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68% Critic Match
Boys Town
“"No boy is bad, if given a chance!"”
6.8 / 10• 1938• 1h 36m•NR• English
Drama
Storyline
Devout but iron-willed Father Flanagan leads a community called Boys Town, a different sort of juvenile detention facility where, instead of being treated as underage criminals, the boys are shepherded into making themselves better people. But hard-nosed petty thief and pool shark Whitey Marsh, the impulsive and violent younger brother of an imprisoned murderer, might be too much for the good father's tough-love system.
Cast & Crew
Spencer Tracy
Father Flanagan
Lead
Mickey Rooney
Whitey Marsh
Henry Hull
Dave Morris
Leslie Fenton
Dan Farrow
Gene Reynolds
Tony Ponessa
Edward Norris
Joe Marsh
Addison Richards
Judge
Minor Watson
Bishop
What People Are Saying
4.0
“A staggering achievement of craft and ambition. Norman Taurog's vision lands with breathtaking precision.”
3.0
“Every frame feels alive. Boys Town is the rare release that takes its audience seriously.”
