User reviews

James Cagney had an affinity for nostalgic type stories and if The Time of Your Life is a contemporary piece for 1939 when it made its Broadway debut, it has a nostalgic feel to it.

No real plot here, just a whole group of character studies about the various habitués of Nick's Place on the San Francisco Embarcadero in the Thirties. The observer here is Joe, a man who just whiles a way the hours observing humankind in the bar with no visible means of support. He must be a retired civil servant on a pension like me. Maybe that's why I like the film so much.

Two members of the original Broadway cast did the film version, Reginald Beane the black piano player and William Bendix as Nick, owner and proprietor of the place. By that time Bendix was a big star with The Life of Riley on radio and he must have cost Cagney a bundle. But Bill Bendix is always worth it.

The villain of the piece is Tom Powers who either played thugs or policemen in film. As Blick, he's a bottom feeding scuzzball who either informs on people or blackmails them depending on how he can make some dirty money. In this case he focuses on a young woman with a shady past played by the star's sister Jeanne Cagney. It's probably her best film role.

Someone else remarked in a review that he thought it was timely that The Time of Your Life came out in 1948 as the McCarthy era was getting underway. True enough, but I believe that author William Saroyan had a specific political target in mind in 1939 in Congressman Martin Dies who headed the House Un-American Activities Committee when it was created in the late Thirties. Dies was that kind of a bullying interrogator that Blick is in the play.

Paul Draper who was the dancer/comedian in the cast was in fact blacklisted shortly after this came out. On Broadway his part was played by Gene Kelly. I guess getting Kelly from MGM would have blown Cagney's whole budget in 1948.

The Time of Your Life has always struck me as kind of an anti-The Iceman Cometh another play set in a tavern. But that one is by Eugene O'Neill and no one ever accused O'Neill of being optimistic. O'Neill's characters in his play are as pessimistic a lot as Saroyan's are optimistic. The two works really ought to be seen back to back.

The tavern as a setting for theater has a tradition that goes from Falstaff to Cheers. The Time of Your Life is an honorable addition to the tradition.

In 1941 Richard Rogers and Lawrence (Larry) Hart did the score of a brilliant musical called PAL JOEY. One highlight was a striptease dance and song done by Elaine Stritch towards the end of the second act, where she is a reporter talking about interviewing Gypsy Rose Lee. Gypsy (if you recall the movie with Natalie Wood) was always self-taught, and well read. The song spoofed this having her show off her knowledge (it begins with her mentioning reading Schopenhauer, not the easiest thing in the world). One couplet is the following:

"Zip, Walter Lippman wasn't brilliant today." "Zip, will Saroyan ever write a great play?"

It is a little ironic that this barb was directed to William Saroyan, as the star of PAL JOEY was Gene Kelly, who played "Harry, a natural born hoofer" in Saroyan's one and only Broadway success, THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE. Why the barb? Well William Saroyan was a popular short story writer and novelist, especially for books like MY NAME IS ARAM, about the life of the Armenian-American immigrants in California. However, try as he might he never wrote a monumental dramatic masterpiece. THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE is not in the same level of dramaturgy as A LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, THE DEATH OF A SALESMAN, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, or WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF. THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE is a pleasant play, and still gets revived, but it is a lesser work for the stage. Even Thornton Wilder's OUR TOWN is considered a greater play.

The problem with THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE is that it shows the interactions of a set of characters in Nick's Bar. As was pointed out in another comment on this board, O'Neill's THE ICEMAN COMETH also is set in a bar. But the denizens of the bar at Harry Hope's flop house hotel are all failures, who drink to forget their failures and reassure themselves that they can pull themselves out of the failure sooner or later (none of them really can). Hickey, who comes to the hotel, tries to convince them they'll be happier giving up their "pipe dreams" if they admit they are not heroic or brave or capable of reform. You see, there is a theme that is uniting that play's characters. Saroyan is not (as was said) O'Neill. He was more optimistic, and he tried to show that the characters were capable of helping each other. At the end they join together to defeat the evil Blick.

