Copyright 24 February 1942 by Universal Pictures Co., Inc. No New York opening. U.S. release: 5 June 1942. Australian release: 20 August 1942. 5,553 feet. 61 minutes.
SYNOPSIS: Law school student Tommy Clark gets a job with the crooked Apex Financing Company instead of a $3-a-week job as a legal-aid attorney. Although Tommy is in love with sophisticated Ann, he is loved by a local girl, Frankie. Frankie's father, Mike Taylor, is a cabdriver in debt to the Apex Company. Tommy is dispatched to repossess the cab, and does so despite the efforts of his former friends, Pig, Ape and String. Distraught, Mike Taylor attempts to jump off a building, but he is deterred by Tommy and Pig. Nevertheless, the neighborhood folk want to lynch Tommy.
NOTES: One of the 89 pictures in the "Dead End Kids" series. Pick a number in the 20s, say the mid-20s, but don't quote me.
COMMENT: The script looks like having real promise in its early stages by introducing a crooked finance company, but this theme is buried for most of the film under a welter of routine sub-plots. Nevertheless, good direction by William Nigh, and great photography by Elwood Bredell does help to save the day. All the same, although it poses as an action movie, "Tough As They Come" is riddled with plenty of talk, but does not provide anything like that much in the way of action.
SYNOPSIS: Law school student Tommy Clark gets a job with the crooked Apex Financing Company instead of a $3-a-week job as a legal-aid attorney. Although Tommy is in love with sophisticated Ann, he is loved by a local girl, Frankie. Frankie's father, Mike Taylor, is a cabdriver in debt to the Apex Company. Tommy is dispatched to repossess the cab, and does so despite the efforts of his former friends, Pig, Ape and String. Distraught, Mike Taylor attempts to jump off a building, but he is deterred by Tommy and Pig. Nevertheless, the neighborhood folk want to lynch Tommy.
NOTES: One of the 89 pictures in the "Dead End Kids" series. Pick a number in the 20s, say the mid-20s, but don't quote me.
COMMENT: The script looks like having real promise in its early stages by introducing a crooked finance company, but this theme is buried for most of the film under a welter of routine sub-plots. Nevertheless, good direction by William Nigh, and great photography by Elwood Bredell does help to save the day. All the same, although it poses as an action movie, "Tough As They Come" is riddled with plenty of talk, but does not provide anything like that much in the way of action.