Hell's House (1932) Reviews

Bette Davis was on loan from Universal when she appeared in this little juvenile delinquent melodrama from independent producer B.F. Zeidman. Although Davis earned above-title billing (along with Pat O'Brien), Junior Durkin is the real star, a teenager who is sent to juvenile prison after being caught in a raid on a bootlegging establishment operated by Kelly (O'Brien). At juvenile hall, Jimmy befriends Shorty (Frank Coghlan Jr.), a sickly youth who is subsequently sent to solitary confinement. When it appears that Shorty will die without medical attention, Jimmy escapes and manages to contact Kelly's kindhearted girlfriend, Peggy Gardner (Davis). The latter goes to the newspapers and the resulting uproar helps change the inhuman conditions in the country's youth detentions. Unfortunately, the efforts come too late for Shorty, who has already died from the abuse. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi