Roy Del Ruth’s Blonde Crazy is a completely surprising and thoroughly delightful pre-Code comedy that is filled with unexpected narrative twists and turns that will satisfy even the most jaded of viewers. Joan Blondell and James Cagney are wonderful leads and have such an easy rapport with on another onscreen – both turn in incredibly natural, compelling performances. The cons that they pull off together are fun to watch, and Cagney’s character is given a really lovely arc. Like many films from the ’30s, it’s refreshing to see classic cinema challenge the sexism of the day with such ferocity. It was a surprise to see just how blatantly the film shows the way men attempted to take advantage of women whom they perceived to be of lower classes. The film’s frank and somewhat brutal exploration of class – especially the ways that the upper class could insulate themselves from the consequences of their actions – feels like shocking thing to see in such an early film. It’s a reminder that I need to watch more films from the early ’30s.