IMDb RATING
6.3/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
Youthful tough Johnnie Stone has fallen under the influence of petty crook Frank Wilson, who involves him and robbery and murder using his sister's boyfriend's stolen gun.Youthful tough Johnnie Stone has fallen under the influence of petty crook Frank Wilson, who involves him and robbery and murder using his sister's boyfriend's stolen gun.Youthful tough Johnnie Stone has fallen under the influence of petty crook Frank Wilson, who involves him and robbery and murder using his sister's boyfriend's stolen gun.
Joe King
- Principal Keeper
- (as Joseph King)
Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson
- Sam
- (uncredited)
Sidney Bracey
- Tourist on Boat
- (uncredited)
Edwin Brian
- Billiards Observer
- (uncredited)
Frankie Burke
- Billard Player
- (uncredited)
Featured reviews
To say that Humphry Bogart paid his dues is an understatement. From the time he joined Warner Bros. until his breakthrough role in "High Sierra," he was the studio's most reliable scowling, snarling double-crossing hood. Here's he's a penny-ante crook who enlists Billy Halop to join him in a quick stick-up. The pair are quickly caught and packed off to prison where Halop has continual bouts of conscience and Bogart masterminds an escape. If that sounds familiar, the plot -- and variations on same -- were standard Warner Bros. fare, especially in the 1930s. Bogart manages to pack a lot of charisma into a stereotype and Halop's ex-Dead End performance is pretty good, as well. But the movie itself doesn't veer too far from an all-too-familiar formula.
"You Can't Get Away with Murder" is a 1939 film starring Humphrey Bogart, Gale Page, Billy Halop, Henry Travers, John Litel, and Harvey Stephens. Bogart is still on his way up the star ladder - in his case, it was a long climb to 1941's "High Sierra" with lots of supporting parts, mostly as gangsters. Here he's the star, but this isn't a big film.
It is, however, a tense one with good performances. Bogart plays the meaner than dirt Frank Wilson, a criminal who takes advantage of the young, trusting Johnny Stone (Halop), a basically good kid being raised by his sister Madge. She becomes engaged to Fred, a cop who is being transferred to a better job in Boston. He plans on marrying Madge and bringing Johnny with them to Boston, where he's lined up work for him. But when a botched robbery leads to Frank committing murder, he frames Fred for it. Fred winds up on death row while Johnny and Frank serve sentences for another crime. Frank is afraid Johnny will rat him out in order to save Fred.
Bogart does a great job as Frank - he's easy to hate. Billy Halop for me was a bit overdone as Johnny, but he really kept you guessing as to what he would do. Halop was one of the Dead End Kids who sought a career on his own. He was mainly in B movies and finally in small parts, eventually seguing into television. He also worked as a salesman and, at the end of his life, a male nurse. Beset with marital, alcohol, and financial problems, he died at the age of 56.
It's impressive to look at Bogart's pre-stardom career and see how long it took him to break away from the pack - 11 years and 42 films. Well, he was certainly worth waiting for.
It is, however, a tense one with good performances. Bogart plays the meaner than dirt Frank Wilson, a criminal who takes advantage of the young, trusting Johnny Stone (Halop), a basically good kid being raised by his sister Madge. She becomes engaged to Fred, a cop who is being transferred to a better job in Boston. He plans on marrying Madge and bringing Johnny with them to Boston, where he's lined up work for him. But when a botched robbery leads to Frank committing murder, he frames Fred for it. Fred winds up on death row while Johnny and Frank serve sentences for another crime. Frank is afraid Johnny will rat him out in order to save Fred.
Bogart does a great job as Frank - he's easy to hate. Billy Halop for me was a bit overdone as Johnny, but he really kept you guessing as to what he would do. Halop was one of the Dead End Kids who sought a career on his own. He was mainly in B movies and finally in small parts, eventually seguing into television. He also worked as a salesman and, at the end of his life, a male nurse. Beset with marital, alcohol, and financial problems, he died at the age of 56.
It's impressive to look at Bogart's pre-stardom career and see how long it took him to break away from the pack - 11 years and 42 films. Well, he was certainly worth waiting for.
One of those fun urban crime dramas that Warner Bros. excelled at in the 1930s. This one stars Humphrey Bogart as a crook who corrupts teenage street tough Billy Halop (sans the rest of the Dead End Kids) into committing armed robbery and framing Halop's sister's boyfriend for murder. Soon Bogie and Halop are arrested and sent to prison together while the boyfriend (dull Harvey Stephens) faces possible execution for a crime he didn't commit.
