High School Caesar (1960) User Reviews

Place the blame where it belongs...On the parents!

[mark.waltz · 4/10 · 5 September 2015]

John Ashley gives a memorable performance in this teen exploitation drama of a spoiled but neglected rich kid who pretty much controls the lives of his classmates, arranging for himself to be elected student body president so he can extort from them in other ways. He also arranges for the hero-worshiping class geek to be elected treasurer so he can have access to the till. Ashley isn't as well liked as he thinks he is, and an act of violence will not only end one life but destroy his reign of terror.

Decent for this kind of drive-in fare, this is pretty mesmerizing in spite of obvious flaws. Some of the teens are obviously much older, and the dialog is often trite and silly. Yet, the psychology which goes into the creation of Ashley's character was well thought out, especially in his mistreatment of a butler, yet his affection for the cook. When he goes to bed and pretty much cries himself to sleep, it is a cry for help that a lot of teens can identify with. The conclusion is not concrete, which means that the audience must come to their own conclusions.

John Ashley was just too good to be bad in this movie

[sol1218 · 6/10 · 8 October 2004]

***SPOILERS*** Poor Matt Stevens, John Ashley, left all by himself in a big mansion with a maid and butler and everything he can ever want at his disposal. Matt also has a weekly allowance mailed to him by his parents who are jet setting all over Europe. With all these goodies what else can he do but organize a gang of goons to shake down and beat up anyone who doesn't pay the proper respect to his highness Big Matt AKA High School Caesar.

Rigging the high school election Matt becomes the new student body president and with his new found power he has the right to get his hands on any of the students bodies that he wants. Putting Crickett, Steve Stevens, in charge of the treasury department the money really starts to pile up as Matt's operations in shake downs pay-offs. Matt also has a very lucrative test exam business with him having the keys to the principle's office where the exams are kept. That sleazy operation of his fills the students presidents coffers as Matt sells the exams to students who need to pass them but aren't smart enough to, which is like everyone in Wilson High School.

Matt gets carried away with his power by trying to go off campus and take over the drag and road car race racket. Getting himself into a race where Matt put up a gold coin worth some $100.00 as prize money he feels that he's a shoe-in to win. To his surprise Matt loses to his beaten rival for school student body president Kelly Roberts,Lowell Brown. Not being one to take losing quietly he and Crickett ambush Kelly as he was driving home and force him off the road killing him. At the same time Matt takes back the gold coin that Kelly won from him.

Crickett later turns on Matt not because he killed Kelly but because he didn't come through in getting him beautiful Wanda, Judy Nugent, as his women. Matt knowing a good thing when he sees one tried to have her all for himself. Trapping Wanda in the back seat of his car and with him and his grubby hands all over her Matt drops the important piece evidence, the gold coin, on the seat! Wanda grabs and runs to her friends with it as proof that it was Matt who killed Kelly not that he was killed in a traffic accident.

Crickett wanting to get back at Matt runs to the local student hang out where their having a birthday party for Matt to tell them it was Matt who killed Kelly. Crickett not being that bright doesn't quite realize that he implicated himself as an accomplice in the murder! The movie ends with Matt beaten broken and all alone outside the diner where the students were to celebrate his birthday waiting for the cops to come and take him away.

John Ashley or Matt Stevens just couldn't come across as a bad guy even if he killed the entire cast, much less Kelly Roberts, in the movie. Matt's acting as a rotten young man was not convincing at all. The movie also didn't give any reason for Matt's actions since he had all the money that he could ever want. With his drop-dead good looks Matt didn't need to rape any girl in the school they would have gladly thrown themselves at him just for the asking! So why go through all the trouble to cheat rob and steal to the point of murder to get cash that was nothing to what he already had! As for him trying to be liked and popular by doing it Matt only got the opposite results! Matt was hated and despised by everyone in the school.

Matt was both handsome and personable as well as a very likable guy that all he needed was just to be himself and he would have gotten all the love and respect that he wanted. Without him being a thug and thus turning off everyone and in the end ending up behind bars.

Cool Cars, good music

[headhunter46 · 6 September 2004]

I bought a DVD from Best Buy that had several movies on one disc. There was a large rack in the middle of the aisle and all the movies were marked down to $5.99! There were two discs in the box with a total of four movies. This movie was one of those in the set. I did not recognize any of the people listed on the jacket but watched it anyway. I had a great time seeing all the old cars looking like new and the music took me back to the 50's. I turned 13 in 1959 and this was a great flashback. The main character was a spoiled, self serving, rich punk. A good example of how money can corrupt an otherwise decent person. I kept hoping he would get his just rewards. I always like to see those type take a fall. I won't tell you how it turned out, you'll have to watch it for yourself. It will give you a fairly decent look at how clothes, music, and cars were back then. I agree some of the acting was only a little better than my senior class play, but I still enjoyed it. I rate it 7* out of 10.

