White Heat (1949) | |
| Director(s) | Raoul Walsh |
| Producer(s) | Louis F. Edelman |
| Top Genres | Crime, Film Noir |
| Top Topics | Gangsters, Heist, Mother/Son |
Featured Cast:
White Heat Overview:
White Heat (1949) was a Crime - Film Noir Film directed by Raoul Walsh and produced by Louis F. Edelman.
SYNOPSIS
"Made it, Ma. Top of the world!" The last explosion of the Warner Bros. gangster movies, a decade after their '30s heyday, was one of the best, with Cagney unleashing a merciless portrayal of the warped personality that becomes a ruthless killer. Based on the mother-son gang led by "Ma" Barker, the story opens with Cagney's gang holding up a train and then hiding out in a freezing cabin with an injured member and his wife (Mayo) and mother (Wycherly). Dissension in the gang and an attraction between Mayo and a rebellious gangster (Cochran) lead to a police tail in Southern California, a stint in prison for Cagney, and a blazing final showdown. The climactic shoot-out in the oil refinery has become a movie icon and it remains one of Cagney's and director Walsh's greatest moments.
(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).
.White Heat was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2003.
Academy Awards 1949 --- Ceremony Number 22 (source: AMPAS)
| Award | Recipient | Result |
| Best Writing | Virginia Kellogg | Nominated |
White Heat BlogHub Articles:
White Heat (1949)
By 4 Star Film Fan on Sep 5, 2017 From 4 Star FilmsWhite Heat burns like hot coals even today. It’s a gangster picture from master Warner Bros. craftsman?Raoul Walsh that’s volatile and intriguing, highlighted by the always fiery James Cagney as a crazed man-child with a mom complex. Cagney had stayed away from gangster pictures that mad... Read full article
White Heat (1949)
By 4 Star Film Fan on Sep 5, 2017 From 4 Star FilmsWhite Heat burns like hot coals even today. It’s a gangster picture from master Warner Bros. craftsman?Raoul Walsh that’s volatile and intriguing, highlighted by the always fiery James Cagney as a crazed man-child with a mom complex. Cagney had stayed away from gangster pictures that mad... Read full article
1001 Classic Movies: White Heat
By Amanda Garrett on Aug 26, 2017 From Old Hollywood FilmsWhite Heat (1949) is one of the 1001 classic movies you should see. It stars Margaret Wycherly (middle) and James Cagney as a devoted mother and son who also happen to ruthless gangsters. Virginia Mayo (left) plays Cagney's unhappy wife. Due to an unexpected illness, I didn't write about The Man... Read full article
Film Noir of the Week: White Heat
By Amanda Garrett on Jul 2, 2015 From Old Hollywood FilmsThere's plenty of fireworks in this week's film noir. White Heat (1949), featuring James Cagney (above) as trigger-happy gangster Cody Jarrett, will air at 6 p.m. July 3 as part of TCM's film noir festival, Summer of Darkness. I'll outline the noir elements in this classic gangster movie below. ... Read full article
White Heat (1949) – Film-Noir
By 4 Star Film Fan on Jun 18, 2013 From 4 Star FilmsStarring James Cagney, Edmund O’Brien, and Virginia Mayo, once again Cagney does the gangster role. However, his Cody Jarret is older and more psychotic than ever as he leads his band of thugs. Although he has a beautiful wife, the main woman in Jarret’s life is his mom who watches over ... Read full article
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Quotes from White Heat
Zuckie Hommell: Sounds bad, Cody.
Cody Jarrett: Why don't you give 'em my address too...
Cody Jarrett: [Fallon is hiding the tracking device under the phony fuel truck] What are you doin'? We're on our way.
Hank Fallon: You gotta have a chain bouncin' the ground - get rid of electricity.
Cody Jarrett: That's only when you got gasoline or chemicals sloppin' around inside.
Hank Fallon: You wanna have some traffic cop think you got a load of somethin' else?
Cody Jarrett: That's usin' your head, kid. All right, snap it up.
[Jarrett walks off]
Hank Fallon: You put it on a pole, wind a spool of silk thread around it, and you hold the pole over the water. Then you sit under a nice shady tree and relax. After a while, a hungry fish comes along, takes a nip at your hook, and you've got dinner. For the next two weeks, I'm not gonna think about anything except the eternal struggle between man and the fish...
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Facts about White Heat
Ranked #4 on the American Film Institute's list of the 10 greatest films in the genre "Gangster" in June 2008.
All the locations and bearings radioed back and forth during the triangulation tracking of the gasoline truck, as it moves southwest across the Los Angeles basin, are accurate. They can all be found on a modern map of Los Angeles. Even the view of the Los Angeles City Hall shows up at the appropriate time.
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