Bogart is fine in a role he could play in his sleep but he doesn't get as much to do as Halop, who WB clearly had high hopes for. Halop is alright when he's playing to his Dead End Kids persona but when he gets melodramatic, the result is over the top. Great character actors like Henry Travers, Harold Huber, John Litel, Joseph Crehan, and Joe Sawyer add color to the cast and liven things up. Travers is especially good. Lovely Gale Page plays Halop's sister and gives a sympathetic turn. It's not one of the better examples from this genre but I doubt many fans will complain about it or feel like it's time wasted.
Bogart is fine in a role he could play in his sleep but he doesn't get as much to do as Halop, who WB clearly had high hopes for. Halop is alright when he's playing to his Dead End Kids persona but when he gets melodramatic, the result is over the top. Great character actors like Henry Travers, Harold Huber, John Litel, Joseph Crehan, and Joe Sawyer add color to the cast and liven things up. Travers is especially good. Lovely Gale Page plays Halop's sister and gives a sympathetic turn. It's not one of the better examples from this genre but I doubt many fans will complain about it or feel like it's time wasted.
Before superstardom Humphrey Bogart took many of these "mugg" parts before exploding on the scene in "High Sierra". In this film Bogart plays a small time hood named Frank Wilson whom is followed by Johnny {aka Leader of the Dead End Kids featured in other early Bogart movies}. Johnny is a teenager heading down the wrong path and gets into big trouble when Frank murders someone at a botched heist job. The real trouble for Johnny is that Frank frames the murder on someone near and dear to Johnny. The two hoods end up in prison after accepting charges on another crime to beat the murder rap. While at Sing Sing prison the guilt starts to get to Johnny and Frank doesn't like it. Will Bogie get away with murder? Not a classic movie by any stretch, but worth checking out, especially Bogart fans.
Raised on the "Crime School" (1938) streets of New York City's "Hell's Kitchen" (1939), tough teenager Billy Halop (as John "Johnnie" Stone) worries sister Gale Page (as Madge) by hanging out with small-time gangster Humphrey Bogart (as Frank Wilson). Sucked into joining Mr. Bogart in a gas station robbery, young Halop gets to join his nasty mentor in "Sing Sing" security prison. There, Halop learns his sister's nice fiancé Harvey Stephens (as Fred Burke) will face the electric chair for murder. Halop knows what really happened, but it would mean more trouble for himself and pal Bogart...
"You Can't Get Away with Murder" isn't considered part of the "Dead End" series of films, but follows similar story situations and could easily be considered one of the early, more dramatic entries from Warner Bros. Much of the personnel are the same, although it stars only one "Dead End Kid" (Halop). Before becoming a major star, Halop's "boyfriend" Bogart was a regular. Some of these were excellent, and some were poor; repetitive but enjoyable, this one is somewhere in the middle. There are some familiar faces among the studio stock players, with an especially nice role for Henry Travers (as Pop).
****** You Can't Get Away with Murder (3/24/39) Lewis Seiler ~ Billy Halop, Humphrey Bogart, Gale Page, Henry Travers
"You Can't Get Away with Murder" isn't considered part of the "Dead End" series of films, but follows similar story situations and could easily be considered one of the early, more dramatic entries from Warner Bros. Much of the personnel are the same, although it stars only one "Dead End Kid" (Halop). Before becoming a major star, Halop's "boyfriend" Bogart was a regular. Some of these were excellent, and some were poor; repetitive but enjoyable, this one is somewhere in the middle. There are some familiar faces among the studio stock players, with an especially nice role for Henry Travers (as Pop).
****** You Can't Get Away with Murder (3/24/39) Lewis Seiler ~ Billy Halop, Humphrey Bogart, Gale Page, Henry Travers
Did you know
- TriviaIn En surveillance spéciale (1939), Humphrey Bogart and Lee Patrick are seen leaving a theater showing this movie.
- GoofsWhen Frank returns to his apartment after the pawn shop robbery, a moving shadow of the boom microphone is briefly visible on the door frame above his head.
- Quotes
Frank Wilson: Maybe this'll help you out. There's only two guys know who did the shootin' and one of them's dead, and the other one's gonna be if he don't keep his trap shut...
[Pointedly]
Frank Wilson: Good night, Johnny!
- ConnectionsReferenced in En surveillance spéciale (1939)
- How long is You Can't Get Away with Murder?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime
- 1h 19m(79 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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