Dangerous Years

Billy Halop is being tried for murder in the first degree, As the trial advances, information comes out. Some of it is not presented to the court, but in private conversation.

If this somewhat preachy but ultimately kind-hearted courtroom drama is remembered, it is as the first movie that Marilyn Monroe appeared in. If you look, you can recognize her, as the blonde waitress at the roadhouse in a couple of shots. As for the other performers, among the adult performers, Jerome Cowan has a nice non-comedic role as Halop's defense attorney, and Nana Bryant is sweet as a nurse from an orphanage. The movie is littered with past and current juvenile performers, including Scottie Beckett, Ann E. Todd, Darryl Hickman, and Dickie Moore.

I think the presence of these players is to underscore the message of Cowan's closing argument, that some youngsters get the break of loving parents, and others don't, and the latter often turn out bad; it's the unloved who deserve a break. Perhaps these performers are there to emphasize that message to the audience.