The Angels Wash Their Faces

Gabe Ryan (Frankie Thomas) gets out of reform school and goes back to the slums. His sister (Ann Sheridan) does her best to keep him out of trouble, but it just seems to follow him. Aside from his associations with the Termite gang, Gabe is followed by real-life gangsters who have a scheme to set fire to random buildings to collect the insurance. They need someone to blame for the arson, and Gabe is it. It is up to the Termites to work the law in their favor and give the gangsters their just desserts.

The the scene that introduces the Dead End Kids is really quite good. The boys wander on over to the new resident's furniture on the street, and proceed to make it their own. They talk to each other in phoney posh accents and talk about drinking tea together; Bernard Punsley takes a nap in a chair. The boys then proceed to start a fight with the new boy, but after he proves himself a good fighter, they ask him to join their club.

The initiation scene is rather good too, filled with mischief that seems dangerous at first, but is really rather clever and innocent.

Later, when Billy Halop studies to become the boy mayor, he has a dream about schoolwork. This is wonderfully staged, with tiny holograms of the kids walking on his face and firing questions at him.

Angels Wash Their Faces is a great title because it plays off of the success of Angels With Dirty Faces, and really tells what the kids are doing. Notorious for bad behavior on and off the set, these boys make nice in this film. But rather than seem disingenuous, it makes for some great laughs. This is a preview of what many of the boys would become in The Bowery Boys series. We even get a few garbled words from Leo Gorcey.

This 1939 film tried to capitalize on the much better Michael Curtiz's film "Angels with Dirty Faces". As directed by Ray Enright, the only interesting thing is how tamed these kids were in comparison with what's going on with the youth in America's inner cities today.

The film is only worth seeing because of the presence of Ann Sheridan and Ronald Reagan, who showed they were well paired together. The Dead End kids have larger parts as the plot concentrates on them rather than in the older folks.

In a way it's curious how arson was used in the same way some scrupulous landlords did in later years right here in New York. It was the quickest way to turn a property around never considering the social problems it created. In today's climate with so many guns around there is a new reality. The young kids of the story seemed mere pranksters rather than criminals. How times change!

Angels Wash Their Faces, is basically a sequel to the 1938 hit Angels with Dirty Faces. The film is rather enjoying during the scenes with the "muggs" the Dead End Kids. They're a rather rambunctious group. What I don't like about the film is the drama that occurs between one of the group members death. It takes away from the comedy and it becomes a bit to serious for a film that was generally aimed at teens of the late 1930's. Ann Sheridan returns from Dirty Faces in a small and pointless role. She plays the role straight faced, and definitely from the looks of her is itchy to dig into a more serious role. Ronald Reagan also stars as another card board character. The films main stars are the "dead end kids", their the ones with the great lines and their the ones who shine throughout the picture. The adult characters of the film are left in the background, with not much to do. Still check it out if your a fan of the "dead end kids". ** out of ****

A sequel to Angels With Dirty Faces in name only, The Angels Wash Their Faces suffers somewhat from the usual shenanigans of the Dead End Kids. As a matter of fact, with the presence of the Dead End Kids and Ann Sheridan this should have been treated as an actual sequel to Angels With Dirty Faces, at least for continuity's sake.

Speaking of Ann Sheridan, she is the one true shining light of this movie. To paraphrase a cliché, Ann Sheridan could read from a phone book for two hours and I would buy the DVD!

Another virtue of this movie is the chemistry between Ann Sheridan and Ronald Reagan. Unfortunately , this aspect of the film is kept too far in the background. For a better example of the Sheridan-Reagan duo I would recommend Juke Girl or Kings Row.

A club of boys gets a mayor elected during boys week in order to free their new member, who has been framed for arson by corrupt men.

At the state reformatory Gabe Ryan (Frankie Thomas) is paroled to his sister Joy Ryan (Ann Sheridan). In their new neighborhood Gabe fights Leo Finnegan (Leo Gorcey), wins, and is initiated with tests into the Termite club. They put out a fire in a basement. Owner Kroner (Bernard Nedell) lets them go, but his boss Martino (Eduardo Ciannelli) tells him to cast suspicion on Gabe. Deputy D. A. Pat Remson (Ronald Reagan) questions Gabe and gets coffee from Joy. Kroner tells kids to leave his lot, and Sleepy Arkelian (Bernard Punsly) is hurt in the street. Joy knows it is corrupt politics and appeals to Martino and his civic league. Martino tells Haines (Cy Kendall) and Kroner to burn a building and blame Gabe by getting him to hate Kroner. Peggy Finnegan (Bonita Granville) urges Gabe to run for boys mayor. Pat kisses Joy. Sleepy is trapped in a burning building and is killed. Pat blames fire commissioner Haines. Sleepy's mother (Marjorie Main) is devastated, and Pat has Gabe arrested.

Witnesses including Miss Hannaberry (Margaret Hamilton) and Haines testify against Gabe, who says they are lying. District Attorney Remson (Henry O'Neill) persuades the jury, and Gabe is sentenced to ten years. Termite leader Billy Shafter (Billy Halop) runs for mayor. Termites discourage other candidates with rough tactics as Billy studies. Mayor Dooley (Berton Churchill) announces that Billy won the contest to be mayor for one week. Billy appoints as officers Termites Leo, Huntz, Luigi (Gabriel Dell), and Bernie Smith (Bobby Jordan) along with Peggy for street cleaning. Pat proposes to Joy that they marry, but she declines. Mayor Dooley leaves Gildersleeve (Grady Sutton) to watch Billy, who has his cabinet lock up Gildersleeve. They go to get Gabe from jail but have to go to a judge, who has them thrown out. They attack Gildersleeve, and the police chief calls Pat, who says they must find those who framed Gabe. Termites go after the records of Haines. Bernie's father hints of an impending fire for insurance. Pat takes Haines' account book to his father, the D. A. Then Pat, an attorney (Minor Watson), and the Termites find evidence along with Kroner and Shuffle (Dick Rich), who are arrested; but their lawyer gets them released.

Peggy says that Shuffle can be arrested for spitting on the sidewalk. The attorney and Leo have Kroner and Shuffle arrested and put in stocks. Billy accuses them of killing Sleepy. News reports Boys Week terror, and Mayor Dooley heads back. The lawyer can't free them and goes to Martino, who flees. Pat gets Kroner to talk. When Dooley arrives, Termites grab Haines. Pat shows Dooley Kroner's confession and congratulates him. In the final scene the city is cleaned up and has playgrounds as Pat invites kids to his wedding.

The young spirit of this drama has juveniles reforming corruption by democratic and legal methods with occasional strong-arm tactics.