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• Psycho Gang Members

  • Marcia Peters
  • 10/17/10

  I am a major classic film fan and this is probably one of my least favorites due to the subject matter only. The actors, scenes and basic story plot are good. The direction is well thought out. I suppose it is just me however movies about bullies always puts a bad taste in my mouth. Bullies are REAL and really alive and well in many a city in the United States and all over the world today as well as yesterday. Bullies come in many shapes and sizes, yet this one Frankie, has the mentality of a psychopath and that goes above and beyond the scope of justifiable badness. I think the actor who plays this part was mis-cast, his age is not believable, he looks older and just plain evil. Considering the subject matter in the late 1950's was probably pretty risque', the ferver with which this 18 year old seeks to kill is beyond what is imaginable in that time period for a teen. The direction of the movie and cinematography is excellent. The actors who portray Frankie's mother and little brother are above average and give great performances. However the 18 year old's reasons for being as "angry" as he is, do not quite round out as believable. He has a chip on his shoulder, but the reason it is there is hard to imagine. His side kick who sings and hums all the time, is quite mad too. Personally, they would both have been better cast in a mental institution flick than this one. But as a reflection of the time and, sign of the times, with what was to come over the next couple of years during the 60s, I suppose random violence and "mad" teens is what the middle class saw when they looked into the faces of the young...

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