Hell's House (1932) User Reviews

The Lost Boys

[wes-connors · 7/10 · 28 June 2010]

In the days of Prohibition, orphaned country boy Junior Durkin (as James "Jimmy" Mason) goes to live in the city with his aunt and uncle, after his mother is hit by a car. There, Mr. Durkin becomes meets, and hero-worships charismatic boarder Pat O'Brien (as Matt Kelly). Durkin doesn't know it, but Mr. O'Brien is a bootlegger. O'Brien dupes Durkin into being the lookout for a cache of liquor, which police discover. Durkin naively thinks the booze was planted, and refuses to squeal. O'Brien lets the lad take the rap, and Durkin is sentenced to three years in "The State Industrial School for Boys".

After arguing over who gets top, Durkin befriends bunkmate Frank "Junior" Coghlan (as "Shorty"), who has a heart ailment. Conditions in the reformatory are terrible. The boys have a plan to spring Durkin, but young Coghlan is caught. While his pal lies close to death, in solitary confinement, Durkin breaks out to enlist O'Brien's help in finding suitable doctors for Coghlan. But, O'Brien doesn't want to get involved, or he'll have to leave pretty Bette Davis (as Peggy Gardner) for prison...

Howard Higgin's "Hell House" was relatively ahead of the juvenile reformatory curve, and boasts several points of interest.

First off, you have the two "Juniors" Durkin and Coghlan in the same picture, comparable to the 1980s "Coreys" Haim and Feldman. Durkin even looks a little like Feldman. Unfortunately, Durkin died in a car accident. Coghlan's supporting performance upstages even Ms. Davis - and, you will see Davis get her hair messed up as O'Brien tell her, "I just washed my hands and I can't do a thing with 'em!" Note, this was before Davis uttered her famous trademark response, "I'd like to kiss ya, but I just washed my hair" (see "The Cabin in the Cotton"). Finally, you have a delirious Coghlan "talking" to his dead mother quite credibly in one scene - and, in the end, Durkin's deathly "conversation" gives the story startling emotional closure.

******* Hell's House (1/30/32) Howard Higgin ~ Junior Durkin, Frank Coghlan Jr., Pat O'Brien, Bette Davis

EARLY bette davis...

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 4 July 2018]

One of the first films Bette D ever did. and unfortunately, one of the last that Howard Higgin directed. and almost the end of the road for Junior Durkin (played "Jimmy") as well. more about them later. In the film, Jimmy's mom gets bumped off, and he goes to live with relatives. Pat Obrien is "Kelly", a no-good boarder, and Davis is his girl. Jimmy takes the fall for Kelly, and now he's off to reform school. Sound and picture are pretty rough, which is probably why we never see this one on Turner Classics. director Higgin died quite young at 47. and Junior Durkin, the "star" of this also died young, at 19 in a car accident. Durkin also lost his own mother at a young age, just like in this film. The car was driven by friend Jackie Coogan. The film's okay. and a good oppurtunity to see a young Bette Davis in an early, small role. Showing on Moonlight Movies channel.

worth watching

[timboytx · 6/10 · 5 April 2006]

The production values leave much to be desired, as this was apparently a B-movie with a very low budget, but several things make it worth watching. There's the legendary Bette Davis, before she was legendary. She always owns the screen whenever the camera sees her, and this early performance is no exception, even in a smaller role. Plus, Junior Dirkin as Jimmy Mason, the teenager, is wonderful in a simple, unaffected performance, as is Frank Coghlin playing his buddy Shorty. Also, there's Charles Grapewin, prior to his role as Uncle Henry in "The Wizard of Oz". And if you have an affinity for reform school movies, as I do, add this to your list. Don't know why, but there's something about the incarceration of youth that appeals to me.

Worthwhile Material Helps Make Up for Weaknesses Elsewhere

[Snow Leopard · 16 December 2005]

The worthwhile story material in this crime drama helps to make up for its weaknesses in other areas. In approaching the subject of juvenile crime, it doesn't present anything revolutionary or ground-breaking, but it does call attention to a few issues that are worth considering, such as the ways that young persons become involved in crime, and the priorities of the justice system in dealing with young offenders. The movie is also of some interest in having Bette Davis in one of her earliest screen roles.

