Pretty good thick-ear. Four Hell's Kitchen kids keep up their friendship into adulthood even though one has become a gambler (McLaglen), one a priest (Kelly), two are cops (Gargan & Gallaudet), and the girl (Roberts) a singer. Now their lives intertwine in problematic ways as crime confronts the law.Looks like the plot's a variation on a familiar theme of the time (1930's)—kids growing up on opposite sides of the law only to confront one another later on. The concept creates a rich mine for conflicting emotions and loyalties. Here McLaglen has to navigate between gambling interests and loyalty to boyhood friends. The narrative sticks pretty closely to this line with its complications. The acting's okay, though emotions never build to an intensity. Instead, we're pulled along more by plot than characters. Certainly, McLaglen is capable of an intensity when so called upon, but not here. Oddly, there's not much action or violence despite the loaded title. I guess the two fires and smoke are supposed to justify the hellish expectations.All in all, the hour seldom rises above programmer status, but might serve old movie fans on a slow evening.

Devil's Party, The (1938) ** (out of 4) Okay, the story here is pretty confusing but I'll try to explain it. Four kids, growing up in Hell's Kitchen, have their lives changed when the oldest pulls a prank, which sets a warehouse on fire. He's sent to reform school but twenty years later he's out on the streets as a gambler/night club owner. Two of the other friends are cops and another is a priest. The gambler sends a couple men to rough a guy up but they eventually kill him and the two cops are put on the case. This film only runs 61-minutes but it seems the screenplay was missing around twenty minutes worth of additional footage that might have tied up various plot holes. With that said, I found myself somewhat entertained but there's really nothing going on in the film. I've heard this was an influence on Leone's Once Upon a Time in America but that connection would be very loose. Victor McLaglen stars.

The parallels to the same year's "Angels With Dirty Faces" is unmistakable, right down to the character of Father Jerry, portrayed in this picture by Paul Kelly. I'm a bit curious about the opening scene in which the street sign marking 35th Street and 11th Avenue also states Hell's Kitchen; I wonder if that was really the case. Or if it's the case today, I'll check the next time I'm in the City.This was actually a fairly compelling gangster/crime drama, centering on five friends who palled together as the Death Avenue Cowboys. Growing up on different sides of the law, they collide in a series of events triggered by Marty Malone's (Victor McLaglen) insistence on collecting a gambling debt. Events quickly spiral out of control when one of the O'Mara Brothers suspects foul play in the death of a gambler connected to Malone. Mike O'Mara (William Gargan) learns the truth behind his boyhood friend's connection to brother Joe's (John Gallaudet) death, culminating in dire consequences for each of the principals. The female member of the 'Cowboys' is played by Beatrice Roberts, the adult Helen McCoy.I've seen Victor McLaglen in a few leading roles (1937's "Sea Devils" comes immediately to mind), and this might be his best effort as a headliner. Actually, he pretty much carries the picture, with William Gargan in a decent supporting role as policeman Mike O'Mara, attempting to get to the bottom of Joe's death. McLaglen's death scene doesn't evoke the same tear jerk response that Cagney's did in 'Angels', but it's still effective within the confines of his former childhood gang.For followers of the Little Rascals/Our Gang flicks, the opening scene will be reminiscent, but with a little harder edge, as Death Avenue Cowboys might suggest. The surprise in the film credits, for me at least, was seeing Wild Bill Elliott listed as gambler Brewster who welshed on his debt with Malone. The other puzzler involved the gang roster engraved in the wooden plaque at the beginning of the story; why was Marty Malone, the leader of the 'Cowboys' and the oldest member, listed last?

A group of young kids growing up in Hell's Kitchen form a lifelong bond. Because one refused to rat the others out, he goes to the reformatory. As adults they find their way to conflicting positions in society. Two cops, a priest, and a nightclub owner. The latter is mixed up in some shady dealings, mostly related to gambling. He hires a couple guys to rough a "client" up but they don't heed his limitations and kill the guy. This sets of a series of events where he is now under suspicion and brings about the death of one of his lifelong buddies. The film looks pretty good and it has that cool black and white element. Of course, honor is at the center, but that honor is not respected by the "really" bad guys. Victor McLaglan's character must confront his own miscues and face the music for his actions. It's not a bad movie, but there are absolutely no surprises and the characters actions are frequently pretty hard to swallow.