Each Dawn I Die
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Movie Reviews of Each Dawn I Die
Movie Review: James Cagney & George Raft? How can you beat that?
Summary: 5 Stars
They star together in this important gangster movie, (if there is such a thing), Each Dawn I Die. Excellent performances by both. Cagney was getting tired of the genre' but it doesn't show here as he is the crusading good guy reporter, Frank Ross, exposing criminal activity in government. He is framed for a drunk driving murder. Raft is "Hood" Stacy, a career criminal, moody & menacing, not to be trifled with, even in prison. At first, Ross tries to keep his integrity & feels sure he will be sprung by his newspaper. He avoids Stacy. Eventually, they make common cause against a hated stoolie & a sadistic guard. Ross is changing, prison is hardening him. Yet, he is still optimistic, but his faith is starting to fade as weeks turn into months. As he & Stacy become close, Stacy convinces him that he maybe in prison a long time. Stacy has a plan in which Ross can help him escape. In a rather complicated & somewhat implasible chain of events it works. Once he's on the outside Stacy has promised to use his underworld contacts to get evidence that will set Ross free. But he is conning Ross & once free does nothing. He meets Ross' loyal girl-friend & fellow reporter, Jane (Joyce Conover). She softens his heart & improbably he finally decides to keep his promise. This leads him back to prison where one of the conspirators that framed Ross is now serving time on an unrelated charge. Stacy then turns himself in. Meanwhile, things have been going bad for Ross. He spends lots of time in "the hole", being tortured by the guards that hold him responsible for Stacy's escape. Once again in prison, Stacy "convinces" the guy that helped frame Ross to confess to the warden during a prison riot that Ross tries to prevent. Ross is free at last returns to his old self (with the help of Jane). He has the headline of his life, & the crooked politicians are apprehended. What happens to, noble in the end, Stacey? Well... A major movie from that golden year of 1939. Don't miss it if you like the gangster, prison type genre' pre World War II.Movie Review: Cagney Subdued, Cagney Electrified - Great Psychological Study
Summary: 5 Stars
1939's Each Dawn I Die shows Jimmy Cagney in two different lights. First, as subdued yet confident star reporter, Frank Ross, who is sent to prison on a frame-up by crooked politicians. He plays by the rules and keeps his nose clean.
As the story progresses, and Frank's hopes of being released grow dim, his frustration and despair begin to grow in the brutal environment that is Rocky Point Penitentiary. We start to see a psychological change in our hero that almost reaches the point of no return. Don't miss his scene before the parole board, where he transforms from a docile puppy to a raging tiger to a broken stallion.
On the DVD commentary by film historian, Haden Guest, Each Dawn I Die is hailed as a precursor of psychologically intensive films that weren't to be seen until the later 40s. Cagney is brilliant, as usual. His spunkiness and pathos play off each other to perfection, and his body language and facial expressions keep your eyes riveted to him in just about every scene.
Movie Review: A Pleasure to Watch.
Summary: 5 Stars
It was a pleasure to watch Cagney and Raft together. I had never seen this movie before but was pleasantly surprised at how good it was. Some of the fight scenes look a little phony but that's typical of movies made during this period. The quality of the DVD is excellent, both picture and sound. If you like gangster movies you will definitely enjoy this one.Movie Review: Cagney and Raft in the Big House
Summary: 4 Stars
Despite its implausibilities, "Each Dawn I Die" (1939) is a vintage Warner Bros. prison drama with James Cagney and George Raft in memorable form. Plenty of tough-guy action and terrific chemistry between the two stars. The DVD is loaded with special features - including Tex Avery's Oscar-nominated cartoon "Detouring America" and a Warner blooper reel titled "Breakdowns of 1939." A must-own for movie buffs.Movie Review: Mainly Just For Cagney Fans
Summary: 2 Stars
James Cagney and George Raft elevate this prison movie from just fair-to-poor to slightly-better-than average.....with just their screen presence. Without them, I wouldn't have even given this a second look. That second look was on DVD, too, and it looks a lot better than the VHS edition
Cagney plays a newspaper man ("Frank Ross") framed for killing people as a drunk driver. The truth was that he was knocked out cold, put behind a wheel, doused with alcohol and then had the car started. Just by coincidence, the car rams into others and kills people and, of course, witnesses - true and false ones - are there to testify against him. In jail, he meets mobster "Stacey" (George Raft) who slowly takes a liking to Ross..
If you stop to analyze a few things, you'll lose all regard for the story. There are many holes in this story and you just have to go along with them. The movie did serve a good purpose. Reportedly, because of this film there was some needed prison reform. Convicts were treated in way too harsh a manner back then. As in most cases, we now have gone too far in the opposite direction, it's been said, but that's another story.
Other than that historical significance of this film having some real-life impact, it's not a memorable movie. I would only recommend it to Cagney fans (of which I am one.).