Junior Durkin plays a young man who in all innocence becomes involved with a charismatic bootlegger during the days of prohibition. Jimmy (Durkin's character) is arrested for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and is sent to reform school, where things get worse. Some of the plot developments are not all that logical or plausible, but the story works in calling attention to the way that the young offenders are often treated simply as annoyances to be minimized, with insufficient attention given to constructive development.

Pat O'Brien is effective as the bootlegger, and Davis, though cast as a stock character, has a few good moments as his tough-minded girlfriend. The rest of the supporting cast, which features Charley Grapewin and Junior Coghlan, is solid, and the story moves at a good pace. Overall, it's a little above average for its time and genre, and it contains some ideas worth thinking about.

Needs Cleaning, But Not Bad

[gavin6942 · 6/10 · 19 August 2015]

Jimmy idolizes bootlegger Matt, and when he refuses to implicate his friend, he is sent to reform school. He befriends Shorty, a boy with a heart condition, and escapes to let the world know about the brutal conditions.

Mordaunt Hall observed, "The attempt to pillory reform schools is hardly adult in its attack, but it has a few moderately interesting interludes. The direction of this film is old-fashioned. Pat O'Brien gives a forced performance. Young Durkin's playing is sincere and likewise that of Bette Davis as Peggy."

The biggest problem with this film is how poorly the physical film itself has held up. The Library of Congress has done a great job cleaning it, but it remains a bit of a mess, particularly in the first act. Hopefully some day a better print will be found. The story itself is decent, and tells another angle on the whole gangster theme: what of those who are not gangsters but keep their mouths shut on their behalf?

"KO Jimmy, KO".

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 4 July 2009]

"Hell's House" is a low budget Poverty Row production from Capital Films, doing what Warner Brothers provided on a broader and grander scale during the same era. It's interesting to see Bette Davis and Pat O'Brien in roles well before they became big names for Warner, even if they're backing the real star of the piece, a short lived young actor of the time named Junior Durkin. Durkin's character is Jimmy Mason, sent to the State Industrial School for Boys when he's pinched in a liquor warehouse raid. His fast and smooth talking pal Kelly (O'Brien) allows Jimmy to take the heat, even as Jimmy believes his pal will come to the rescue.

The film is classic melodrama, highlighted by a scene in the reform school when Jimmy tries to comfort his sick pal Shorty (Junior Coughlin), who subsequently dies after Jimmy breaks out. On the surface, the film attempts to uncover the pitfalls of the reform school system, but the exposition falls short of revealing any serious abuses. It's left more to the imagination of the viewer what might be going on behind the prison-like walls of the reformatory. The worst we get to see is the uniformed boys laboring in the 'brick yard', although that didn't look like it would be much fun. Funny, but I grew up in a small town that had it's own brick yard dating back to the early 1900's, and that nickname stuck around until about the 1960's; hearing it in the film really caught me off guard.

There's no way you'll ever believe the ending to the story if you know anything about human nature. Pat O'Brien's character gets remorseful after newspaper publisher Gebhardt (Morgan Wallace) declares 'You're a Rat!', setting up Kelly's come clean confession. You got the impression that Peggy (Bette Davis) had a good idea what a heel her boyfriend was throughout the picture. Her character walked a fine line between being the clean cut girl next door and a would be moll to O'Brien's bootlegger. Hers was a well played and subtle role.

If you enjoy stuff like this as I do, you would do well to look up a neat sixty disc/two hundred fifty film DVD set from Mill Creek Entertainment-Tree Line Films, comprising their Mystery Collection. It's a great bargain, and one of the very few ways you'll ever get to see flicks like this unless you're at the right place at the right time for a Turner Classics screening.

