In 1909, Tom Powers and Matt Doyle are best friends and juvenile criminals. Tom's brother Mike is a correct teenager. Along the years, Tom (James Cagney) and Matt (Edward Woods) get older and ranked in criminal scale of their gang leaded by Nails Nathan (Leslie Fenton). When Nails dies in an accident, his gang becomes weaker and is attacked by other criminal groups.<br /><br />"The Public Enemy" is a great gangster movie, picturing the life and death of a typical gangster of the 30's in a contemporary moment. The texts in the introduction and conclusion of the movie may seem dated today, but show the concern of the director and screenplay writers with the difficult moment that USA was living in 1931. Further, it belongs to the beginning of the sound age, and William Wellman uses this resource magnificently, like for example, when the truck is discharging coal to disguise the shooting. James Cagney is perfect in his trademark role, and this movie is still good in 2006. My vote is eight.<br /><br />Title (Brazil): "Inimigo Público No. 1" ("Public Enemy Number 1")