Saroyan, like Wilder, was a master of Americana. In one sequence he has two characters get involved in a contest to see how much gum can be chewed at one time. O'Neill (even in a play like AH WILDERNESS, which is a comedy) never could be so Hamish. Saroyan invents very colorful characters, like his old timer "Kit Carson", who claims to be an old Indian fighter. The central figure in the play, Joe (or Joseph T.) is also colorful - he seems to be a former newspaperman who was successful, but began to regret getting involved in the awful world of the news - he has retreated to the bar where he'll hopefully find more gentle people. He is visited at one point by a woman, probably his former fiancé, and acknowledges her, but won't return to the madness he willingly left. The character is interesting, but none of the other characters reflect his point of view.

So we are left with a well acted, entertaining play - turned into a good movie. Cagney is remarkably subdued - look at the scene when he examines the little wind-up toys he has Wayne Morris buy for him. He maintains our interest until the end, but the lively Cagney does not show up until he confronts Blick.

William Bendix does his usual great job, especially when confronting Blick as a potential blackmailing scum. His Nick runs a respectable bar, and the threat Blick is hinting at is that a prostitute may be using the bar (Jeanne Cagney). Bendix knows nothing of this, but is concerned. Oddly enough, although the bar is a nice neighborhood one, Howard Freeman and Natalie Schaefer go to the bar (they are wealthy people) as though they are slumming.

The current film version does not have all the scenes that Cagney originally had shot. Wayne Morris's growing romance with Jeanne Cagney is cut down in the film (which is regrettable). There is also an interesting change in the conclusion (as in Saroyan's play itself) as to what happens to Blick. But the film is a good one, and a worthy addition to Jimmy Cagney's film record.

From what I'd heard of this film, I was expecting something dull and boring and Eugene O'Neill-ish.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was a lot to love in this film. In fact, it left me happy and smiling. James Cagney's character is so off-the-wall in comparison to his other film roles. He just sits quietly, leading a seemingly monotonous life. He listens to a couple of songs over and over; he drinks champagne. Most of all he interferes for good in other people's lives.

I also watched this film because I'm fascinated with Jeanne Cagney and how much she looked like her brother. It's great to see James and Jeanne working together, particularly in this story, where he's playing an Irishman and she's Polish - but she's got his face. Yes, I'm easily amused.

It's a random film. It appears on the surface to be patched together and no, it's not action packed and fast-paced. But look beneath the surface, and you'll see it's about the value of observing, paying attention to things and people around you, and acting on what you see. We all could do with a little more of that - although I don't think we need to do it for hours on end in a bar. It can be done during normal life too.

I felt this film moved along pretty steadily. There was always some new thing popping up as something else was being resolved. And, although on the surface everything is resolved in the end, there are still a lot of questions one asks. I won't go into details here - I'll let you discover for yourself... and I strongly recommend you should do so!!

I have now seen every movie James Cagney has made. For some reason, until recently this film hasn't been on television for years. While Maltin found this film disappointing, I really enjoyed it. It is a cozy sort of movie with about 98% of the film taking place in a barroom. Cagney is terrific as the man who sits at the table observing life as it passes him by. Everyone who comes in talks to him. Cagney's real life sister Jeanne, gives a fine performance as the daydreaming girl from Chicago. William Bendix has to be one of the greatest character actors of all time. His performance as Nick, the owner of the bar, glues the film together. This movie was well worth the wait.

In this adaptation of William Saroyan's award-winning play The Time of Your Life, James Cagney plays a gentle barfly named Joe who settles in Nick's (William Bendix) Bar with various colorful characters like an imaginative old cowboy or a tap dancing comic who can't get laughs. His sister Jeanne plays Kitty Duval, a woman who claims to once have been in burlesque. She and her brother have some of the most touching scenes in the movie. The pace takes a while to get used to but if you're in the mood for something optimistically offbeat, The Time of Your Life should be up your alley! By the way, future "Gilligan's Island" cast member Natalie Schafer plays a society woman who "slums" by going to Nick's Bar with her husband. Pretty amusing cameo.

