''Taxi!'' is a 1932 American pre-Code film directed by

Roy Del Ruth Roy Del Ruth (October 18, 1893, Delaware – April 27, 1961) was an American filmmaker. Early career Beginning his Hollywood career as a writer for Mack Sennett in 1915, Del Ruth later directed his first short film ''Hungry Lions'' (1919) ...

and starring

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

and Loretta Young. The film includes a famous, and often misquoted, line with Cagney speaking to his brother's killer through a locked closet: "Come out and take it, you dirty yellow-bellied rat, or I'll give it to you through the door!" This line has often been misquoted as "You dirty rat, you killed my brother". To play his competitor in a

ballroom dance Ballroom dance is a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television. ...

contest, Cagney recommended his pal, fellow tough-guy-dancer

George Raft George Raft (born George Ranft; September 26, 1901 – November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is ...

, who was uncredited in the film. In a lengthy and memorable sequence, the scene culminates with Raft and his partner winning the dance contest against Cagney and Young, after which Cagney slugs Raft and knocks him down.Everett Aaker, ''The Films of George Raft'', McFarland & Company, 2013, p. 20 As in '' The Public Enemy'' (1931), several scenes in ''Taxi!'' involved the use of live machine gun bullets. After a few of the bullets narrowly missed Cagney's head, he outlawed the practice in his future films. In the film they see a fictitious Warner Bros. film at the cinema called ''Her Hour of Love'' in which Cagney cracks a joke about the film's leading man's appearance (an unbilled cameo by Warners contract player Donald Cook, who had played Cagney's brother in ''The Public Enemy'') saying, "his ears are too big". Also advertised in the cinema lobby in the film is ''

The Mad Genius ''The Mad Genius'' (1931) is an American pre-Code drama film produced and distributed by Warner Bros. and directed by Michael Curtiz. The film stars John Barrymore, Marian Marsh, Donald Cook, Charles Butterworth, and in small roles, Boris K ...

'', an actual film starring John Barrymore which was released the previous year by Warners.

Plot

When a veteran cab driver, Pop Riley ( Guy Kibbee), refuses to be pressured into surrendering his prime soliciting location outside a cafe, where his daughter works, the old man's cab is intentionally wrecked by a ruthless mob seeking to dominate the cab industry. Upon learning of the "accidental" destruction of his cab (and along with it his livelihood), the old man retrieves his handgun and shoots the bullying man known to be responsible, which lands him in prison, where he dies of poor health in fairly short order. Pop's waitressing daughter, Sue ( Loretta Young), is asked by a scrappy young cab driver, Matt (

), to lend moral support to a resistance movement populated by other drivers, who are also experiencing similar strong-arm tactics by the same aggressive group of thugs. However, after enduring the crushing loss of her father, Sue undergoes a complete ethical reversal about the notion of fighting back, feels thoroughly sickened by the violence and bloodshed, and she angrily tells the drivers as much. Her unpredictably wilful but passionate rant instantly lands her on Matt's bad side, although he eventually has a redemptive change of heart, then seeks to charm Sue into becoming his girlfriend. They start dating and compete in a foxtrot dance contest. Matt and Sue get married. On their wedding night they go to a nightclub with Matt's brother Dan. They are all taunted by Buck Gerard, the man responsible for the attacks on cab drivers. Sue stops Matt from attacking Buck, but Buck stabs and kills Dan. Matt doesn't tell the police who killed Dan so he can get revenge himself. Sue warns Buck's girlfriend, Marie, that Matt is after him. Matt tracks down Buck but Sue and Marie keep him away from Buck long enough for the police to arrive. Matt fires a gun at the room Buck is hiding in but Buck has fallen to his death while trying to escape. Sue decides to leave Matt but changes her mind.

Cast

as Matt Nolan * Loretta Young as Sue Riley Nolan *

George E. Stone George E. Stone (born Gerschon Lichtenstein; May 18, 1903 – May 26, 1967) was a Polish-born American character actor in films, radio, and television. Life and career Stone was born Gerschon Lichtenstein in Łódź, Congress Poland, into ...

as Skeets * Guy Kibbee as Pop Riley * Leila Bennett as Ruby *

Dorothy Burgess Dorothy Burgess (March 4, 1907 – August 20, 1961) was an American stage and motion-picture actress. Family, education Born in Los Angeles in 1907, Burgess was a niece of Fay Bainter. On her father's side, she was related to David C. Montgome ...

as Marie Costa * David Landau as Buck Gerard *

as William "Willie" Kenny

Home media

''Taxi!'' was released in February 2012 on DVD by Warner Bros through their print on demand Warner Archive label.

References

External links

* * * * {{Roy Del Ruth 1932 films 1932 crime films American crime films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films about organized crime in the United States Films directed by Roy Del Ruth Films set in New York City Warner Bros. films Yiddish-language films American gangster films Films about taxis Films with screenplays by Kubec Glasmon 1930s American films