The Best James Cagney Movies

Updated September 24, 2019 7.9k votes 1.2k voters 52.6k views63 items

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List of the best James Cagney movies, ranked best to worst with movie trailers when available. James Cagney's highest grossing movies have received a lot of accolades over the years, earning millions upon millions around the world. The order of these top James Cagney movies is decided by how many votes they receive, so only highly rated James Cagney movies will be at the top of the list. James Cagney has been in a lot of films, so people often debate each other over what the greatest James Cagney movie of all time is. If you and a friend are arguing about this then use this list of the most entertaining James Cagney films to end the squabble once and for all.

If you think the best James Cagney role isn't at the top, then upvote it so it has the chance to become number one. The greatest James Cagney performances didn't necessarily come from the best movies, but in most cases they go hand in hand.

This list is made up of films like The Oklahoma Kid and Winner Take All.

"This list answers the questions, "What are the best James Cagney movies?" and "What are the greatest James Cagney roles of all time?"

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1
Footlight Parade
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
391
38
Released: 1933
Directed by: Busby Berkeley, Lloyd Bacon
Footlight Parade is a 1933 American musical film starring James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell and featuring Frank McHugh, Guy Kibbee, Hugh Herbert and Ruth Donnelly. The movie... more
2
Mister Roberts
Henry Fonda, Jack Lemmon
353
29
Released: 1955
Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy, John Ford, Joshua Logan
Mister Roberts is a 1955 American Warnercolor in CinemaScope comedy-drama film directed by John Ford and Mervyn LeRoy and features an all-star cast including Henry Fonda as Mister Roberts, James... more
3
The Time of Your Life
James Cagney, Ward Bond
358
31
Released: 1948
Directed by: H. C. Potter
The Time of Your Life is a 1948 film starring James Cagney adapted from the 1939 William Saroyan play of the same title. A Cagney Production, The Time of Your Life was produced by Cagney's brother... more
4
Something to Sing About
James Cagney, William Frawley
341
33
Released: 1937
Directed by: Victor Schertzinger
Something to Sing About, re-released in 1947 as Battling Hoofer, is the second and final film James Cagney made for Grand National Pictures – the first being Great Guy – before mending relations with... more
5
Blonde Crazy
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
253
21
Released: 1931
Directed by: Roy Del Ruth
Blonde Crazy is a 1931 film by Roy Del Ruth, starring James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Louis Calhern, Ray Milland, and Guy Kibbee famous for Cagney's line, "That dirty, double-crossin' rat!" In 2014 the... more
6
Yankee Doodle Dandy
James Cagney, Joan Leslie
267
34
Released: 1942
Directed by: Michael Curtiz
Yankee Doodle Dandy is a 1942 American biographical musical film about George M. Cohan, known as "The Man Who Owned Broadway". It stars James Cagney, Joan Leslie, Walter Huston, and Richard Whorf,... more
7
The Crowd Roars
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
511
144
Released: 1932
Directed by: Howard Hawks
The Crowd Roars is a 1932 film directed by Howard Hawks starring James Cagney and featuring Joan Blondell, Ann Dvorak, Eric Linden, Guy Kibbee, and Frank McHugh. The driver in the film's auto racing... more
8
Angels with Dirty Faces
Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney
203
30
Released: 1938
Directed by: Michael Curtiz
Angels with Dirty Faces is a 1938 American gangster film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring James Cagney, the Dead End Kids and Humphrey Bogart, along with Ann Sheridan and George Bancroft. The... more
9
The Public Enemy
Jean Harlow, James Cagney
193
35
Released: 1931
Directed by: William A. Wellman
The Public Enemy is a 1931 American all-talking pre-code crime film produced and distributed by Warner Brothers. The film was directed by William A. Wellman and stars James Cagney, Jean Harlow,... more
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10
The Roaring Twenties
Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney
159
66
Released: 1939
Directed by: Raoul Walsh
The Roaring Twenties is a 1939 crime thriller starring James Cagney, Priscilla Lane, Humphrey Bogart and Gladys George. The epic movie, spanning the periods between 1919 and 1933, was directed by... more
11
White Heat
James Cagney, Edmond O'Brien
214
106
Released: 1949
