The Angels Wash Their Faces

After a stint in reform school, fresh-faced Frankie Thomas (as Gabe Ryan) is ready to go straight. Upon release, he moves to "Beale St.", with pretty big sister Ann Sheridan (as Joy Ryan). The siblings don't know it, but the neighborhood is populated by young hoodlums and organized crime. Young Thomas quickly joins "The Dead End Kids" (as "The Termites") lineup of Billy Halop (as William R. "Billy" Shafter), Bernard Punsly (as Luke "Sleepy" Arkelian), Leo Gorcey (as Leo "Mousy" Finnegan), Huntz Hall (as Huntz Garman), Gabriel Dell (as Luigi Petaren), and Bobby Jordan (as Bernie Smith).

While Thomas scuffles with his "Dead End" pals, sister Sheridan is courted by handsome lawyer Ronald Reagan (as Patrick "Pat" Remson). This irks crime lord Eduardo Ciannelli (as Alfred Martino), whose romantic advances are reproached by Sheridan. While Sheridan organizes efforts to clean up the neighborhood, mobster Ciannelli counters with a horrific plan to frame brother Thomas for an arson incident, which may cause the death of a "Dead End" comrade...

In the sixth series film (depending on how you count them), the law of diminishing returns is clearly catching up with the "Dead End Kids". There are too many characters and situations rotating on screen, although most of them are enjoyable. The first part of the film involves (mostly) Frankie Thomas, a good addition to the group. Then, Billy Halop (mostly) takes center stage, becoming "Boys' Week Honorary Mayor", to help clear Thomas of arson.

Sheridan and Reagan make a great pair, as the likable, and level-headed adults; note, this is one of future President Reagan's most appealing early roles. The many other stand-outs include: James Cagney's young look-alike Frankie Burke welding a knife, wicked schoolteacher Margaret Hamilton, and grief-stricken mother Marjorie Main - each of these characters is "bigger" than the movie, which makes it all seem even more cluttered. But, it is a fun picture.

***** The Angels Wash Their Faces (8/26/39) Ray Enright ~ Frankie Thomas, Billy Halop, Ann Sheridan

Angels Wash Their Faces, The (1939)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The Dead End Kids star in this Warner crime drama, which has the boys trying to clear one of their pals of arson and murder charges. If you've seen one of these dramas then you've pretty much seen them all but this one here has a rather strange, stupid yet original twist at the end. The first half of the film is pretty boring as we sit through the typical story of a troubled kid trying to do good but getting into more trouble. Most of this is deadly dull and boring because we have seen it in previous films but then the twist takes place. In the middle of the movie one of the boys is elected Mayor and of course he appoints his pals into other positions throughout the city. This is how they go about getting their friend cleared but the screenplay is so far fetched that I couldn't help but break down laughing. All of this laughter made the second half of the film fast paced, loose and fun. The Dead End Kids are their typical self but Ronald Reagan and Ann Sheridan add nice support. Bonita Granville, from Warner's Nancy Drew series, also joins the boys and is an added touch. I'm not sure what it is about her but I've found her very charming and sweet in the five films of her's I've seen.

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.

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.

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 ****