Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

mark.waltz A half hour segment of the end of a dance marathon (featuring two couples battling until the end) sets up the hilarity for this battle of lovers (the girl with a delightfully domineering mother, the boy with a hysterically cynical sense of life) where the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the marathon prize money leads to more complications and more cons thanks to Cagney's hilarious scheming. A fascinating crisp & fast-moving screenplay keeps the film going at a high speed, and Cagney delivers each line as if he was swallowing a grapefruit whole. Mary Brian is an appealing heroine, but it is Ruth Donnelly as her fast-talking mother who really steals the film from the moment she is introduced watching her daughter in the final moments of the marathon. A fascinating supporting cast features some wonderful character players, among them Allen Jenkins as the marathon announcer and Sterling Holloway ("Winnie the Pooh") as part of the second remaining couple in the marathon.

Michael_Elliott Hard to Handle (1933) ** (out of 4) James Cagney plays a hustler who fixes contests where the winners get a small amount of money while he makes it rich. Once again we get Cagney playing a fast talker and for the most part the film remains entertaining, although it's certainly lite all around. Mary Brian is great as the love interest and Ruth Donnelly steals the show as her loud mouth mother. There's a nice spoof of the grapefruit scene from The Public Enemy.As of now this one isn't available on DVD so you'll have to keep your eyes on Turner Classic Movies.

classicsoncall Thanks to "Hard To Handle", I now know that the grapefruit diet dates back at least seventy five years! It's always cool to catch a movie that delivers in an unexpected way, and here, Jimmy Cagney is at his best as a fast talking con man, er..., entrepreneur as it were, capitalizing on every opportunity to turn a profit from the expectations of a gullible public. Funny, but it never seemed like he was trying to make a bundle, it just kind of worked out that way. What makes the picture so delightful is the equally versatile Ruth Donnelly, portraying Lefty Merrill's (Cagney) future, whenever we get around to it, mother-in-law. Lil Walters is one track minded to a fault; she'll marry off her daughter Ruth (Mary Brian) to the highest bidder at the drop of a dollar bill. She also has some of the film's snappiest dialog, and it's a toss up as to who's quicker on their feet, Ma Walters or Lefty. As a result, Lefty's girlfriend is almost left in the dust in most of her scenes, she just can't keep up the frenetic pace set by Cagney and Donnelly.Say now, is it really possible that those Depression era dance marathons went as long as eight weeks or more?!!! That's how the picture opens while introducing the entire cast of principal characters. I thought it was a neat touch that the occasion had it's own marathon foot specialist. Kind of makes sense doesn't it?Throughout the story, Cagney's character comes up with scheme after scheme, making lemonade out of every lemon thrown his way. The entire film is a hoot, the only problem being it's not commercially available, so you'll have to be lucky to catch it on a cable channel or source it through a private collector. It's worth it though to catch an early Cagney flick, even if you have to rewind the picture a number of times to understand all the dialog. Cagney's lines are so quick you can't catch them all the first time around!

David (Handlinghandel) James Cagney is better in the Roy del Ruth movies of this period. However, he was a dynamic, unstoppable force. He is believable here as a goodhearted con artist with a good heart.He has some great scenes: In one, he runs down flight after flight of a winding staircase.Mary Brian is the nominal leading lady. She's OK. But Ruth Donnelly is really Cagney's co-star here. Playing Brian's avaricious, canny mother, she is hilarious. Nobody can put one over on her. If anyone tries, she'll bounce right back. She'll change her tune. She'll double-cross and triple-cross to get what she wants for herself and her pretty daughter.Donnelly was a reliable supporting performer in more movies than anyone could easily count. Rarely did she get such a role. She grabs it and runs with it. She and Cagney are fantastic together. It's a shame they were never teamed again.