Vintage reform school drama

[lugonian · 3/10 · 7 August 2001]

"Hell's House" (Capital Films, 1932), directed by Howard Higgins, is a low-budget drama that might have been a much better reform school drama had it been produced at the Warner Brothers studio, in spite of pre-Warner Brothers contract players of Pat O'Brien and Bette Davis in supporting roles that give this the Warner Brothers feel. The central character to the story happens to be played by Junior Durkin (famous for his role as Huck Finn in Paramount's Mark Twain classics, "Tom Sawyer" (1930) and "Huckleberry Finn" (1931), both starring Jackie Coogan). But for today's viewers who may possibly find this movie in a local video store, Bette Davis is the one who brings added interest in a somewhat small role.

The story opens at a farm where Jimmy Mason (Junior Durkin) helps his widowed mother (Mary Alden) with the chores. The pleasant day turns out tragically when Mrs. Mason is suddenly struck and killed by a passing automobile. Left alone, Jimmy decides to come to the city and live with his Uncle Henry (Charley Grapewin) and Aunt Emma (Emma Dunn), landlords of an apartment building. There he meets one of their tenants, Matt Kelly (Pat O'Brien), who befriends the boy, and later introduces him to his girlfriend, Peggy (Bette Davis), a tough babe with a good heart, who takes an instant liking to this young teen. Jimmy, however, is quite naive and doesn't realize that Kelly is a smooth-talking, small-town operator and racketeer. Jimmy is soon offered a job by Kelly answering the telephone at his bootlegging headquarters. After showing him what to do and say, Kelly leaves Jimmy alone to tend to business. As Kelly slowly drives away, he looks at his rear view mirror to find the police barging in the place and arresting Jimmy. While in juvenile court, Jimmy believes that Kelly will come and speak on his behalf, and be released (no such luck). He refuses to identify Kelly as the man who hired him to the judge (Wallis Clark). Because of this, Jimmy is sentenced to three years in a state reformatory. While there, Jimmy becomes the victim of a cruelly-operated institution.

The supporting cast includes Junior Coughlan as Shorty, a reform school boy with a heart ailment who befriends Jimmy; Morgan Wallace as Frank Gebhardt, a crusading publisher wanting to improve reform school conditions; and James Marcus as the superintendent. While the opening credits presented on TV or video today give Davis and O'Brien star billing over Junior Durkin, the current opening credits are actually taken from reissue prints that capitalized on the stardom of both Davis and O'Brien, and is not the original opening credits as presented to 1932 audiences, hence the misspelling of Durkin's surname spelled Dirkin.

Although a reform school drama like this had been produced numerous times by other studios throughout the 1930s, "Hell's House," is really nothing new, in fact, a trifle slow at 70 minutes, handicapped by low-budget production values. Acting is good and reform school situations are grimly handled. However it's still interesting to see mainly because of the supporting actors of O'Brien and Davis, both of whom would become major film stars in later years, especially at Warner Brothers. (**1/2)

Bette Davis in an early role!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 31 March 2018]

Copyright 10 February 1932 by Bennie F. Zeidman Productions, Ltd. U.S. release through Capitol Films Exchange: 14 February 1932. New York opening at the Warner's Strand: 11 February 1932. 8 reels. 72 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: Naive young boy takes the rap for a bootlegger and is sentenced to three years in the state reformatory.

VIEWER'S GUIDE: An emphasis on torture and violence make this film highly unsuitable for children.

COMMENT: Although most people will want to see this film mainly out of curiosity (although her sixth feature, it is one of the earliest Bette Davis movies that are readily available), you soon become captured by the simple but rather horrific story, despite the general air of Poverty Row. In fact, the very lack of gloss in the production adds to rather than detracts from its still powerful impact. The photography is murky, the studio sets claustrophobic, but writer/director Higgin has used his real street locations with considerable flair. Two street scenes with Pat O'Brien are particularly well staged. The second is especially memorable with O'Brien sitting in his car at one end of an alley, watching the police raid his warehouse.

