WHITE HEAT (1949)

James Cagney is at his most forceful and unforgettable as Cody Jarret, psychopathic, sadistic killer and leader of a gang of big-time armed robbers--and who has a mother complex. He is brilliantly supported by Virginia Mayo as his sometimes dumb, sometimes scheming, moll; Margaret Wycherly as his tough-as-nails Ma; black-shirt-wearing Steve Cochran (winner of the Elvis Presley Precursor Award) as his double crossing rival, and Edmond O'Brien as a cop set up to get close to him for the kill. But it's Cag's movie all the way. Director Raul Walsh keeps the action at a blistering pace, and you'll never forget its two most famous scenes: "Ma's Dead" in the prison mess hall, and "top of the world, Ma" just before Cody's blown up at a refinery. No doubt about it: this is the greatest purely gangster movie ever made.