Naked Youth (1959) Reviews

Juvenile delinquents run afoul of big-league dope dealers in this low-budget crime thriller. Frankie (Robert Arthur) is a hotheaded teenager whose impulsive streak has led him to the State Honor Farm for wayward boys. Frankie engineers an escape with the help of his curvaceous girlfriend, Donna (Jan Brooks), but he makes the mistake of bringing along fellow delinquent Switch (Steve Rowland), who's behind bars for attacking his father with a knife. Switch doesn't make a secret of his attraction to Donna, which slowly infuriates Frankie, and things become no more comfortable when their car breaks down and they're forced to hitchhike. The three teenagers catch a ride with Rivas (John Goddard) and his wife, Madge (Carol Ohmart), but this isn't the stroke of good fortune it might seem. Rivas is a ruthless criminal who has killed a narcotics agent en route from Mexico while smuggling a large parcel of heroin into the United States. When the delinquents discover they're dealing with a bona fide mobster, they part company with Rivas but inadvertently steal his stash, which is hidden in a large doll, putting the bloodthirsty gangster on their trail. Naked Youth was originally released as Wild Youth, but received more play under its more exploitive title, though doubtless a few viewers were disappointed that it didn't actually feature any youths naked. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi