compare to mervyn leroy little caesar and the public enemy be a little more well and i do not want to use the word sophisticate because it anything but that . it more developmental . yes and that the word . little caesar character begin and end a an adult gangster . tom power ( jimmy cagney ) be first introduce a a young boy and hang around with his pal matt doyle ( edward wood ) and be whupped for steal by his policeman father . the stern old man use a razor strap . maybe today it look like child abuse to some people but it be probably common enough at the time . my mother use to break kochloevels over my back . in any case and such punishment do neither tom power nor myself any good since we both turn out wicked . tom and matt grow up into young men who be hoodlum in the employ of puttynose and who teach them the trick of the trade and an irish fagin and but he break his promise and skip out on them when they need his help . year later and an unforgiving tom wreak his revenge on the pathetic puttynose . then tom and matt be take under the wing of paddy ryan and and finally samuel nail nathan and both of whom treat our protagonist well . in fact and i rather like nail . he cheerful and generous and and loyal . i mean and consider that he a gangster and a thief and and a murderer . when nail be throw from his horse and kill and tom and matt sensibly shoot the horse . there a sub plot involve some dame the two guy pick up in a speakeasy . matt marry his moll but tom get tire of his ( mae clarke ) and put finito to their affair by shove a grapefruit in her face . mr. nice guy . tom then meet jean harlow and she seem to fall for him and although his interest in her be rather more glandular than anything else . she doesn not make herself available in the sense that his other girl friend have and tom be tear his hair out and uttering hoarse and goaty cry represent a guy could go screwy from this . her part be kind of small and tom never do get it on with her . when a rival gang kill his friend matt and tom pick up two pistol and barge into the gang hangout and and shoot it out with them and severely wound in the process . he visit in the hospital by his ma and his moralistic brother and and his sister in law and and he ask them to forgive him . doesn not do him any good . the rival gang kidnap him from the hospital and deliver him to his home and full of new lead . like little caesar and this film give u many scene and character that be to become icon . on their first big job and a friend of tom and matt and loopy louie and be shoot by the cop and we see the wake in louie parlor and with a matronly immigrant mother moaning and he be always a good boy . to a parking valet and tom snap and hey and watch it . dat car get gear . it ain not no ford . a for the performance and edward wood be famously intend to play the lead before the role be switch and with cagney take the role of tom . it be a good decision . matt be likable but a little wooden and whereas cagney sizzle on screen . jean harlow every line be laugh worthy . like cagney and she be from new york but her accent here stop just short of a parody of british . i cahn not . and and me neyether . also and she look and well and big in this movie and maybe because she pair with cagney and but it not just that she as tall a he be but that she zoftig too and a bit more broad of beam than have be noticeable in her other film . the censor be begin to impose their will on the film industry and so every shooting take place off screen and there be virtually no blood . i guess the code be not yet firm enough in place to prevent the presentation of a tailor a a homosexual . when cagney be be fit for his first suit and he tug at his waist and tell the guy to leave plenty of room in their . here where you need extra room and say the tailor and squeeze cagney upper arm and just feel that muscle . cagney mince away from the encounter . not that there any suggestion of homosexual bond between tom power and matt doyle . theyre just friend who grow up together . you must see this movie if you haven not already . it be one of three that set the genre firmly on it foot in the early 1930s and the others be little caesar and scarface . look at it this way . without these film and we might never have have the godfather .