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Hey, I just watched White Heat, which I thoroughly enjoyed, and I noticed two things about that seem to be troped. I was hoping a fellow film buff could weigh in:
1. The phrase "on top of the world" - is it eponymous to this film? I'm not sure if it was used prior to this, but googling seems to indicate that it at least became popularized in the film (and reveals no real etymology past a vague reference to Australia).
2. The final scene the phrase is symbolic of shows the complete descent into madness of the criminal protagonist. He finally lets go of reality, and in the process is responsible for massive destruction and his death in a fireball. This formula is used in several popular films, Scareface being the one that springs to my mind readily. From what I can tell, White Heat is the first film to employ this structure.
If anyone can confirm/deny my conclusions, I'd like to know, as I've never seen this film credited for it's contributions to cinema.