The acting has traces of amateurish enthusiasm, but there's no denying its force. Durkin is excellent as the naive country lad who innocently idolises O'Brien's self-promoting, minor-league bootlegger. Davis, easily recognizable despite her blonde hair and slim figure, is O'Brien's understandably surly girlfriend, while Morgan Wallace plays the tough, crusading but respected newspaperman. Marcus is the hand-washing warden, Clark a mealy-mouthed judge, Grapewin the hero's put-upon uncle, and Junior Coghlan a doomed inmate.

Admittedly, this movie is far from a masterpiece, even by "B" picture standards, but it is grimly entertaining nonetheless.

Fresh Off the Farm

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 28 October 2005]

Stars Pat O'Brien and Bette Davis have not near as much time as juvenile actor Junior Durkin in this one. It's another sociological drama from Warner Brothers about juvenile crime.

Junior Durkin is fresh off the farm in every sense of the word. The film opens up with Junior's Mom killed by a hit and run driver. Junior goes off to the big city to live with uncle and aunt Charley Grapewin and Emma Dunn.

They have conman boarder in Pat O'Brien and Junior falls for his spiel, hook, line, and sinker. O'Brien's a bootlegger and when his warehouse is raided, Junior takes the fall because he won't rat out his pal.

Junior goes to reform school where the conditions kind of open up his naive young eyes a crack. I think you can figure the rest of the plot.

Granted that things were more innocent back then even in Hollywood before the Code. But I have to believe that even audiences in 1932 had trouble believing this kid could be that naive. Also the beginning scene was totally unnecessary with Mom being killed. That storyline was left hanging. I was waiting for the driver to be caught and dealt with and he never was. Bad editing to say the least.

Warner Brothers got things a whole lot better with James Cagney in The Mayor of Hell the following year and then in a whole series of films with The Dead End Kids. Bette Davis is totally wasted on a thankless role.

Hell's House - Overall Impression

[aladar-219-783287 · 6/10 · 3 February 2015]

I managed to find this one netflix, and immediately the ratings told me that it wasn't going to be fun. While I don't think it's all that good, I can tell they tried to get the audience transfixed.

One thing I do not understand is how it goes from Jimmy losing his mother to him getting involved in the prohibition movement without his knowledge? How does this transition, exactly? The two events don't correlate to me and I didn't find it all that intriguing. That and it doesn't help that the acting isn't all that good. Sometimes the dialogue makes me cringe, especially when it comes to exclamations the characters give towards other characters, especially when Shorty was in the reform school. It just felt soooo scripted and unorganized and it was disappointing to see how little attention was put into how the dialogue was constructed.

One thing that I thought was kind of interesting was the friendship between Shorty and Jimmy. A lot of the interactions between the boys in the reform school was corny in general, but these two were the icing on the cake. That and I couldn't help but laugh whenever Shorty called him Big Boy. I'm sorry, but there is innuendo written all over this relationship and it's funny as hell. Being gay isn't funny, but combined with the corny dialogue and poor acting, it made things like that ten times more hilarious than they should be, especially when certain scenes intended to be moving. That isn't good.

I also had an issue with the Jimmy character. He's 15, and yet he acted much younger than he did; much too polite (that sounds awful, I know), too gullible, and very childlike. The actor was young himself, and died tragically two years after this film, but his work here wasn't very believable to me. He played off a kid pretty well, but maybe played it too well. Ironically the actor had a male lover before his death; it speaks VOLUMES. He stands just a little too close to other male actors and the whole time I am just begging for someone to kiss him--Mr. Kelly, Shorty, somebody! Give this poor boy some sugar!

I'm being generous with this and giving it a 6 out of 10, but I wasn't too crazy about this, despite my humor. I felt like they had a lot of wasted potential by spending so little time on filming it. A shame. I felt the topic would have made it similar to I Am A Fugitive In A Chain Gang. Awe well...

Grim reform

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 27 February 2020]

Really liked the idea for the story for 'Hells House'. It sounded quite touching and relatable. It also had Bette Davis, reason enough to see anything she was in regardless of the film's overall quality, in a small early role. The title does grab the attention and do appreciate early film, so there were enough reasons to make me want to see 'Hells House'. Regardless of the lukewarm reviews here and that it didn't look particularly great production-values wise.