A dramatic comedy adapted by Nathaniel Curtis from a William Saroyan play. Noted by critics, but slow in getting the respect of movie goers and some Saroyan fans. Joe(James Cagney)holds court at Nick's(William Bendix) little neighborhood saloon. Joe manipulates all who share time and space near him. Action gravitates around Joe. No visual signs of support, but all the while Joe is the positive influence in so many lives. Talk about a potluck of characters:Wayne Morse, Broderick Crawford, Ward Bond, Jimmy Lydon and Jeanne Cagney. James Barton is hilarious as the affable old cowboy. And the man playing the piano is Reginald Beane in his one and only movie. Respectable black and white glimpse of life in the neighborhood.

This is a wonderful film with great characters, classic set, and snappy dialogue. Jimmy Cagney turns in a great performance on this little known film.

A fun time if you like interesting characters playing people we all know.

Some find this film "schmaltzy" and simple. Saroyan fans will find it aptly relects the beauty found in the human condition. The way Joe relates to the various characters, causing them to easily open the hearts and souls seems contrived today and perhaps seemed that way even in the late 40's, but I suspect Saroyan was not particularly interested in "realism". Like all of his work, this movie is a study of the hopes, dreams, and loves of the "little guy" and his struggle to maintain them against the harsh light of human reality.

Cagney positvely glows throughout the performance and Bendix has never been better cast. Paul Draper as the tap-danciing comedian is absolutley brilliant in an extremley quirky roll. ( Interestlingly someone commented that they were suprised that this movie wasn't blacklisted, Draper ( according tot he IMDB bio) was "was an international star in the 1930's and 1940's" who's "career effectively succumbed to the anti- Communist hysteria that existed in the U.S. after World War II, when he was blacklisted out of the entertainment industry as a Communist sympathizer." It says a lot about James Cagney that this is the first film his production company choose to produce. If you can set aside your cynicism and view these characters in a slightly metaphorical light, Saraoyan's writing will leave your heart with a soft warm glow, and the joy of watching character actors working in a simple setting with no action and lots of dialogue may lead you to suspect that the entire cast was having The Time of Their Lives.

"The Time of Your Life" from 1948 is based on the Pulitzer-prize winning play (which Saroyan rejected) by William Saroyan.

This film will remind you of many other productions: Cheers, The Iceman Cometh, Duffy's Tavern. Actually, Iceman and The Time of Your Life were both produced in the same year. All the chaos and people doing their own thing at once reminded me of another play from that era, You Can't Take it With You.

There is no story really - it's a bar in San Francisco, run by Nick (William Bendix) where Joe (James Cagney) spends time observing people and often guiding their lives. Tom (Wayne Morris) runs errands for him, strange errands, like buying toys and chewing gum. This particular day, Tom sees a woman named Kitty (Jeanne Cagney) and he falls hard.

At the phone, a young man (Jimmy Lydon) dials the wrong number and instead of his girlfriend gets an eager older woman. He likes the sound of her voice so he invites her to the bar.

They all come to Nick's - a dancer who wants a job, a newspaper- delivering boy soprano, a pianist, a cowboy, a couple just slumming, and somehow, Joe manages to help some of them along. Nick doesn't know why he gets these characters and muses whether or not it's his personality or something else.

For someone seeing it today, a few things stick out. One is the monologue by the policeman (Broderick Crawford) who complains that while we live in a wonderful world, no one takes time to smell the roses and everyone is greedy. I wonder what he'd think of our society now!

The other is that it's hard to believe it won the Pulitzer Prize. But back then, this was probably seen as very fresh. Saroyan said no to the Pulitzer because he felt businessmen were not qualified to judge art. I can see someone refusing it today - NOT.

