Coast. Does Cagney win? Yes he does because he actually saves lives and because of the intervention of Jean ( a very different and more realistic fate then that of Robinson in The Barbary Coast). How does he succeed? Seeing that and of course, the presence of Cagney is why you watch. 9/10 stars ( ps. Compared to 7/10 compared to The Barbary Coast). Although both Frisco Kid and The Barbary Coast are worth watching, when it comes to Cagney versus Robinson, choose Cagney ( and especially Lindsay over Hopkins).
Review of Frisco Kid