'Hells House' has its moments and good things, and is overall quite watchable. It is though not much more than a curiosity piece, my curio reason being me wanting to see all the films not seen yet starring or featuring Davis. For me, the film could have a lot more with its relatively under-explored potential and more induced mixed feelings within me. It is namely to be seen for Davis but execution-wise it doesn't have much of everything else going for it.

Davis' screen time is far too small and her character is stock, she is above her material, but she brings a lot of dignity to what she has. Actually thought that in general the acting was above average, not mind-blowing but not amateur-hour, definitely one of 'Hells House's' better aspects. Great to see Pat O'Brien and Charley Grapewin here and giving likeable performances, Junior Durkin tries too hard at times and Jimmy was to me a problematic character in a way but he and Frank Coghlan's performances are deeply felt.

Their chemistry is also tenderly done, generally thought the character interaction was beautifully done in 'Hells House' and didn't get too cloying or overdone.

For all those good things though, too much is done wrong. The production values are far from great, excepting the effective use of shadow it looks very primitive. The sound likewise. The dialogue tends to be too corny and doesn't flow particularly well.

As said, Jimmy's character is problematic. Too naive in an unrealistic way. The story is charming and touching enough, but can be a little too slow in the early parts and can be contrived.

Overall, watchable curio but there are far better representations of Davis around. 5/10

Very Good!

[animism-36544 · 8/10 · 21 October 2015]

You can't call this story sweet because of the bad conditions of the reform school and the couple of shady characters, but the two little boys, the aunt and uncle, and the bootleggers girl friend definitely are. All in all, a very good movie confronting an important issues and morals. My favorite part is when Jimmy first arrives at the school, and gets into a small scrap with his bunk mate, friend to be. His friend comes off as a real jerk at first, but since Jimmy obviously knows how to keep his mouth shut about things and is nice, the friend automatically lightens up. It was great to see Mr. Kelly give himself up at the end. Such a good kid shouldn't suffer on account of an irresponsible man.

Hell's House review

[JoeytheBrit · 7/10 · 23 May 2020]

Hell's House is an independent picture which has the feel of a Warner Brothers product, not only because it stars Warner refugees Bette Davis and Pat O'Brien but because of the crime and prison - or reform school - subject matter. Although Davis and O'Brien headline, it's the ill-fated Junior Durkin, playing a good kid who ends up in reform school, who has most of the screen time. A pacey and tough drama that stands up well to the second-tier features churned out by the majors.

an early reform school drama

[kidboots · 5/10 · 26 October 2007]

Junior Durkin (spelled Durkin) played Jimmy in this film. If he is billed as Dirkin - it is probably a printing error (which often popped up on poverty row productions.) Capitol Films was hardly MGM and probably didn't have the budget for such extravagances as printing people's names right!!!

Durkin also appeared in "Tom Sawyer" (1930) and "Huckleberry Finn" (1931) with his friend Jackie Coogan. Unfortunately he died in a road accident in 1935 - Jackie Coogan was also injured.

This was an early teenage reform school drama. In this film Durkin plays Jimmy, who is orphaned early in the movie and goes to live with an aunt and uncle (Emma Dunn and Charley Grapewin). Pat O'Brien, in an uncharacteristic "baddie" role, plays their boarder. Outwardly he is everybodys friend but he is really a bootlegger and Jimmie comes under his spell. Jimmy is sent to reform school after refusing to inform on his friend, Mr. Kelly. It is the "Hell's House' of the title. While there he witnesses suffering and cruelty to the young boys and makes a friend of Shorty (Junior Coughlin, another child actor of the silents) a boy with a bad heart. When Shorty is sent to solitary confine- meant, Jimmy escapes to try to find him good medical treatment. When Shorty dies Jimmy exposes the dreadful conditions of the school, Mr Kelly confesses his guilt and Jimmy is free.

It is an alright film. It's only interest is a mousey Bette Davis in one of her earliest roles.

