Faccia d'angelo

Mickey Rooney gives an energetic ,scary and persuasive performance in this crisp and edgy don Siegal movie.The businesslike script by Irving Shulman and Daniel Mainwaring traces the rise of Nelson from apprentice gunman to Rocca(Ted de Corsia),through his meetings with Dillinger(Leo Gordon), his incarceration and subsequent escape aided by girlfriend Sue(Carolyn Jones)and his rise to the status of Public Enemy Number 1 Little is said about the background to the story-prohibition is scarcely touched on -or about Nelson's personal motivation .Instead it records -even ,disquietingly ,celebrates his achievements and behaviour.

The support cast gives Rooney solid backup and special kudos go to Sir Cedric Hardwicke ,Jack Elam and Emile Meyer It looks cheap and low budget but this actually helps the impact of this slick ,anti-social pulp movie

Mickey Rooney stretched the limits of his talents and continued to live down the image of all American Andy Hardy in this blood and guts portrayal of Baby Face Nelson. In the title role Rooney dominates this film and that's no small achievement for him as he is supported by a really good bunch of character players, especially for a small independent United Artists film. This part was certainly a better fit for him than that other true life short man he played Lorenz Hart.

One of the nastiest of the famous public enemies of the Thirties, Lester Gillis aka Baby Face Nelson had some real issues. A nasty temper and some inferiority feelings about his short size are what makes him what he is. Give him a Thompson submachine gun and he cuts all down to size.

Reading the Wikipedia article and knowing what I know about him, Rooney really captured his character well. His fans should love what he did in this. Only the cheapness in production values prevents me from giving Baby Face Nelson a higher rating.

A classic 1930's Warner Bros. gangster movie...except that it isn't. Don Siegel made "Baby Face Nelson" in 1957 and for United Artists but it has the look and feel of the very best gangster movies from a couple of decades earlier. Mickey Rooney plays the title role and, of course, he's perfect for the part and the wonderful Carolyn Jones is his girl. It's also got a killer supporting cast that includes Anthony Caruso, Jack Elam, Ted DeCorsia and Leo Gordon as Dillenger as well as an excellent Cedric Hardwicke beautifully cast against type as a doctor on the wrong side of the law. Irving Shulman wrote the original story and he and Daniel Mainwaring did the screenplay. The suitably seedy black and white photography was by Hal Mohr.

I did not have any surprise with this film. I have always loved every of the Don Siegel's features and this one makes no exception. Action packed, rough, tough script pulled by terrific performances with the likes of Mickey Rooney and Leo Gordon. I will never forget their prison films characters; LAST MILE for Rooney and RIOT IN CELL BLOCK 11 for Gordon. Rooney is as crazy as he was in the Howard Koch's masterpiece where he already was a cold blooded killer, leader of a bunch of men who have nothing to lose. This gangster film is not so easy to purchase and that's a real shame. I think it is one of the best of Don Siegel, so typical of his trade mark. Find it at all costs.

What separates a film noir from just a regular gangster flick made in the mid-40's to late 50's? Genre definitions are slippery beasts. I think a noir should, in most cases, say something about the human condition, something about how we respond to pressure, how our past defines us, how a bad decision in a moment of weakness can send us down the wrong path. A gangster flick is pretty much simple shoot-em-up entertainment. Because Nelson starts out bad and maintains that course, I wouldn't say we're getting much insight into the human condition. But it is damn fine shoot-em-up entertainment with another surprising performance by Mickey Rooney. As the tough-as-nails Nelson, he's cold and ruthless without a trace of his goody-good reputation. Also notable is Carolyn Jones as his game-for-anything devoted gal, and a series of fine (but with Nelson around, short-lived) supporting performances. Siegel proved with THE LINEUP that he could create top-notch thrills of the vicious variety, and although this film doesn't quite reach those heights (Rooney's good, but he's no Eli Wallach) it presents a series of rapid-fire scenarios without ever dawdling too long. Terrific jazz age score and one hell of a great ending, too. Noir or not, definitely worth a look.