Dumb but entertaining...

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 15 April 2010]

Okay, I'll admit right off that the writing and some of the acting really sucked in this film. But, despite all this, the movie STILL is pretty entertaining--particularly if you look at it for its camp value! The film begins with Mat Stevens (there are multiple different spellings of his name in the film) and his gang of leather jacket-clad semi-thugs walking about school like they own the place. It's obvious they are tough and violent--even though, for the most part, they never get around to being very violent. On top of that, Mat turns out to be a very spoiled jerk...who has a heart that bleeds!!! Yes, it turns out that he's a sad and lonely jerk because his rich parents have pretty much dumped him. He's lonely and hurtin' inside--and cries when no one is around to see it! Yet, when he's around the kids at school, he's tough, self-assured and a real butt-head! Now you never really feel sorry for him despite the pathos--as he really is a vile (and wimpy) young man. Seeing just how vile he can be, though, it pretty cool--and fun to watch.

This is a cheap film designed to warn parents and kids about the dangers of juvenile delinquents. However, it all seems so sanitized and silly today that you can't help but laugh a bit. As I mentioned above, my favorite scenes consist of Mat kicking and screaming and crying in bed because he wants his mummy and daddy!! Weird but funny...and oddly, a bit like John Waters' "Cry Baby"...a very, very bad version of "Cry Baby"!

standard JD drama

[johnc2141 · 3/10 · 5 June 2010]

I usually like the JD movies from the fifties and sixties but this one is not very good.but had a good idea.high school Caesar deals with a spoiled rich kid played by John Ashley who is pretty much a racketeer at his high school while running for student council.there's car racing,an accidental death and fighting but really nothing really new or original.however i am a fan of John Ashley movies,he was sort of like the poor mans James dean.although his earlier feature Frankensteins daughter i found more enjoyable.high school Caesar is not a poor movie but i would say standard fare,mediocre at best.funny thing about this movie is John Ashley is the only well known star in this movie,I'm not sure if this was an American international picture since the copy i saw on internet movie archives was a bit choppy and jumpy.i can only give high school Caesar 3 out of 10.as for the title high school Caesar is kind of a take on the 1931 classic little Caesar with Edward G Robinson.but no comparison.

A rich teen tries to rule his high school.

[michaelRokeefe · 5/10 · 23 October 2014]

He is rich and a well dressed man, with lack of self confidence. Matt Stevens(John Ashley)appears to be the "cock of the walk". Matt is going to take command of his high school by hook or crook. Oh yes, the big man on campus rigs elections, provides test papers for favor and even collects money from those that don't want to be pummeled by his thugs. Student president and he rules his own bullish empire. Things for Stevens goes sour, when a drag race goes awry and a popular young man loses his life. There is now a chink in his armor; and the student body begins to ignore and resist his power.

Others in the cast: Gary Vinson, Judy Nugent, Steve Stevens, Lowell Brown, Darla Massey, Ken Plumb and Don Hinkle.

Intelligent for a b-movie

[jeremy3 · 7/10 · 31 March 2007]

It is hard to give bad comments on old films. They are all lessons on how life was in the past. The makers of this film reveal a great deal of intelligence behind a rather dull plot. For example, John Ashley's anti-hero is not your stereotypical bully. He is of average build. The hero is blond and much more powerfully built. Ashley's character is not physically threatening. He is just very manipulative in maintaining his position as head of the school gang. In addition, the anti-hero is rich. Usually, the gang leaders are poor. There is a great deal of substance to the characters. The real focus of the movie is the coin. The valuable coin represents all the self-esteem that the anti-hero got from his father. His father was completely absent from his life, and the only momento he has that his father even knows he exists is the coin his father once gave him. The anti-hero (Ashley) is clearly the victim of absent parents. This turned him spoiled and into the bully. The only actor I recognize vaguely is the younger student who is his right-hand man. The main qualities that he has is slavish loyalty and awe for the gang leader. He never questions anything the gang leader does. This makes him valued. For most of the movie, you think that the young follower is really a sap with no agenda. However, during the movie you discover that "the sap" has an agenda. He turns almost on his beloved leader when he doesn't deliver the girl he prizes as a date to him. Up until that point, the follower seems to just be a virtual slave. You realize that "the sap" has an agenda, too, and believes that by following his leader he will get to date the beautiful blond girl. The last fifteen minutes of the movie are most powerful. The anti-hero drags the blond girl he longs for into his car, and brings her to a park. She runs away. He follows. By that time, every in the gang and those who are not in the gang discover that the anti-hero drove a guy off the road and took back his coin that he lost squarely in a drag race. Ashley probably delivers his finest performance of his career as someone who is really messed up. You feel sorry for the rich bully, who is obviously very lonely and has had parents who never raised him. It is really the parents whom caused him to be what he was. They were obviously too busy making money, and totally left him on his own. The principal of the high school is a real flake. He unknowingly enlists the bully to look into why there is bullying going on at the school. Not very bright.

