High School Confidential (1958)

Young Hellions

Cast:

Russ "I was in Dracula Vs Frankenstein?" Tamblyn is Tony Baker aka Mike Wilson
Jan Sterling is Arlene Williams
Mamie Van Doren is Gwen Dulaine
Jerry "Great Balls of Fire!!!" Lee Lewis is Himself
Jackie "Uncle FESTER!" Coogan is Mr. A
Charles Chaplin Jr. is Quinn / Undercover Detective
Michael "I was a Teenage Werewolf" Landon is Steve Bentley

What the IMDB says:

A tough kid comes to a new high school and begins muscling his way into the drug scene. As he moves his way up the ladder, a schoolteacher tries to reform him, his aunt tries to seduce him, and the "weedheads" are eager to use his newly found enterprise, but he has his own agenda. After an altercation involving fast cars, hidden drugs, and police, he's accepted by the drug kingpin and is off into the big leagues. A typical morality play of the era, filled with a naive view of drugs, nihilistic beat poetry, and some incredible '50s slang.

Plot:

Jerry Lee Lewis is singing the theme song on the back of a truck as the 1950s teens are dancing around.

Tough Tony Baker pulls up in the high school parking lot. He tries putting the moves on Joan, blonde, who is chick of the leader of the Wheelers and Dealers. Tony turns his paperwork to the office.

Ms. Williams, the English teacher, is introduced to her new student, Tony. He upsets her by hitting on her and, the charming student is sent to the principal’s office.

Principal Robbins is warned about Tony being a teen punk before meeting him.

Later, Aunt Mamie Van Doren is throwing herself at Tony, her “nephew.”

Why don't you come up and see me sometime...

The police are explaining the differences between cigarettes and marijuana to the teachers.

Tony runs into Little Joe, the athlete. In the cafeteria, Tony meets JI, the leader of the Wheelers and Dealers. Later, the gang meet Tony again who pulls a knife.

Back off man, I'll cut you with my pig sticker... JI wants Tony to leave Joan alone.

Ms. Williams’ car dies. Tony offers her a ride a home and putting the moves on her.

Watch out, there's a crazy semi truck after us..

Joan is going through withdrawals. She needs a stick. At a dress shop, she is able to partake her addiction.

At a soda shop, beatniks are starting free form poetry. Tony arrives and is looking for the reefer.

Later, at a swimming pool, Tony tries to get a drug connection with Jukie from Joan who is getting warm for him. Tony keeps the guys from hassling Doris, who has chills, because she’s on heroin. Later, Tony talks with Jukie to score and score big.

Ms. Williams wants to help Tony and to pay a visit.

Tony wants the drugs just to sell. At a race, Tony meets Jukie’s connection, JI. Tony wants the hard stuff but buys some weed and hides it behind a hubcap in his car. The race starts. A car flips over. Tony’s car’s hubcap falls off. The police arrive and bust everyone.

At the police station, Joan’s dad is blustering. The moralizing police have the lecture about how the parents know it’s not their kids. The big dealer, Mr. A, sends an attorney for Tony.

Back at school, Tony wants JI to connect him to Mr. A. for the hard stuff. Ms. Williams tries to warn Tony not to get involved, etc...

Aunt Mamie Van Doren meets Ms. Williams. The battle of blondes ensues. Let the fur fly…

Tony is taken by JI to Mr. August. He offers to let him sample some heroin. Mr. A doesn’t ride the snake.

Later, Mike, actually Tony, is briefed by a cop to be ready for the sting. Tony finds Joan in his room. She wants it bad. Tony calls Ms. Williams for her to help with Joan. Joan is rooting through Tony’s room. JI comes in. Joan mentions Mr. A. and how Tony taped Mr. A.

At the club, a goon takes Tony to Mr. A. He pays and gets the heroin. JI calls Mr. A about Tony. They check to see if he has any needle marks.

The cop finds Little Joe in the club. He needs him for a distraction.

Mr. A. versus Tony. Little Joe and his friends are chucking stuff at the goons. Brawl for all. Tony finishes off Mr. A.

Narration ensues. Ms Williams is teaching. Joan quits using. Aunt Mamie Van Doren’s husband returns. Tony is an undercover cop. Jerry Lee Lewis singing ends the movie.

What I say:

Once again, a gaggle of truly ninjaliscious B-Movie review sites have decided to do another roundtable. This time, with it being September, the end of summer and return to school. So, school movies. Though since I live in the South, all the schools have been going since mid-August. I couldn't help but think about when high school movies really hit its stride for the first time. You can pick a few high school based movies in the 1930s and the 1940s just not many. However, the 1950s had the start of the loosing of teenagers like a plague to be released. Good thing I'm keeping my venom away from the 1960s high school dirty hippy movies.

Every generation always thinks that the generation just younger than them is full of lazy, incompetent, good-for-nothings. Movie companies realized they could use that for a benefit or how to turn a buck. The 1950s had singers gyrating as teens screamed. An actor, James Dean, appeared and died just as suddenly. Teens were dressing stranger and just seemed they stepped out of a UFO. Their parents thought it was the end of the world. Though, they were lucky enough to realize the dirty hippies in the 60s were far worse.

Well, the 1950s is really known for starting the juvenille delinquent sub-genre. The 1950s teen rebel movies beat their audiences over the head with slang. They shook a stick with the word "Daddio" on it because of it being "hip" and "with it." Somehow, the new kid walks in cracks a couple of jokes at the principal and hits on the English teacher. That means the kid has to be some sort of juvenile delinquent punk. Not just the perils of drugs, they better have some hot rodding thought not quite as direct as in Hot Rod Girl.

The perils of drug use in 1950 movies at least seem heavy-handed until compared with say an earlier movie like Reefer Madness. The late 1960s really made the drugged-out hippies to be the end of the everything decent in 3 dimensions.

This is close to being one of the perfect nepotism movies. John Drew Barrymore, son of John Barrymore Sr. and father of Drew Barrymore. Charlie Chaplin Jr.? If it had been made in the 1990s, there would have been a Wayons, Sutherland somewhere.

Besides having a number actors who are related to others, High School Confidential had several actors that aren't as famous as Bela Lugosi but for 1950s B-movies, they are nobility. Mamie Van Doren was one of the low budget versions of Marilyn Monroe along with Jayne Mansfield. Jackie Coogan is probably best known for being Uncle Fester on the Addams Family. Michael Landon is even one of the teenages that at least doesn't turn into a werewolf this time.

Russ Tamblyn is the wild teen who actually is an undercover cop in high school. Did the Fox TV station plagarize this movie for 21 Jump Street? Russ Tamblyn is about as close to looking like a teenager than the Mafia baby Finster in the Bugs Bunny cartoon is a baby with the cigar and tattoo.

Quotable Dialogue
"Hiya, sexy."
"I'm looking to graze on some grass."
"Hip's a cool word."
"Thinking of you coming against those young tight sweaters."
"Mary Jane's a crazy name."
"I'm dying to blast, but I'm clean."
Morals of the Story
1950s electric razors have car cigarette lighter plug-ins.
Perfectly normal for teenagers to want to go for beers with their high school teachers.
Dress shops sell drugs.
Rubber balls are great places to inject drugs.