The cast is terrific; it's hard to single any one actor out. The pinball wizard (Richard Erdman) who spends the whole movie trying to beat the machine, is actually still alive; as is the ardent young lover, Jimmy Lydon. Then you have people like the boyish Wayne Morris, dead at 45.

This was a different role for James Cagney - he's not a tough guy, not a crook, not a dancer, and somehow, he holds the film together in a subtle performance.

For me the theme is to know who you are and not be ashamed of it, and not be afraid to go after what you want. I think it will be different for different people. Enjoy the delightful characters and some of the crazy, funny, and poignant moments.

Comedy-drama from United Artists that's based on a stage play and it shows. James Cagney stars as a guy who hangs around in William Bendix's bar and talks with the various characters who come and go, helping some and observing others. It's alright but nowhere near as interesting or thought-provoking as it thinks it is. "People are people" is the gist of its philosophy. Cagney and Bendix are both fine in unchallenging roles. The rest of the cast includes Wayne Morris, Ward Bond, Broderick Crawford, Tom Powers, and Jeanne Cagney (yes, Jimmy's sister). No one stinks in this but no one impresses, either. See it if you're a die-hard Cagney fan or if you just really like movies that take place almost entirely on one set.

Originally a professional dancer, when Cagney went into acting, his original aspiration was the 'legitimate stage,' i.e. Broadway or off-Broadway, but ended up in Hollywood, where the real money was. Eventually he ran afoul of two institutions of the Hollywood studio system - the almost 'indentured servant' status of acting contracts, and type-casting. The first meant doing whatever the studio said, and the second meant that what the studio told him was to play the racketeer personality that had sold "Public Enemy" in film after film. Cagney rebelled, going long periods not making films, and insisting on casting against type. Finally he formed Cagney productions, which produced this film and a handful of others, most of which were box-office thuds.

To be fair to the studios on the issue of type-casting, they really understood their audiences of the '30s and '40s. By the mid-'50s, a new generation of mature audiences could approach an actor as something other than face for a type, but there's no doubt that earlier audiences expected their stars to be pretty much true to the characters they most usually played. Cagney was a particular victim of this syndrome. Of all his non-tough-guy films, only "Yankee Doodle Dandy" made a lot of money and earned enduring critical respect.

"The Time of Your Life" isn't just a filmed play that Cagney appears in. His character is the whole story. He has a mysterious past, appears to be well-to-do but prefers a shadowy existence in a lower-class dive, has nothing but good-will for the world, with a wry, wizened sense of humor, yet there is a strange underlying sadness or depression in his make-up that is never fully revealed let alone explained. All this is not just the writing at work, but is present in Cagney's powerful, understated performance. In fact, we're so conditioned by actors 'emoting' in dramas or playing stony strongmen in action films, that we have forgotten what 'subtle' really means in an acting style, but here Cagney exhibits it in spades. Unlike the 'method' actors of the same era as this film, who try to 'get inside' their characters as much as possible, Cagney recognizes the need to take the script as a blueprint for the actor's constructing character. This Joseph T. is as much Cagney's creation as it is Saroyan's - really more so. Cagney creates a fully-developed personality that could easily walk off the screen and down the street to the neighborhood bar. And you could walk up to him ad engage a pretty lively conversation.

It is true that the film making here is unexceptional - despite a couple remarkable close-ups, it's really a 'filmed play' in the lesser senses of that term. And the supporting actors are rarely as spot-on as Cagney. As for the story itself, well, let's be fair, it's Saroyan, an amusing bit of 'Americana.'

But the box-office failure of this film was undeserved, and so is its continuing reputation as something of a failure for Cagney's career. If you approach the film with an open mind, you'll realize that Cagney here leaves us a classic example of what pre-'method' acting really was, and what acting ought to be about. If you set aside expectations and pre-conceptions, you may find yourself utterly fascinated - and captivated - by Cagney's performance here.

