''Frisco Kid'' is a 1935 film starring James Cagney and directed by Lloyd Bacon. Set in San Francisco in the 1850s, it traces the rise and fall (and possible redemption) of a sailor who achieves wealth and success on

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

's Barbary Coast but is spurned by the woman he loves (

Margaret Lindsay Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...

). The supporting cast also features Ricardo Cortez,

Lili Damita Lili Damita (born Liliane Marie-Madeleine Carré; 10 July 1904 – 21 March 1994) was a French-American actress and singer who appeared in 33 films between 1922 and 1937. Early life and education Lili Damita was born Liliane Marie-Madeleine Car ...

, and

Barton MacLane Barton MacLane (December 25, 1902 – January 1, 1969) was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, including his role as General Martin Peterson on the 1960s NBC ...

. Writing for Turner Classic Movies, Richard Harland Smith observes: “While hewing closely to the crime-shouldn't-pay maxims of the newly minted

Production Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...

, the violence is often disarmingly brutal, with a double hanging late in the film being as disturbing as it is coyly elliptical.”

Plot

in the 1850s, a city where

gold fever A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Ze ...

has left shipowners short-handed, Bat Morgan, a sailor come ashore, is robbed and nearly

shanghaied Shanghaied may refer to: *Shanghaiing, or forced conscription * ''Shanghaied'' (1915 film), a film starring Charlie Chaplin * ''Shanghaied'' (1927 film), a 1927 American silent film * ''Shanghaied'' (1934 film), an animated short film starring Mi ...

aboard another ship. Managing to escape, he sticks around town to pay back those responsible and then to take a cut in the action in the vice district. He organized the various gambling houses (and other forms of vice implied but, for Code reasons, not explicitly shown) into a consolidated enterprise in alliance with a corrupt city boss, Jim Daley, and thereby comes into conflict with a crusading newspaper run by Jean Barrat, the daughter of the recently murdered publisher, and idealistic editor Charles Ford. Loyal to his friends, even when they are on the other side, Bat Morgan protects the editor when Jim Daley orders him eliminated. He also falls in love with Jean, but his way of life and lack of faith in any morality beyond looking out for number one make a permanent relationship all but impossible. When his best friend, Solly Green, takes a bullet for him, Bat mourns him, but when Jean points to Solly as an example of people helping others, he observes that Solly would be alive today if he hadn't met Bat. Riled at a judge's snub, he determines to bring his Barbary Coast crowd to the opening night at the

Opera House An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically fo ...

, which the Judge has opened as an alternative place of amusement to the gambling dens. A gambler, Paul Morra, shoulders his way into the judge's box and murders him on a flimsy excuse. The resulting outrage provokes a public outcry, and when Morra is arrested and jailed, a lynch mob gathers, crying for his blood. Bat arranges Morra's release, not so much because he likes him as because he owes him a debt of gratitude for starting him on his upward rise. Soon after, Ford is murdered by Jim Daley in a bar-room fight. Jean blames Bat, holding him responsible for all the evil done by those who work with him. A vigilance movement sets out to clean up the town, rounding up Morra and Daley and hanging them both. When the lowlife of the Barbary Coast determine to take revenge by wrecking the press and burning the city, Bat Morgan convinces them to do otherwise. Trying to keep them from fighting back as the vigilantes come to destroy the Coast, he is shot in the back by one of the underworld thugs and is captured by the vigilantes. Jean saves him from hanging and he is permitted to go free, on her

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

Cast

References

External links

The Frisco Kid
at TCM * {{Authority control 1930s historical drama films 1935 films American historical drama films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Lloyd Bacon Films set in the 1850s Films set in San Francisco Films produced by Samuel Bischoff 1935 drama films 1930s American films Films scored by Bernhard Kaun