City For Conquest (1940) :
Brief Review -
James Cagney's supremacy in Anatole Litvak's extremely engrossing and engaging epic Drama on New York City. A roadside fella gives a philosophical speech on the city while walking down the streets and witnessing all the activities. What a nostalgia! One of the best beginnings for any movies of the 1940s, I must say. Two powerful quotes he says are "Because I got clothes on my back" (and almost every time there is a cop around him except one time) and "Young Samson will win. Because he doesn't care if he wins or loses." The fella replies, "So if he wants to win, he'll lose it." What a thoughtful line, and what an impact! It does happen later; the fella loses when he wants to win (boosted by overconfidence and conspiracy, though). Such intellectual logic in 1940, and that too for a human drama. I mean, this is so unbelievably amazing. It's not that other films didn't try such things; they did, and some even went up a level higher, but were they all entertaining like this? I'm afraid not. There is so much drama and so many influential conflicts in this film. From a childhood love story that is parted later due to work, the hero's rise followed by his downfall, his struggle to get back on his feet and to reconcile with his girl, people around him supporting him, the heroine's own issues, and all of this happening somewhere in a city, not just with them but with many and on a daily basis. This is what I call an immensely engrossing drama, and what a terrific engagement it has. 105 minutes, but there's so much to tell, and that's why the film looks long since you cover almost 2-3 films in one narrative. I am a huge fan of Cagney's dialogue delivery, but this was something else. I haven't seen this kind of Cagney before (till the 1940 films). The rest of the cast is great too. A big thanks to Aben Kandel's original writing and a double thanks to Anatole Litvak's smart and beautiful storytelling.
RATING - 7.5/10*
By - #samthebestest.
James Cagney's supremacy in Anatole Litvak's extremely engrossing and engaging epic Drama on New York City. A roadside fella gives a philosophical speech on the city while walking down the streets and witnessing all the activities. What a nostalgia! One of the best beginnings for any movies of the 1940s, I must say. Two powerful quotes he says are "Because I got clothes on my back" (and almost every time there is a cop around him except one time) and "Young Samson will win. Because he doesn't care if he wins or loses." The fella replies, "So if he wants to win, he'll lose it." What a thoughtful line, and what an impact! It does happen later; the fella loses when he wants to win (boosted by overconfidence and conspiracy, though). Such intellectual logic in 1940, and that too for a human drama. I mean, this is so unbelievably amazing. It's not that other films didn't try such things; they did, and some even went up a level higher, but were they all entertaining like this? I'm afraid not. There is so much drama and so many influential conflicts in this film. From a childhood love story that is parted later due to work, the hero's rise followed by his downfall, his struggle to get back on his feet and to reconcile with his girl, people around him supporting him, the heroine's own issues, and all of this happening somewhere in a city, not just with them but with many and on a daily basis. This is what I call an immensely engrossing drama, and what a terrific engagement it has. 105 minutes, but there's so much to tell, and that's why the film looks long since you cover almost 2-3 films in one narrative. I am a huge fan of Cagney's dialogue delivery, but this was something else. I haven't seen this kind of Cagney before (till the 1940 films). The rest of the cast is great too. A big thanks to Aben Kandel's original writing and a double thanks to Anatole Litvak's smart and beautiful storytelling.
RATING - 7.5/10*
By - #samthebestest.