Could have been interesting, but wasn't.

[bobc-5 · 2/10 · 22 May 2001]

Rich kid Matt Stevens understandably feels insecure, having been all but abandoned by his parents who prefer touring Europe to spending time with their son. Stevens is capable of showing a great deal of tenderness and affection to the cook, his surrogate mother, yet at the same time display nothing but total contempt while brow-beating the butler, an obviously inadequate stand-in for his idolized absent father.

At school, he's rigging elections and creating his own little empire which he runs like a seasoned CEO. He's a consummate politician who has the principal eating out of his hand and a tough punk who beats up kids after school while shaking them down for protection payments. In spite of all his skills, he is tragically destined to push things too far and alienate those around him, leading to his inevitable downfall.

The Stevens character is well thought out and excellently portrayed, and the scenes of him running his high school empire like a veteran politician seem somewhat unique for this genre. If all of this sounds like it might be interesting, that's too bad, because the movie as a whole appears to be little more than a poorly scripted low-budget attempt to quickly cash in on the popularity of gang movies in the late 50's.

Matt Stevens could have been a "Papa Doc Duvalier"

[marcus-brainard · 6/10 · 5 January 2010]

John Ashley did a good job being Matt Stevens, at his High School & in the past there has been various "High School Caesars" and some were good and some were bad & there were also "High School Princesses" who did good and bad. And the worse "High School Princess" would have been a nerd girl who her peers look up to her as a goddess. Now there was another story about a white-faced version of Francios Duvalier aka "Papa Doc". And this guy was a cross between Starkweather & Papa Doc and he would rule the school as a hidden leader. Teachers and Students who oppose him are taken out by "The Tonton Macoutes" and never seen again & they appear as normal looking people, but they are bad to the bone. Then comes a brave soul who had enough of "Papa Doc Starkweather" and it's time to rid of him & they do it with a car bomb & then the High School Caesar is history. However in return for his demise The High School gets a taste of Hiroshima. Then many years later we find out that "Papa Doc Starkweather" survived & he has a son who will go to his high school & become "Baby Doc Starkweather". And thank God, John Ashley's Matt Stevens didn't go the same direction as Papa Doc Duvalier did. So that's it for this movie. Marcus Brainard

Leather-jacketed high school gang terrorizes their school

[wbswetnam · 3/10 · 5 August 2012]

High School Caesar is centered around Matt, a spoiled rich boy whose parents don't have time for him so he becomes the leader of a bunch of high school thugs. These punks extort protection money from students, sell tests to students, and engage in other parasitic behaviors. There are some wholesome students who resist Matt and his tormentors however, and as can be predicted, things come to a head between the two groups.

For a movie about a quasi-mafioso bunch of high school thugs, there is very little violence. Some kid gets beaten up at the beginning of the movie for failing to pay protection money, and a few other punches are thrown here and there, but don't expect to see any gang fights, shootings, stabbings, etc as you might think there would be in a movie of this genre. The main character Matt is actually not very believable... I would expect a gang leader to be more aggressive and less of a private cry-baby.

Poor Man's Fabian

[bkoganbing · 2/10 · 3 November 2011]

John Ashley who was a poor man's Fabian back in the late Fifties was discovered by John Wayne who steered him into a show business career. One wonders why the Duke didn't put him into some of his films, all of them around this time better than High School Caesar.

Fabian certainly was in better films than High School Caesar a cheaply made and photographed film about a spoiled rich kid who has a gang of leather jacketed flunkies who terrorize the kids in the local high school. One reviewer said that there was no real explanation for Ashley's bad behavior, personally I think it was because he was plain no good. He's even got the brain dead principal under his thumb and he wins election as student body president with a campaign of intimidation and extortion. His number one flunky Steve Stevens gets elected treasurer and then Ashley really goes to work. Stevens however has a social problem and wants Ashley to fix him up with campus queen Judy Nugent who much prefers drag racing Gary Vinson. Ashley's failure to dictate Nugent's social life plus a murder he commits eventually do him in.