Directed by: Raoul Walsh
White Heat is a 1949 film noir starring James Cagney, Virginia Mayo and Edmond O'Brien and featuring Margaret Wycherly and Steve Cochran. Directed by Raoul Walsh from the Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts... more
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12
The Fighting 69th
James Cagney, George Reeves
132
54
Released: 1940
Directed by: William Keighley
The Fighting 69th is an American war film starring James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, and George Brent. The plot is based upon the actual exploits of New York City's 69th Infantry Regiment during World War... more
13
World War II: Homefront: Vol. 1
Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney
69
10
Released: 1941
14
These Wilder Years
Barbara Stanwyck, James Cagney
68
14
Released: 1956
Directed by: Roy Rowland
These Wilder Years is a 1956 drama film directed by Roy Rowland, and starring James Cagney and Barbara Stanwyck. It is the story of a businessman who tries to find the illegitimate son he gave up to... more
15
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Mickey Rooney, Olivia de Havilland
65
19
Released: 1935
Directed by: William Dieterle, Max Reinhardt
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a 1935 American romance fantasy film of William Shakespeare's play, directed by Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle, and starring Ian Hunter, James Cagney, Mickey Rooney,... more
16
The Strawberry Blonde
Rita Hayworth, Olivia de Havilland
120
78
Released: 1941
Directed by: Raoul Walsh
Strawberry Blonde is a 1941 Warner Bros. feature film directed by Raoul Walsh, starring James Cagney and Olivia de Havilland, and featuring Rita Hayworth, Alan Hale, Jack Carson and George Tobias.... more
17
Each Dawn I Die
James Cagney, George Raft
93
56
Released: 1939
Directed by: William Keighley
Each Dawn I Die is a 1939 gangster film featuring James Cagney and George Raft in their only movie together as leads, although Raft had made an unbilled appearance in a 1932 Cagney vehicle called... more
18
Hard to Handle
James Cagney
45
11
Released: 1933
Directed by: Mervyn LeRoy
Hard to Handle is a comedy film starring James Cagney as a breezily clowning con artist who organizes a Depression-era dance marathon. His character remarks at one point, "The mass is a cow. It must... more
19
Blood on the Sun
James Cagney, Sylvia Sidney
47
16
Released: 1945
Directed by: Frank Lloyd
Blood on the Sun is a film starring James Cagney and Sylvia Sidney. The film is based on a fictional history behind the Tanaka Memorial document. The film won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction... more
20
The Bride Came C.O.D.
Bette Davis, James Cagney
53
23
Released: 1941
Directed by: William Keighley
The Bride Came C.O.D. is a 1941 Warner Bros. screwball romantic comedy starring James Cagney as a pilot and Bette Davis as a runaway heiress, and directed by William Keighley. Although the film was... more
21
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
James Cagney, Ward Bond
41
13
Released: 1950
Directed by: Gordon Douglas
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye is a 1950 film noir starring James Cagney, directed by Gordon Douglas, produced by William Cagney and based on the novel by Horace McCoy. The film was banned in Ohio as "a... more
22
Mutiny on the Bounty
Clark Gable, David Niven
87
60
Released: 1935
Directed by: Frank Lloyd
Mutiny on the Bounty is an American 1935 drama film starring Charles Laughton and Clark Gable, and directed by Frank Lloyd based on the Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall novel Mutiny on the... more
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23
The Oklahoma Kid
Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney
47
19
Released: 1939
Directed by: Lloyd Bacon
The Oklahoma Kid is a 1939 western film starring James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart. The movie was directed for Warner Bros. by Lloyd Bacon. Cagney plays an adventurous gunslinger in a broad-brimmed... more
24
Sinners' Holiday
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
36
10
Released: 1930
Directed by: John G. Adolfi
Sinners' Holiday is a 1930 all-talking crime drama film starring Grant Withers, Evalyn Knapp, James Cagney, Lucille La Verne, and Joan Blondell. It is based on the play Penny Arcade by Marie Baumer.... more
25
Jimmy the Gent
Bette Davis, James Cagney
38
14
Released: 1934
Directed by: Michael Curtiz
Jimmy the Gent is a 1934 American comedy-crime film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring James Cagney and Bette Davis. It was the first pairing of Cagney and Davis, who would reunite for The Bride... more