Dino (1957) User Reviews

Sal's show

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 30 April 2004]

I hadn't seen Dino in over 20 years and seeing it again affected me personally. Sal Mineo's portrayal of Dino Minetta was unbelievably close to the mark of a friend I had and the issues he faced in his young life. Like Sal Mineo that friend is no longer with us.

I'm curious as to how much of the original cast from the Studio One version repeated here. Outstanding for me among the supporting cast was Joe DeSantis as Dino's father.

But the movie is really a tour de force for Sal Mineo. For all fans of Sal Mineo it should be required viewing.

This review is dedicated to the late Roy E. Gomez who left us way too young, just like Sal Mineo.

A real tear jerker

[butter-3 · 10/10 · 10 May 1999]

I first viewed this movie as a teenager and immediately fell in love with Sal Mineo. I watched it every time it came on, even when it was late night. It is a simple story but a real heart warmer and tear jerker because of the crisis Dino goes through and the struggle he faces to be accepted. I wish that this movie would come on television again for the new generation to see and appreciate.

Connect the dots psychodrama

[JohnSeal · 5/10 · 10 December 2006]

Screenwriter Reginald Rose was one of the leading 'social problem' writers of 1950s television and film, but compared to Twelve Angry Men, Dino is pretty weak tea. Sal Mineo, doing his best Marlon Brando impersonation, plays the title character, a troubled teenager who's just returned home after doing time for a warehouse murder. His father is a brute, his brother is a fledgling member of a local gang called the Silk Hats, and his parole officer (Frank Faylen) is worried. He refers the sulky youngster to skull doctor Larry Sheridan (Brian Keith), and the result is a predictable tale of a juvenile delinquent and the caring, liberal-minded social worker out to save him from himself. Rose's screenplay is burdened with a surfeit of clumsy hipster slang and Mineo's performance is nowhere near as convincing as his similar efforts in Rebel Without A Cause or Who Killed Teddy Bear. On the plus side, Gerald Fried's strident score is effective, Dick Bakalyan raises his pompadoured head for a brief moment, and love interest Susan Kohner is an interesting variant on the ugly duckling stereotype. All in all, a completely average JD flick that could have been better.