DEAD END-1937-3 1/2 STARS

27. May 2008 by Ria.

Humphrey Bogart has a huge role in this film, but I’ll go ahead and throw this in the Dead End Kids file anyway. This is an excellent movie about life in the slums, co-starring the handsome Joel McCrea, who turns out to be the hero, and starring Bogart as Baby Face Martin, the tough gangster who comes back to his crappy neighborhood to scope out ex-girlfriend Francie, and to chew the rag with his estranged mother.

For all of you who like the Dead End Kids, you’ll get a chance to see a young (and cute for a change) Leo Gorcey, as Spit, a bad ass kid that you can’t wait to give a beat down to. Now I know you’re used to seeing Gorcey as the gang leader, but in this film, Tommy Gordon (Billy Halop) is in control of this group of misfits, and they don’t come any tougher than him.

Yeah, Spit tries to come off all hardcore, but he knows he better watch his step around Tommy, or he’ll get his face knocked off. Now Sylvia Sydney gives an excellent performance as Drina (gotta love that name), who is trying to look after her brother Tommy, while fighting on the picket lines for better wages. She’s also got a crush on Dave (Joel McCrea), but unfortunately, he’s got the hots for Kay (Wendy Barrie) who’s nothing but a gold digger who likes hanging out with rich guys that she could care less about.

Kay is supposed to be in love with Dave, but unless he’s able to give her the kind of lifestyle that she wants, then he’ll be watching her sail off with her rich boyfriend in his yacht. “Don’t worry Drina, Kay may have better clothes than you, but they were given to her by some old rich dude that she can’t wait to get away from. Not only that, but she’s wearing way too much makeup, and it makes her looks like a clown.”

The notorious gangster, Baby Face Martin is glad to be back on the scene, for he hasn’t seen his mother in 10 years. Only thing is, mom isn’t so happy to see him, and gives him a good whack across the face. “Too bad Martin, maybe you’ll have better luck with ex-girlfriend Francie (Claire Trevor).” Unfortunately, that doesn’t turn out to be a good encounter either, since we all find out that she’s a hooker.

Uh oh, now Martin is all pissed off, and he’s decided to take a rich kid hostage. I really feel sorry for that kid, especially after the Dead End Kids just beat the snot out of him. Well, I guess we’ll just leave the situation in Dave’s hands, since he’s the only one that knows that can take care of business.

One thing that you will learn from this movie, is that being broke is no joke (as if you didn’t know that already). For example, there is a scene where this old hag steals a cookie right out the hand of a kid. C’mon! What adult is that broke and desperate that they’d be willing to do some scandalous stuff like that?

I also learned that building expensive homes in poor neighborhoods is not a very smart idea. Rich people run the risk of being mugged, and beat up on, so why risk it? I also learned that if you squeal on a friend, you set yourself up for a good slash across the face with a knife. What am I talking about? See the movie, and you’ll find out!

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