In 1848, a young Frenchwoman, Madeline Minot, goes to New York City to see Thevenet, the grandfather of her fiance. Thevenet had been with Napoleon and may be sympathetic to the political aims of his grandson. She finds the old man in very bad spirits, living in a large house with a housekeeper and a butler who are just waiting for him to die (and perhaps helping him along a bit) so they can inherit his fortune. They see Madeline as a threat to their plans. She is aided in her dealings with these strange people by a mysterious man in a cloak.

詹姆斯·卡格尼主演的黑帮电影经典作。他在这部演技光芒四射的代表作之中饰演有严重恋母情结的歹徒柯弟贾勒特，他象神经病一样弃妻子于不顾，到处疯狂做案。警方费了九牛二虎之力围捕他，他则率领手下暴徒躲在深山中跟警方对峙。导演拉乌尔·沃尔什在片中安排了不少气氛十足的暴力动作场面， 但更出色的是对男主角偏执狂的生动刻画。玛格丽特·威彻利的邪恶母亲和弗吉尼亚·梅奥的性格女友亦演出旗鼓相当，结局拍出相当感人的悲剧性。