LIFE is the filmed version of a 1930s play by William Saroyan, an Armenian-American writer and playwright who never achieved the stardom of Eugene O'Neill. You can feel the play's 1930s roots, and one wonders why it took so long to get this committed to celluloid. Nevertheless, LIFE tells about a day (actually several days) in the life of several characters who wander in and out of a presumably Bowery-based neighborhood bar, including retired newsman James Cagney (whose production company handled this), his gofer Wayne Morris, faux cowboy James Barton, working stiff Ward Bond, beat cop Broderick Crawford, lovesick youngster Jimmy Lydon and former lady of the evening Jeanne Cagney (James' sister). William "Life of Riley" Bendix plays the soft-hearted bartender who hosts a steady stream of eccentric patrons. Nothing much happens until the end, when they gather their courage to face down bad guy Tom Powers who apparently reflected a certain villainous Congressman during the time in which the play was written. The play ends on an optimistic, upbeat note and is lighter in tone than several other dramatic plays of the era. Which makes me wonder how this ever ended up a Pulitzer winner. I guess I don't fully understand how Pulitzers are selected. And me a veteran newsman. Not a must-see, and badly dated today, but OK for Cagney and Bendix fans.

I was attracted to this one by the cast, particularly Jimmy Cagney and William Bendix. I knew from reading the user reviews that there was little or no plot. None the less I watched out of curiosity. Now, I am a fan of the classic old postwar b&w flicks, but this one ultimately falls flat. For about the first half, one is engaged by the variety of characters coming before us, and the "slice of life" ruminations and quasi-philosophical discourses. However, that wears thin, and the second half is a drag. The peculiar old Western gunslinger is a puzzle; he seems to fill no dramatic purpose. The presence of many odd cutaways indicates that a lot of the original shoot wound up on the cutting room floor. Cagney seems to be presented as a sort of resident philosopher/observer, but in the end he dispenses no particular wisdom and one is curious as to exactly what his purpose is as well. Cagney's and Bendix's performances are the best part of the movie, but not enough to make it work. In the end, it's a drag.

It was an interesting idea to film this William Saroyan play, which does not seem to lend itself particularly well to a screen adaptation. It turned out well enough, and in particular most of the characters are brought to life believably and effectively. James Cagney stars in what is quite an atypical role for him, and he is backed up by a good cast of character actors.

The story has Cagney as Joe, a regular at Nick's saloon who watches everyone come and go. Rather than a main story line, there are instead a number of things happening in the lives of the characters - some are important and some trivial, but all of them matter to the characters themselves. To make it work as a movie, it is essential that the cast makes the characters realistic and worth caring about, and in that regard they succeed pretty well.

William Bendix is very enjoyable as Nick, and the cast also includes Jimmy Lydon, Cagney's sister Jeanne, and Tom Powers, who is pretty effective as a menacing bully. Even most of the minor characters get some good moments of their own.

This is the kind of movie that can be pretty enjoyable if you are in the right mood for it, but that won't seem like much if you aren't. Most of it relies on simple conversation and interaction among the characters, and it has a decidedly offbeat feel to it, but if/when that's what you're in the mood for, then this works rather well.

I wasn't certain at the start whether this would be my type of movie. As it unfolded though I found myself drawn in by the odd characters, and the eccentric storyline.

Not so much a movie with a plot, as a gallery of stories, all intersecting. The main characters name is Joe and is played by Cagney. He appears to be the ultimate people watcher, occasionally waxing philosophical, but ultimately as strange as the people he observes.

I gave the movie 6/10, because its far more amusing and enjoyable then the flop it's been called, but not absolutely satisfying either. Or otherwise I may have given it a 7.

In any case you won't feel you wasted your time watching, I feel confident of that. It's fun, and incorporates music and dance quite nicely.