A Young Davis and O'Brien

[Michael_Elliott · 29 August 2009]

Hell's House (1932)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Low-budget crime/melodrama is best remembered for the early views of Pat O'Brien and Bette Davis. In the film, a young boy (Junior Durkin) moves to New York after the death of his mother where he quickly looks up to Matt (O'Brien). What the boy doesn't know is that Matt is a bootlegger and he ends up taking the rap for a crime and sent to an abusive reform school. The boy is trapped there unless Matt can grow some guts and admit that he is the one who should be behind bars. This film beat the Warner/James Cagney drama THE MAYOR OF HELL into theaters by nearly a year so I'm curious if this is one of those small studios hearing about a major studios work and then trying to race a finished product into theaters. The film certainly comes off that way because it has the structure of a decent drama but everything seems so rushed that they forgot to add any heart or soul. The movie is pretty flat, especially compared to the Cagney film and its several remakes, because we really don't see too much here. This reform school is suppose to be "hell's house" yet we hardly ever see any of the abuse or torments that the boys are going through. O'Brien's character is underwritten pretty badly as is his girlfriend played by Davis. The two actors are the main reason to see the film because they both come off very likable. O'Brien gets to shine in the role of the bad guy with a heart and it's easy to see why Warner signed him up. Davis doesn't come off as good but it's fun seeing a legend pay her dues. Durkin also does pretty good in his role but I thought he was a lot more believable in his "country boy" state early in the film rather than the hero at the end.

young Bette Davis

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 25 May 2020]

Jimmy Mason is an orphan living with his aunt and uncle. He is taken with their cocky boarder Matt Kelly (Pat O'Brien) who claims to have political connections but is only a petty bootlegger. Peggy Gardner (Bette Davis) is Matt's girlfriend. When Jimmy gets arrested, he is sure to be rescued by his well connected friend Matt. He refuses to turn in Matt and gets sent to reformatory school for three years instead. It's a rough place and his new friend is dying.

The most compelling part of the movie is Jimmy waiting for Matt while he's in court. The rest is a functional story for the boy although he's a little too clueless even at the end. His character needs to get smarter. Bette Davis is a supporting actress in this one. It's very early in her career. I would like Matt to be younger and his turn is a little too happy ending.

Hell's House

[h-macherone · 6/10 · 20 February 2015]

Practically identical to the film, I Am a Fugitive of a Chain Gang, Hell's House tells a story of a boy who escapes the brutal conditions of the reform school he was sent away to.

After the death of his mother, Jimmy goes tot he city to live with his uncle and aunt. While there he is befriended by a man Matt Kelly and ends up working for his bootlegging business. When Jimmy is caught working for Kelly by the police he is arrested but remains loyal to him and refuses to give him up. Jimmy takes the fall and is sentences to three years at the state reformatory. Jimmy becomes subject to abuse and cruelty while at the reformatory.

The acting was fairly strong and the story line moved at a seemingly fats pace. Not exactly impressive for its time but not bas either. Probably not worth watching more than once.

Is it OK, or a KO ?

[jacowium · 5/10 · 11 December 2011]

This is only the second feature film directed by Howard Higgin that I get to see, and unfortunately confirms my suspicion that his craftsmanship still lagged behind other directors of the time, such as Edmund Goulding, Mervyn LeRoy, Alfred Hitchcock etc.

I would cite the screen writing (in which he had a major hand) as one of the weaknesses. The characters often act cartoonish and not all the narrative bases are always covered. For instance, here we see the only the first part of an escape attempt, then the viewer is left in the dark as to how the escapee managed the rest of it.

On the other hand, Higgin's direction of the actors still manages to make me care about the characters, even if their behaviour is often cartoonish, as mentioned above. The actors use facial expressions quite well in communicating emotions, overcoming some of the production difficulties in the early years of talkies.

Another reviewer stated that the opening scenes are "unnecessary" and the "storyline left hanging". Au contraire! A central theme is introduced, i.e. the unwillingness of citizens to take responsibility for their actions, leaving the innocent to suffer in their wake. We then see the main character cradling a dying person in his lap, foreshadowing a critical scene later on.

