Jeunesse délinquante

I read Paul's comment as to the film's location in Liverpool,but the school used was St Mary and St Michaels,Sutton street in Stepney London. the schools name was changed to Scotland rd. I was one of the children who looked on with much interest,and we were watching the catering waggon which had real cream cakes,and suddenly Peter Cushing appeared and told the man to give us a cake each,the man's face turned to thunder. also i remember a stunt man hurt himself falling from the school's window and missing the mattress's. I suppose they use a location,then switch to another like they did with To sir with love.

Jeff.

Stanley Baker plays a Liverpool police detective who is reassigned to a special Juvenile Liassion Department, which takes this film into the world of a large public housing project teeming with youth of all ages who are seemingly teetering on the edge of becoming responsible adults or the criminals the movie portrays, played quite well by David McCallum and the other tough actors who play his hoodlum friends and followers. There's an awesome opening shot of McCallum and his boys within the confines of the project, and the film interjects Baker into this world through his relationship with two childhood twins who play McCallum's younger siblings, and their older sister, whom Baker begins to fall for. Things get a little bit unbelievable as the film progresses, but the focus on alienated youth bopping along to a rock and roll song isn't half bad, and the conclusion, which seemed to me to be too much of a stretch, was still shockingly well done.

VIOLENT PLAYGROUND sees tough detective Stanley Baker assigned to a new role after falling foul of his boss; he's directed to head up a juvenile crime prevention scheme. Baldwin fears that his new role will be anything but interesting, but things turn out otherwise as a sub-plot involving an arsonist terrorising the streets of Liverpool becomes mixed up with the main story.

This is a gritty, ahead-of-its-time thriller that mixes social drama with a hard-hitting crime flick. It's surprisingly modern in feel, with tight, character-based drama mixed with action, ranging from car chases to hostage scenarios and of course one or two fiery set-pieces. Basil Dearden's black-and-white photography is crisp and clear and he makes sure to elicit strong performances from his cast members.

Baker is one of those underrated actors who sort of got forgotten about after his death, aside from his role in ZULU, of course, but he's very good given the right material and VIOLENT PLAYGROUND is perfectly suited for his talents. Baker is supported by an engaging cast, including Anne Heywood's love interest and Peter Cushing's priest, and it's worth looking out for future stars Tsai Chin and Freddie Starr in more minor parts. The best actor of the lot is David McCallum in a real star-making turn as the disturbed delinquent whose storyline propels the narrative. Altogether VIOLENT PLAYGROUND is a pacey and engaging piece of film-making which mixes drama and thrills in an effective way.

Sadly when you watch a film that is 60 years old, you may be lucky if only one or two members of the cast are still alive. As of April 2018, Violent Playground has several members of cast not only alive but still performing such as David McCallum, Michael Chow, Tsai Chin, Freddie Starr and Melvyn Hayes.

Director Basil Dearden as he did in Sapphire and would go on to do in Victim, makes a melodrama dealing with social issues.

Set in post war Liverpool, Stanley Baker plays Detective Truman, he is unmarried, has no kids and he is assigned to work in the with a juvenile division, something he is not keen on. His brief is to stop youngsters living in the poverty ridden part of the city, entering a life of crime.

He ends up dealing with a pair of young twins who were caught shoplifting. Truman is comfortable at first dealing with the kids but as he takes them home to their block of flats he comes to a bunch of older unruly youths such as their older brother Johnnie (McCallum) who might be behind a string of arson in the city. Truman also gets involved romantically with Johnnie's sister.

Johnnie is rather unhinged, in the past he was feted a hero but the film climaxes as Johnnie holds young children in a school hostage in an armed seige.

The film is not totally convincing as it seems the director is uncomfortable in how to deal with the social justice aspects of the story. It wants to be The Blackboard Jungle but it does not get there. Many of the actors have non Scouse accents which is a surprise as McCallum was supposed to be an early British actor influenced by the method acting techniques. Baker's character gets too comfortable, too early as a Juvenile officer, able to understand the issues facing the young kids, although that might be just to expedite the story. Some of the scenes of the youths enjoying rock n roll music and dancing to it just looks silly, making a link to music and juvenile delinquency.

This film was the first British teen movie to actually address the reality of the violent rock and roll society, rather than being a lucid parody of 1950s teenage life. In an attempt to celebrate the work of Liverpool's Junior Liaison Officers the opening title points out that 92% of potential delinquents, who have been dealt with under this scheme, have not committed a second crime. However, this becomes merely a pretext to the following teen-drama until the film's epilogue where we are instructed that we shouldn't feel responsible or sorry for such delinquents however mixed-up they might seem.

Stanley Baker plays a tough detective who reluctantly takes on the post of Juvenile Liaison Officer. This hard-boiled character is a role typical of Baker. Having been currently on the trail of a notorious arsonist known as the firefly and does not relish the distraction of the transfer. However, as in all good police dramas he is led back full circle by a remarkable turn of events, back to his original investigation.

His first case leads him to the home of two young children, Mary and Patrick Murphy (played by real-life brother and sister duo), who have committed a petty theft. Here he meets Cathie (satisfyingly portrayed by Anne Heywood) their older sister whom he eventually becomes romantically involved with. It quickly becomes obvious that the squalid environment of such inner-city estates is a breeding ground for juvenile delinquency.

The elder brother of the Murphy family, Johnny, is the leader of a gang of rock and roll hoodlums. McCallum does an eye-catching turn as the Americanized mixed-up kid, who owes more to the likes of Marlon Brando, than any previous British star. One is reminded of Brando's character Johnny from 'The Wild One' who led a leather-clad gang of rebellious bikers in much the same way as this film's 'Johnny' leads his gang.

Thankfully the preachiness of earlier Dearden crime dramas such as 'The Blue Lamp' is not so apparent. Instead we are presented with several well drawn-out characters on both sides of the law as the drama of the delinquents and the romantic interest between Heywood and Baker takes the forefront.

The plot, whilst at times predictable, does deliver some memorable scenes. The disruptive influence that rock and roll music was thought to have had is played out in a scene where Johnny abandons himself to the music, leading a menacing advance on the police sergeant. The most grippingly memorable piece of film however is the climatic classroom scene where a bunch of terrified school children, including Mary and Patrick, are held hostage at gunpoint by Johnny. Obviously in the light of the real-life Dumblaine Massacre this scene seems all the horrifying. Understandably because of this the film is seldom aired or available to modern audiences.