Lots of rock and roll music, acting that is on the level of a high school drama presentation, cheap cinematography all these characterize High School Caesar.

Disappointed, But There Are Some Good Things

[BillDP · 27 September 2003]

I watched this movie last night and came away from it a bit disappointed. I definitely do not expect too much from these "teenage gang films" from the late 50's and early 60's but usually they are fun to watch. I found HIGH SCHOOL CAESAR to be short on action which may have taken the fun away. There are some "fun" parts, like the drag/road race but most of the film features a lot of "wooden" dialogue delivered by mainly "wooden" actors which, again, can be fun but not here. Now having said that, I was really taken by and enjoyed the lead performance of John Ashley as Matt Stevens. Ashley, clearly the professional of the cast, delivers a multi-faceted performance which kind of intrigued me. Definitely one of the "cooler" and more "suave" punks you'll come across in this type of film but he is not the low-life, one dimensional, 24/7 always nasty kind of punks you see in these movies. He has another side to him. He has a heart and is a very emotional sort when he is not rigging school elections or shaking down fellow students for protection money. He clearly is troubled and affected by the fact that his parents are never home and spend their time travelling throughout Europe and it was a little strange seeing his fondness for the family maid who he clearly looks at as a surrogate mother while railing on the family butler who he clearly sees as a substitute for his always absent father.

Now, perhaps it's silly to over-analyze a low budget gang film from the era but I found that facet of Ashley's character facinating and his performance even more enjoyable to watch. I thought it was also pretty unique that they would show Ashley as this young, Don Corleone type who holds meetings with his "family" and has payday for his leather jacketed high school "soldiers". I guess it might sound like I enjoyed the film more then I realize but if not for those sequences I mentioned or Ashley's performance, the film would just be a total flop because outside of that, there isn't much. Fans of these types of films may want to check it out, if only to see Ashley's layered performance and perhaps it's a film I should be watching again myself because it does have a pretty good rock and roll score.

turrible.

[ksf-2 · 4/10 · 20 March 2019]

John Ashland is "Matt", big man on high school campus. of course, he was 26 at the time. and the sound is TERRIBLE! so much echo in the microphones. so cheesy. Matt runs everything in this school, but it seems like much ado about nothing. Kind of feels like a john waters film, without the humor. played so straight, its painful. avoid this one. not worth the time. Written and directed by O'Dale Ireland... is that his real name? he only made a couple films. not much on him anywhere. Produced by marathon pictures, which made four more after this. Showing on "Film Detective" channel.

Ashley finds a role that suits him

[scsu1975 · 5/10 · 24 November 2022]

John Ashley stars as rich kid Matt Stevens, who is the Don Corleone of his high school. He runs a protection racket, skims money off the high school dances, and sells exams to students too lazy to study. He also manages to get elected Class President, but Al Gore cries foul.

The Principal, who is played by I don't know who, calls newly-elected Ashley into his office to discuss a "problem" at the school - seems some kids are getting roughed up. Hey Mr. Principal - check out the guys wearing the leather jackets - that's a clue. Imbecile. You're now qualified to be Superintendent.

Ashley's buddy is named "Cricket," whose whining will have you yearning for some pesticides. Daria Massey, who plays Ashley's girlfriend "Lita," regularly wears tight dresses to school. Apparently, there was no dress code back then. She also works for the Principal, so maybe something was going on around the mimeograph machine. Judy Nugent plays "Wanda," the new blonde at the school. Cricket wants Matt to "set him up" with Wanda (I love this 60s talk), but Wanda is more interested in "Bob," played by Gary Vinson - the only recognizable actor in this, aside from Ashley.

Ashley organizes a road race (entrance fee - two bucks) and puts up his gold coin as the prize. He loses to his rival (the guy he beat for Class Prez), and decides he is gonna get his coin back. Exit the rival. Ashley plays with his coin more often than Captain Queeg plays with his steel balls.

The director goes for some Shakespearean symbolism (I think) at the climax, when virtually everyone turns on Ashley. "Not you too, Crickett??" Ashley moans. Yes, I can see the resemblance between Ashley and Louis Calhern.

This film isn't half bad. Ashley always seemed better at playing the part of a slick scumbag than an ineffectual hero (see his useless performance in "Frankenstein's Daughter"). And we're also spared his singing. Of course, he was more successful as a producer, if you call The A-Team art. The actors are all in their 20s, so they are not too convincing as high school students. Then again, this IS 1960, and students were actually "retained" back then, before school systems got tired of lawsuits. I suppose it's conceivable that 20-year-olds could still be stuck in high school - it's the algebra that kills them, I tell you. Which reminds me - Crickett has difficulty figuring 10 percent of $75. Some things never change.

