'Neath Brooklyn Bridge

For a film that has survived 60 years, I wonder why I haven't enjoyed the East Side Boys before. Anyway, I got a DVD with four of their adventures. In this episode, the boys are moving furniture near the tenements by Manhattan's area near the Brooklyn Bridge. They get into a bit of trouble when they spot a beautiful but distracted young woman named Sylvia. Her stepfather wants her and him to leave their tenement apartment but she won't leave her paralyzed grandfather behind. Her stepfather is in some shady dealings. The East Side Boys sure can be tempted into joining the crime scene but choose to make an honest living in tough times. The film was on the end of the Great Depression and Second World War. Despite the predictability, the cast especially Leo Gorcy do a terrific job in making it entertaining.

They help move furniture and admire the architecture of The Brooklyn Bridge. But more importantly, "The Eastside Kids" Leo Gorcey (as Muggs McGinnis), Bobby Jordan (as Danny Lyons), Huntz Hall (as Glimpy), Ernest Morrison (as Scruno), Stanley Clements (as Stash) and Bobby Stone (as Skinny) save beautifully-shaped Anne Gillis (as Sylvia) from her wicked step-father. Unfortunately, this leads to Mr. Jordan being arrested for murder… which leads to Mr. Gorcey being blackmailed into heavy-duty crime...

This average Bowery entry is made engaging by the regular, semi-regular, and guest characterizations. Former "Dead End" kid turned "cheap crook" Gabriel Dell (as Skid) works for accomplished hood Marc Lawrence (as McGuffey). Returning "charter member" of the kid gang Noah Berry Jr. (as Butch) makes his first appearance and gets to romance Ms. Gillis, who hides out with the guys disguised as a boy. Making his last appearance on the Bowery is officer Dave O'Brien, always genuine as Jordan's big brother.

***** 'Neath Brooklyn Bridge (11/20/42) Wallace Fox ~ Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan, Marc Lawrence, Dave O'Brien

Solid Kids knock-about. So can the guys clear their buddy Danny (Jordan) from the cops who're mistakenly holding him as a killer. Good thing the Kids have Navy man Butch (Beery) on their side, especially since he knows Morse Code. The antics fly fast and furious in typical Kids style, from Glimpy's fractured English, to Mug's 'pop-em' style leadership, to Scruno's big-eyed run-around. And catch lovely actress Gillis' sweetly demure Sylvia and the way she emotes with subtle eye shadings. Too bad she didn't have a bigger career. Then too, note the great supporting cast of Hollywood vets: Lawrence as the coldly mastermind McGaffey, O'Brien taking a day off from saddle and six-gun as a cop, and Robinson as the officious chief cop. It's also a good look at fashions from that early war-year of 1942, along with crowded studio streets not expected from these low budget productions. And, oh yes, one more note: over time I've gleaned that any time I see a purported city street blocked off at one end, it's really a studio street, as it is here.

Nonetheless, the Monogram production amounts to an ace hour of nutty entertainment from a crew of guys who deserve a lot more than Hollywood obscurity. So catch up with it if you haven't already.

Although in many of the Bowery Boys films the gang seemed like a bunch of hoodlums, they were never really THAT larcenous in their films. They just acted tough and the police were forever dogging them. But, as usual, they are the good guys in "'Neath Brooklyn Bridge"....and once again the police suspect one of them. This is because someone was horribly beaten to death and Danny (Bobby Jordan) was arrested because his weapons were on the murder weapon, a bat. Little does anyone know that a mute man who can only speak with his eyes was a witness. As for the gang, they spend a lot of the film taking care of a young lady who is in trouble and eventually they are instrumental in finding the real culprits. On hand as one of the supposed ex-members of the gang (he was a bit old for this...Noah Beery, Jr.).

Overall, this film is pretty typical of a Bowery Boys film--- modestly entertaining and nothing more. Worth seeing if you are a fan but not among their best.

This time Muggs, Glimpy and the gang take on a real hard case: gangster Marc Lawrence, a cold-blooded baddie who entraps sweet young thing Ann Gillis (whose most recent film credit remains 2001: A Space Odyssey) in a murder case. Lawrence elevates this Poverty Row billfiller above its station; as always, he brings absolute conviction to his role. There's also a fun subplot involving a wheelchair-bound paraplegic played by Ed Wood regular Bud Osborne. The fact that these films were all shot on a shoestring oddly benefits the East Side Kids movies: the threadbare sets, minimal costuming, and muffed lines add a patina of Bowery believability to these endearing little films.