The Devil's Party

1938 "Death to squealers!"
5.7| 1h5m| en| More Info
Released: 02 June 1938 Released
Producted By: Universal Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

Adults who grew up as slum kids meet later in life, but murder disrupts their reunion.

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Reviews

Alicia I love this movie so much
TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film
Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever
KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
DigitalRevenantX7 During a private party with his old childhood gang in his nightclub, Marty Malone secretly sends his two henchmen Frank Diamond & Sam to collect on a gambling debt. The thugs accidentally kill the target but have the bright idea to make the scene look like an accident. But one of Marty's friends, a policeman named Joe O'Mara, walks in on the thugs staging the scene & is promptly killed. His brother Mike, also a cop, tries to find the killers. Marty is also on the warpath, giving Diamond & Sam a day to leave town. But the thugs decide to cover their tracks by informing Mike that Marty was responsible for his brother's death. Mike is stopped from killing Marty by their mutual friend Father Jerry Donovan, who believes that there is more to the story than meets the eye. As Diamond & Sam try to play both sides of the fence, secretly tipping off Mike about Marty's involvement, they blackmail Marty to 'assist' them with a robbery where they plan to kill him.This film noir from 1938 is a relatively obscure entry in the genre & can be found on old DVD multipacks as filler. The film has not aged too well since its plot is pretty mundane. But what nearly kills it is the mediocre double crosses angle that is initially interesting but is overblown by several degrees. It is pretty much a standard thriller that won't look out of place on the graveyard shift of a retro film cable channel.
Rainey Dawn This one wasn't bad - I expected the film to be far worse so it came as a nice surprise. It's not a great story but kinda fun to watch in a way. It's about the kid's club "Hell's Kitchen"... where a gang of kids, 4 boys and 1 girl, become friends. The oldest boy, Marty Malone, accidentally set fire to a building and was sent to reform school. Then the story fast-forwards to their adulthood where we find them meeting every year, the year we peer into their story there is a murder that leads to another murder - Marty Malone is involved.All grown up: A night club owner, a singer, a priest and 2 cops. I found my favorite of the gang to be the Priest Jerry. He was the one trying to keep the others calm and reasonable.It's not the grandest of stories but I found this one watchable and enjoyable.6.5/10
MartinHafer The film begins with a group of five kids playing around a warehouse. They accidentally light the place ablaze and run when the police arrive. However, one of the gang (Marty) is caught and he refuses to tell them who else was involved. So, he takes the rap for everyone and ends up growing into a guy who is a shady character--owning his own casino and consorting with disreputable types.The other four members of the gang grew into a not particularly talented lounge singer who works for Marty (Helen), a priest (Jerry) and two brothers who are firemen (Joe and Mike). Each year, they all meet for a reunion and are life-long friends.This friendship is tested when two thugs that work for Marty kill a man. Joe suspects it is not an accident and when he goes back to investigate, the thugs kill him as well! Now Mike takes up where Joe left off and he begins to suspect Marty's involvement. As for Marty, he did NOT want anyone killed and is stuck having to cover for the two thugs because this all began when he ordered the two to rough up a customer who refused to make good on his gambling debts. The problem is that the thugs have plans of their own and they refuse to leave town when Marty tells them to beat it.In the middle of this mess is Father Jerry. He cannot allow Mike to kill Marty but also cannot just ignore Marty's involvement. How all this is worked out is something you'll just have to see for yourself.Overall, this is a very interesting B-film with some nice twists and turns thanks to some excellent writing. As far as the acting goes, it's just fine, though Victor McLaglen in the lead is a real standout--in a tough but very sympathetic performance.
Michael_Elliott Devil's Party, The (1938) ** (out of 4) Okay, the story here is pretty confusing but I'll try to explain it. Four kids, growing up in Hell's Kitchen, have their lives changed when the oldest pulls a prank, which sets a warehouse on fire. He's sent to reform school but twenty years later he's out on the streets as a gambler/night club owner. Two of the other friends are cops and another is a priest. The gambler sends a couple men to rough a guy up but they eventually kill him and the two cops are put on the case. This film only runs 61-minutes but it seems the screenplay was missing around twenty minutes worth of additional footage that might have tied up various plot holes. With that said, I found myself somewhat entertained but there's really nothing going on in the film. I've heard this was an influence on Leone's Once Upon a Time in America but that connection would be very loose. Victor McLaglen stars.