Oh, I'm no animal expert, but Ashley promises to buy the school a bulldog. Whatever he buys isn't even close.

Particularly disappointing

[Leofwine_draca · 3/10 · 17 November 2018]

HIGH SCHOOL CAESAR is a particularly disappointing "juvenile delinquent" movie of the era; this one was shot on the cheap and boy, does it show. It's an endlessly dull production in which nothing interesting ever seems to happen, despite strong story elements and a genuinely well-depicted sense of place and setting, with a booming rock and roll soundtrack. The story of the ultimate bad boy running the school single-handed is a good one, but the film's direction saps it of life and things seem to take ages to go anywhere. In the end, this one's a real bore.

Should have been a lot better

[Wizard-8 · 25 November 2014]

I often get a kick out of juvenile delinquent movies from the 1950 to early 1960s since they more often than not come across as campy by today's standards. "High School Caesar" was one movie I wanted to see for a long time but could not locate. I finally found and watched it today, and I have to admit I was kind of let down. Certainly, there are campy elements, like the actors portraying teens who are clearly too old for their roles, and the movie laying the blame for the title figure's actions completely on the shoulders of his absent parents. But for the most part, the movie moves at a kind of slow pace and seems padded even at seventy minutes long. Too bad, because the premise of the movie was promising; had the movie been treated with more competence or had gone down a more exploitive route, we might have had something here.

I love these 50s teen movies but this one was lousy.

[crazy-12 · 20 May 2001]

Usually a big fan of these teenage 50s era flicks, I was not thrilled with this one. It shows the usual 20 something "teenagers" but no one much else is seen in the entire movie. For example, in one scene a phone call is made to the police for help by the owner of the local hangout, but no cops are ever shown in the entire picture. The only good point was the use of real rock n roll music instead of the usual jazz or swing sound which are often heard(incorrectly)as teen dance music of the day.

Something Weird Triple Feature

[Michael_Elliott · 28 February 2008]

High School Caesar (1960)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

A bully fixes a vote so that he can be elected Class President where he then plans on stealing even more money from students. Here's another drive-in era teen flick that tries to tell a message but even at just over 60-minutes this thing drags along. No camp value whatsoever and not bad enough to get any laughs. Just plain dull.

High School Big Shot (1959)

** (out of 4)

Drive-in era drama about a nerdy teen who gets his shot at the big time when he hears about a million dollar drop off. If you're a fan of these teenage "B" films of the 50s then this here is certainly one of the better ones but we're certainly a long way off from Rebel Without a Cause. The film runs out of steam around the fifty minute mark but the bad acting leads to some nice laughs.

Date Bait (1960)

* (out of 4)

Romeo and Juliet type story of a rich girl who falls for a poor kid. Her father is against them dating as is her ex-boyfriend who just happens to be crazy and has a gangster for an older brother. Bad acting, bad direction and a bad script make for a pretty bad film that feels five times longer than it actually is. The title song is a real hoot however.

Well-Scrubbed

[dougdoepke · 30 September 2018]

Girls in flared skirts, high school hops, big-finned cars and road races, so what else can geezer refugees from the 50's ask for. Okay, maybe the jd's don't look so tough throwing their weight around, but this is a middle-west, middle-class town, not Big City. Seems teen Ashley runs his classmates like a minor Al Capone. He's got his gang he keeps in line with threats and payoffs. Money comes in from test copies for sale, fees paid to the hops, and other services and shakedowns. Note that there's no mention of drugs or even alcohol among the teens, likely a Production Code result. Trouble is our teen Caesar's dedicated to a gold coin Dad gave him, and that leaves an ironical trail.

It's a well-crafted drive-in flick, but nothing memorable. Fortunately, Ashley mimics a high school hoodlum as well any Hollywood pretty boy could. For action, there's some knuckle bashing and pushing around. Too bad, however, the hop dancing is so modest- no swirling skirts or flashing legs, darn it. Then there're some not very convincing road races, maybe because of careless editing. Surprisingly, filming was done on location in Missouri; too bad we don't see more of the local neighborhoods. That would be an interesting non-Hollywood glimpse.

(In passing-- I just finished actor Steve Stevens' reminiscence on his acting years. In the movie he plays Cricket, Ashley's compliant go-fer. In the book, Stevens surprisingly describes having been a part-time go-fer for notorious LA gangster Mickey Cohen! Which I guess proves that old adage about truth being stranger than fiction.)

Anyway, the movie's a decent time-passer for 50's geezers like me, and maybe even those younger folks interested in seeing power plays among the well-scrubbed.