I reckon that for all but maybe the last five minutes of this, James Cagney spends his time - and his money - sitting at a table in William Bendix' "Nick's" bar watching the customers come and go; each with a tale to tell. It is a very gently paced film; Cagney is almost guru-esque as he dispatches his devoted, if a bit simple, pal "Tom" (Wayne Morris) on various seemingly pointless errands as he listens to a variety of short stories from an aspiring tap-tancer (Paul Draper); a cowboy who has maybe had a touch too much desert sun (James Barton) and the shameless gossip (Ward Bond). It does build, slowly, to a climax of sorts - but that doesn't really matter; it is largely devoid of action - it's an observation of routine daily life with just enough spice to keep it interesting; and an appearance from Cagney's own sister, Jeanne, at the end as the love interest for the doting "Tom".

Although this story is relatively confined to a simple bar set I found the characters that enter the scene are very animated and entertaining. The level headed owner/bartender keeps everything in order but the antics do fly. A refreshing look at the expressive character types of the 40's. Not much in terms of complex plot twists or symbolic messages just a funfilled look at a bar/lounge of that time period.

This is probably my least favorite Cagney film. It looks like it was originally a play, as it is VERY static and stagy--so much so, that it suffers from a severe case of claustrophobia! Also, it makes the unforgivable mistake of being dull--and that takes a lot of work in a Cagney film. Usually, his energy level alone will elevate the movie to at least the average range but here he looks half asleep and the many not very interesting bar patrons act out their little stories for the camera. I saw this movie just a few years ago, but I can't remember ANY of the stories within the movie because they just weren't compelling or memorable. You keep waiting for some sort of payoff, but it just never comes!

The plot of this film progresses very slowly especially by modern standards but the linear storyline is not really the reason to watch it. The cast brings to life a nice collection of unique personalities whose interactions are a joy to behold. Cagney is cast against type (he's not in trademark tough guy mode; he even hates to stand!). Fans of his are in for a treat and like I said the entire cast distinguishes itself. All in all a very worthwhile viewing, 8/10.

I like James Cagney. I like just about all the other actors and actresses in this movie. I just absolutely, positively despise every one of them IN this movie. This apparently was a project by some of Cagney's family members. Honest, this movie is 'grates-on-your-nerves-annoying' just like having to stand in a checkout line while someone nearby talks on their cellphone. The story (or the sub-stories) are trite, annoying, irritating, and aggravating. Not one of the characters is particularly likable in their roles. Even Cagney is annoying but he has no choice other than to play his part in this bad, bad, bad film. Like I said, I like Cagney a lot, I even like some 'bad' movies which are so bad they're good. This movie is so bad, it is simply aggravating. I expected better than this; it was rated two stars and I thought 'well it must be a little quirky' and recorded it on the DVR. I may need to get my DVR fumigated. Have I made the point how appallingly bad this movie is?

Considering the year and political climate of the time, this was a remarkable film. Today (2001) it is rather passe to have a black actor in a major role, jazz as the defining music, unstructured modern dance a la Martha Graham, and progressive political ideas bantered about. I am amazed that this film was not blocked by the McCarthy witch hunting. Additionally, this movie evokes the feeling of optimism percolating within post WW2 America. Anything was possible, Korea had not yet erupted, and there was still a homey and "gee wiz" attitude towards the future. A great movie to contrast with "Coming Home" staring Jane Fonda. As an adaptation of the William Saroyan play, Cagney and Bendix et al have captured essence of its anima and message.

James Cagney plays a permanent patron at a San Francisco honky-tonk, observing the ebb and flow of human traffic and occasionally getting involved in the tangled lives of clichéd characters. There's the tap-dancing comedian, the penniless piano player, the former burlesque dancer, the lovestruck kid, the simple gambler, the hearty bar-owner, etc. It's hard to imagine which of these stock figures is the most annoying (my vote would be the fur-trapper who hails from New Jersey), yet the film, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by William Saroyan, has garnered some good reviews. Personal taste will have to determine the picture's ultimate value, though Cagney's low-keyed self-assurance (some may say smugness) is rather enjoyable--and his presence is certainly odd in these corny circumstances. Saroyan's theatrical material just isn't well-suited for the screen, and the one main set and the clattering dialogue quickly tire both the eye and the ear. ** from ****