Saturday, November 18, 2006
For years 'G' Men looked to me like one of those good, gritty gangster flicks from the 30s that would be loaded with shadowy sets and equally shady characters. Sadly, for a long time I confused it with Anthony Mann's T-Men (1947) (which it looks nothing like), and though the confusion in titles is cleared up the film 'G' Men itself was an utter let down.
James Cagney stars as as "Brick," a freshman employee with the FBI, the newly formed government unit that is keen on
showing off their covert ops technology. Most of the picture includes leaden scenes of FBI officials presenting different machines that examine evidence (e.g. high-powered microscopes), almost as if the group is proving its legitmacy to the public. It's like a Hollywood version of a public service announcement. The most ridiculous scene takes place with Cagney at his lady crush's car. She's about to drive away, but Cagney, with a small secret camera hidden in his coat keeps haranguing her for a photograph of herself. Does she have any he can give him as a momento? Very subtle. Cagney literally pulls the "hidden" camera into plain sight while he's talking to her in his not-so-coded language, and you know what the worst part is? She never figures out what he's talking about. He's that sly.
On the other hand, the movie has some great posters. Here are a few I found, including a screenshot from the movie's credits (above).
No comments:
Post a Comment