Films involving Deaf

Deaf: Minor Films

Title	White Heat (1949)
Alternative/Original Title
Disability	Deaf Mental Psychosis
Country	USA
Length	114
Genre	Crime
Rating	4
Director	Raoul Walsh
Cast	James Cagney Virginia Mayo Edmund O'Brien Margaret Wycherly
Notes	B/W Cagney plays Cody Jarrett a ruthless gang leader. At the beginning the gang rob a train and because one of the gang mentions Cody's name he shoots the engineer and fireman. As the engineer falls he hits the steam valve and one the gang is severely burned. Later holed up in the mountains Cody won't allow attention to be brought to the wounded man. With the gang is Cody's mother to whom he is (unhealthily) devoted. Verna, Cody's girlfriend, is comparatively neglected. Along with sleeping most of the time she has her eye on Big Ed, another member of the gang. Leaving the cabin Cody orders the injured man shot but he isn't, and later is found frozen to death. The discovery of the body leads to Cody's gang being tied to the train robbery. So Cody decides to plea to another crime and get a lesser sentence. In prison Cody continues to get the severe headaches which his mother has usually soothed now he is comforted by his cell mate who is actually an undercover agent. The most famous scene in the film follows when Cody hears of his mother's death. He goes totally berserk. On release from prison Cody carries on killing and robbing but his gang is gradually reduced as they are killed. Cody is at last corned but goes out with a big bang (an exploding oil tank). A fellow prisoner is deaf, uses one hearing aid and can read lips. He is used by Cody to check on people's conversations.

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