“Made it, Ma! Top of the world!” is a famous movie quote from 1949’s film noir classic, White Heat. It stars James Cagney in one of his best performances as Cody Jarrett, a psychopath criminal with a mother complex.

After a train robbery doesn’t go to plan, Jarrett’s gang of hoodlums decide to stay low for a while. Cody’s headaches, and unpredictability start to wear down the gang and serves as a perfect opportunity for Big Ed to vie for power. Especially when Jarrett is tracked down by police, and admits guilt to a hotel robbery, in order to escape charges against him for the train robbery and serve less time. At the same time, the police have planted Vic Pardo (Edmond O’Brien) in the prison to make friends with Cody, and get the low-down on the train robbery. Cagney makes a daring prison break, and enlists the support of his gang to pull a heist on a chemical plant. But how long will Vic be able to keep his cover, and just how crazy is Cody really?

White Heat is unforgettable, and still ranks as one of the greatest contributions to Hollywood. James Cagney delivers his best performance, alongside great supporting acts from Virginia Mayo and Edmond O’Brien. The audience is never given a chance to sympathise with the brute Cagney, and he always seems slightly detached from reality in every scene. The mother complex was inspired by real-life bank robbers, Kate Barker (a.k.a. Ma Barker) and her sons. Raoul Walsh gives his best as director, and as with most classics from the 40s, the writing is fantastic. In fact, Virginia Kellogg was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Writing for a Motion Picture Story in 1950. The menace and derangement in Cagney’s eyes, the glimmer of vulnerability in Mayo’s expressions and the controlled fear in O’Brien’s face all add up to some intense moments and memorable silver screen magic between the leads.

White Heat makes a brilliant psychological drama with a magnifying glass on the mind of Jarrett, and ends on one of the most famous scenes in film history. It’s a black and white film, and although popular culture doesn’t seem to lose colour, apart from Sin City, the performances, story and class of the production are what to look out for.

The bottom line: Fascinating.