I believe therefore that director Higgin had a good understanding of cinematic techniques and dramatic elements, but it is in the execution and communication of those aspects, where he disappoints somewhat.

And wait, I didn't mention the joy of seeing Bette Davis in an early role...

A kid get's caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[saalehab · 6/10 · 22 September 2015]

Now personally, I'll have to save that this movie wasn't a favorite. The plot was good, yes. But I'm a stickler for acting, and only two actors, Davis and O'Brien, actually provided a good performance.Overall, I was kept watching by the interesting story. The sound for a movie still early in the sound game was quite good, you were able to hear sounds like the bricks being thrown and cars clearly and even though there wasn't much of it, the music was also pretty good. The camera work I didn't find spectacular, there was one artistic moment that I can remember enjoying, which was when the boys shadows are cast on the reform room wall, it was a good choice to show that. But this movie, though good story was just lacking a little for me in the acting and camera work department for me.

somewhat interesting story but plagued with shabby production values

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 3 July 2006]

This story is about a teen orphan who goes to live with his aunt and uncle. They have a blow-hard boarder, Pat O'Brien, living with them and the boy idolizes and believes in this man--even though practically everything he tells them is pure bull. O'Brien gives the boy a job working in a warehouse answering the phone. The boy doesn't realize that the warehouse is stuffed with illegal alcohol and after the police get a tip, they raid the place and jail the boy. However, the boy foolishly believes in O'Brien and keeps his mouth shut and is subsequently sent to reform school. Here, the kid finds out that reform school is not a very nice place (big surprise) and much of the rest of the film is an indictment against the juvenile justice system.

Despite all this, the boy remains convinced that O'Brien is his friend--even though at any point O'Brien COULD have gone to the police and told him the truth and had the boy released. Eventually the boy escapes because he's trying to get medical help for his buddy, Shorty. The press find out about the boy as well as the truth about his incarceration. O'Brien finally admits the truth and the boy is released--but it's too late for poor Shorty. Despite being dead, Shorty returns for an amazingly sappy and stupid conclusion, as we hear his voice saying goodbye to his friend in the final frames (gag me)! This general theme of kids unfairly treated in jail was repeated many times in the 1930s--some times with the Dead End Kids and some times without. And, considering how lousy the acting and dialog is in this movie, you might be best served to watch one of these other films. Plus, the boy, at times, just seems too dumb to be real!

Also, while Bette Davis is in the movie, she's largely given an unremarkable and bland role. Several years would pass before the quality of the material given her would improve. Poor Bette!

Hell's House Summary

[cjlance8 · 7/10 · 16 February 2015]

Hell's House by Howard Higgins was a low budget film that displayed problems with reform schools and also showed a tight relationship between Jimmy and Shorty. Jimmy ended up with Matt Kelly because his mom was hit by a car and killed. Jimmy is an innocent boy who ended up in juvenile reform school because of Matt, the guy Jimmy looks up to. He takes the punishment for Matt who is a bootlegger. While in the reform school, he meet a kid named Shorty who would later become his best friend. They grew a special bond while they were there. Shorty taught him all the tricks with bricks and stuck up for him when the other kids were messing with him. The reform school were not too good and displayed many problems. Making the kids stand on the line and stare at the wall is torture. They had to stack bricks all day and it was hard work for young kids like they were. Jimmy managed to escape the reform school and wasn't going to leave Shorty there. Shorty was in tough shape after being abused. Jimmy was going to do whatever it takes to get him out and it shows the special bond they had even though he's only known him for a short amount of time. Higgins showed us how special their relationship was. He got Frank who was part of the newspaper to spread the word out about the school.

Lying for one person gets Jimmy in more trouble than he ever expected.

[livieelynn · 5/10 · 4 October 2015]

The acting in this movie was very good. All the characters really helped shape the movie. The plot/meaning behind it was very hard to decipher but the plot overall never got boring. It really made you learn about how that time period handled crimes and how even a young boy can be thrown into hell without a second thought. The lighting was very well done, too. It was perfect to watch the movie throughout and had darkened with shadows and face contours for effect when needed.This was very apparent in the scene with Shorty and Jimmy in the solitary confinement room. The photography was excellent, there were amazing shots and narrative when it came to the camera. The film lacked good sound effects. It was good, overall, but lacked in some areas.

