Plantiana Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

GamerTab That was an excellent one.

PlatinumRead Just so...so bad

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

GManfred Sometimes you can come across a minor gem and find unexpected satisfaction. Makes you want to recommend it to others so that they can experience the same feeling. That happens a lot in DVD collections that contain several films you've never seen or heard of.Not so with THE HOODLUM. It was a grim downer with very little to recommend it. The acting was sub-par with the exception of Lisa Golm, who plays Tierney's mother in the film. Writing was second-rate and the plot has holes in it - and has anyone ever seen Tierney smile in any of his movies? When last seen he had the same lock-jaw look in Reservoir Dogs. No, this picture doesn't cut it. If it ever shows up on one of the movie channels, miss it.

kidboots Vince is a career criminal who has been getting into trouble since he was a child. As played by granite faced Tierney, he is completely believable - he is a complete creep.When the film opens he has served 5 years when his mother pleads for his release so he can mend his ways - something he has no intention of doing. He resents having to work with his brother Joey, (real life brother Edward) earning an honest wage as a mechanic. He starts to gather some cronies around him and to plan an armoured car robbery.Joey's girl Maria thinks people should give him a chance. Unfortunately for Maria, she is raped by Vincent, finds she is pregnant and then kills herself when he refuses to marry her. Then he tries to make out that it is Joey's fault. The robbery goes ahead but the thieves fall out as Vince wants the major portion of money for himself.It is a very gritty, unrelenting drama especially as a showcase for Tierney. Only Lisa Golm, as the mother didn't ring true. I can't imagine a tough police board listening to a mother's pleas and releasing a criminal that obviously can't be rehabilitated.

AlanSquier This is typical but quite entertaining B movie fare. Well, not completely typical because the main character of such fare is generally more sympathetic than Lawrence Tierney is here. He's a guy you love to hate as he gets paroled thanks to his sweet and loving mother and then proceeds to be a total heel, raping and impregnating his sister-in-law, robbing a bank and just an overall not-nice guy. He doesn't even evoke sympathy at his dying mother's bedside and that's one of the perverse charms of the film. The ending in a dump is quite satisfying and prompts a feeling of good riddance to bad rubbish. This is a typically short little B film, cheaply made, ludicrous at times, but fun to watch and one which will be appreciated by fans of 40's and 50's 2nd features.

BILLYBOY-10 Tierney plays a total jerk (Vince) who just got out of prison cause his classic little-old-lady-dressed-in-black-widow-mother goes to the parole board and pours out sob story slop until they agree to release him. Once he gets home he proceeds to destroy everyone and everything including his brother's girl friend, Rose who he seduces then dumps after after knocking her up, so she commits suicide. When the brother can't figure out why she offed herself, Vince, between bites at dinner, offers that she was "nuts".Vince is really not a very nice guy at all.Then he plans a bank robbery and when that gets botched he's all over the place trying to escape. There is a funny part of the film, where the gang who robbed the bank with him are fleeing in a funeral procession and during the procession we are shown headlines in the newspaper about the robbery. Evidently the local paper got out an edition around five to ten minutes after the robbery took place and during the get-away. The press back then was really cracker-jack fast. Finally there's a scenery chewing confrontation with his mother that's Hollywood schmaltz at its best. Mom is in bed and gives Vince a tongue lashing at last telling him he's rotten, and then she croaks (apparently of excessive Tongue Lashitis). Enter the brother who force drives Vince, symbolically, to the city dump (they used to live near the dump and it stunk). The police arrive and Vince gets plugged. The End.Some classify this cinematic goop as noir which I guess it might be; it's black and white, its dark, it has shadows and bad guys but noir being very subjective, I'd just call it a grade Z pot boiler with crappy acting, a hilarious script and a predictable ending... but its engrossing and impossible not to watch because of Vince. Go for it. Its only an hour long but sure does tear up the scenery and make for a hoot of a viewing.