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Dead End

Dead End

Crime · Drama · 1937

The lives of a young man and woman, an infamous gangster and a group of street kids converge one day in a volatile New York City slum.

Movie details

Dead End

“THE GREATEST GANGSTER THRILLER THAT EVER EXPLODED FROM THE SCREEN!”

1937 Crime · Drama 1h 33m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.1 / 10

Community rating

The lives of a young man and woman, an infamous gangster and a group of street kids converge one day in a volatile New York City slum.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Dead End?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Plunder Road

Plunder Road

Crime · 1957

A spectacular heist starts to unravel as the crooks take it on the lam.

The Man with the Golden Arm

The Man with the Golden Arm

Drama · 1955

When illegal card dealer and recovering heroin addict Frankie Machine gets out of prison, he decides to straighten up. Armed with nothing but an old drum set, Frankie tries to get honest work as a drummer. But when his former employer and his old drug dealer re-enter his life, Frankie finds it hard to stay clean and eventually finds himself succumbing to his old habits.

The Public Enemy

The Public Enemy

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Two young Chicago hoodlums, Tom Powers and Matt Doyle, rise up from their poverty-stricken slum life to become petty thieves, bootleggers and cold-blooded killers. But with street notoriety and newfound wealth, the duo feels the heat from the cops and rival gangsters both. Despite his ruthless criminal reputation, Tom tries to remain connected to his family, however, gang warfare and the need for revenge eventually pull him away.

Angels with Dirty Faces

Angels with Dirty Faces

Crime · 1938

Childhood chums Rocky Sullivan and Jerry Connelly grow up on opposite sides of the fence: Rocky matures into a prominent gangster, while Jerry becomes a priest, tending to the needs of his old tenement neighborhood.

Scarlet Street

Scarlet Street

Drama · 1945

Cashier and part-time starving artist Christopher Cross is absolutely smitten with the beautiful Kitty March. Kitty plays along, but she's really only interested in Johnny, a two-bit crook. When Kitty and Johnny find out that art dealers are interested in Chris's work, they con him into letting Kitty take credit for the paintings. Cross allows it because he is in love with Kitty, but his love will only let her get away with so much.

'G' Men

'G' Men

Crime · 1935

James “Brick” Davis, a struggling attorney, owes his education to a mobster, but always has refused to get involved with the underworld. When a friend of his is gunned down by a notorious criminal, Brick decides to abandon the exercise of the law and join the Department of Justice to capture the murderer.

Knock on Any Door

Knock on Any Door

Drama · 1949

An attorney defends a hoodlum of murder, using the oppressiveness of the slums to appeal to the court.

Glengarry Glen Ross

Glengarry Glen Ross

Crime · 1992

Times are tough at Premiere Properties. Shelley "the machine" Levene and Dave Moss are veteran salesmen, but only Ricky Roma is on a hot streak. The new Glengarry sales leads could turn everything around, but the front office is holding them back until these "losers" prove themselves. Then someone decides to take matters into his own hands, stealing the Glengarry leads and leaving everyone wondering who did it.

The Roaring Twenties

The Roaring Twenties

Crime · 1939

After World War I, Armistice Lloyd Hart goes back to practice law, former saloon keeper George Hally turns to bootlegging, and out-of-work Eddie Bartlett becomes a cab driver. Eddie builds a fleet of cabs through delivery of bootleg liquor and hires Lloyd as his lawyer. George becomes Eddie's partner and the rackets flourish until love and rivalry interfere.

Kiss of Death

Kiss of Death

Crime · 1947

An ex-con trying to go straight must face a crazed criminal out for revenge.

Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

William Wyler

Written by

Lillian Hellman

Sylvia Sidney

Sylvia Sidney

Drina

Joel McCrea

Joel McCrea

Dave

Humphrey Bogart

Humphrey Bogart

"Baby Face" Martin

Wendy Barrie

Wendy Barrie

Kay

Claire Trevor

Claire Trevor

Francey

Allen Jenkins

Allen Jenkins

Hunk

Marjorie Main

Marjorie Main

Mrs. Martin

Court is in session

Put Dead End on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.