Innocence getting caught up with crime with no awareness of it

[clanciai · 8/10 · 30 September 2021]

The beginning of the film marks its character. A single mother gets run over by a car, which leaves her there to die in the arms of her only child, a small boy with the name of James Mason. He has no choice but to go to town to his nearest of kin, his mother's sister and her husband out of work, but they have a tenant, who employs James Mason in his bootlegging business. Naturally the boy gets caught while his 'benefactor' absconds in faked innocence. That's the beginning of the downward journey into hell.

He ends up in a reform school, and the real interest of the film is the shocking revelation of conditions there. The boys are forced to slave work and subjected to inhuman punishments which are not far from brainwash. But the truth will out, even from the hell of a reform school, and a nosy journalist gets interested. That, however, does not help the one boy who has already died.

Protecting a friend puts Jimmy in reform school in this early '30s drama

[Tweekums · 6/10 · 13 September 2019]

Teenager Jimmy Mason lives with his mother till she is knocked down and killed by a hit and run driver. With nowhere else to live he goes to his uncle and aunt's home in the city. Here he quickly idolises their lodger, Matt Kelly. Kelly acts as though he knows everybody and Jimmy has no idea that he is really a bootlegger. Kelly gives him a job answering the phone but the premises are soon raided by the police. Jimmy refuses to say anything that could lead to Kelly; in his naïvety he believes that booze there had been planted by Kelly's enemies and that Kelly will get him out of his predicament... even when he is sentenced to three years at a reform school. Officially the school is meant to educate young wrong doers so they can work when they get out; in reality it is a brutal place where the boys are worked hard and brutalised if they break any rules. Eventually he tries to escape to try to get help for a seriously ill friend... once more he trusts Kelly; but will he do the right thing.

This is a decent enough story although it does move a little too fast at times; Jimmy has barely got to the city before befriending Kelly; then he is arrested on his first day working for him. The idea that this poor boy would be willing to spend three years locked up without talking seems unlikely... he won't even say where he lives to protect Kelly. This leaves his aunt and uncle clueless as to where he is. The film clearly has an agenda regarding the condition at the reform school... of course if establishments at the time were that bad such an agenda would be justified. The cast is solid enough; despite his third billing Junior Dirkin, as Jimmy, is the main character and he does a fine job in the role. Top billed Bette Davis impresses as Kelly's girlfriend but the role is fairly small. Pat O'Brien is also solid as Kelly. The copy of the film I saw wasn't too good; the sound track was particularly scratchy at times; while one can't blame the makers it did detract somewhat. Overall not a must see but worth a watch if you enjoy old films.

Hell's House

[eroberts-93865 · 4/10 · 21 September 2015]

Barely a few minutes into this movie, I was confused as to why I was even watching it. The acting in the first scene between Jimmy and his mom is absolutely awful, as is the camera work. Jimmy's performance doesn't seem to improve at all. In fact, I cringed when Jimmy stares directly into the camera after his first exchange with Shorty when he arrives at the reform home. That was quite a choice to make, but as far as the performance goes, I believe it's the kind of acting that doesn't understand the difference between on-stage and on-camera. Bette Davis easily gives the best performance in this movie, and with the amount of screen-time she gets, I think that's saying something.

I also noticed the lighting being slightly inconsistent and overall, not great. The transitions, however, consisting mainly of the number assigned to Jimmy at the reform home being added to list after list of new duties, were something I enjoyed. It was one of the only things that made me feel sympathy for his character.

One scene I did really enjoy was Jimmy's first try at supervising the other boys, who have been instructed to stare at a line on a wall indefinitely. The shots of their shadows on the wall followed by the one boy fainting really made me feel something. Horror, injustice, sympathy, disgust. While it had its moments, I can't say I was engaged or thoroughly enjoyed this movie.