City for Conquest

Symphony for the city. Stories of three people who look for different things in the world full of opportunities. Lots of good old golden Hollywood melodrama and pathos. This film marks beginning of Cagney's non-gangster acting career. Young Elia Kazan is another point of interest. And no, he doesn't double-cross anyone in this film:)

The narrator is cheesy but I enjoyed the story of likeable people growing up. There was a lot of filler with a long boxing match and a symphony. I'm not a fan of blaming Ann Sheridan's rejection for Cagney's blindness. Fav scene: the rejection.

Max Steiner's Magic Isle Symphony is the theme that ties the emotion of City for Conquest (1940) so splendid that it even towers over the stars! Perhaps too ambitious with destinies feeling a little underdeveloped. But with Ann Sheridan so likable and loving as she becomes a true screen sweetheart to the man that ruled this picture - James Cagney! What a man! Especially in that boxing match and how he plays it in the aftermath. Pure quality and really a tribute to his brilliant sense of acting.

A poignant male melodrama that, outside of a dated framing device, still resonates with feeling. James Wong Howe cut his teeth showing NYC here before the scum started to rise to the surface with Sweet Smell of Success - so it is a beautiful film both visually and narratively. Although we all have a good idea of the fate that befalls a man going by Samson, the inevitability still packs a wallop.

Good solid soaper with Cagney as a sympathetic knucklehead. Good supporting cast and the weighty presence of 'the city' helps cover up its weak spots, such as Cagney's bad blind acting and the pointless hobo narrator.

At the very start of the film I was unsure if I was going to enjoy this movie. But after the introduction this film really picks up. James Cagney gives a brilliant performance. Ann Sheridan is also very good in the lead female role. The story is exciting and it kept me interested all the way through the picture.

Litvak's film about a boxer (James Cagney) on the road to self-respect tries to do too much and ends up not doing anything particularly well. The entertaining supporting performance of Elia Kazan is more than offset by the grating old-timer played by Frank Craven, and Ann Sheridan redefines bland.