I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The Age of Commercialism

Absolutely Fantastic

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

This flick is cool, daddio. I agree with another reviewer that the Shelley Manne bebop score alone makes it worth watching, but there's a lot more. The acting ranges from fascinatingly bad to surprisingly good (well maybe good is an exaggeration; maybe "convincing"?). Good-looking cast. The screenplay isn't half bad. It moves along at a nice pace. Has a noirish quality. The moll's makeup job! The gang leader's "understated alpha male" shtick: he's a total control freak--renames one gang member "boy", god forbid you should make a peep while he's listening to classical music. Also affects a James Cagney-like style of speaking. So much more to savor.

T-Bird gang is a fun quick one from the 50's, complete with hip talk and beat music. Despite the title and some descriptions, this is definitely not a car movie at all, and especially not a hot-rod movie. The title of the film really just relates to the white T-Bird that Alex, the brains of the criminal gang, drives and that car is hardly even in the movie at all! But it's an OK flick about a young man who infiltrates a local gang to get to the killer of his dad, a cop. There are some dull sequences where nothing much happens and there are some pretty girls too. It all comes down to not exactly the ending you thought would happen, but something similar.The leader of the gang does a few funny things, such as spill milk on the dress of his "moll" because she was laughing too much, and boss his workers around by giving sudden orders and snapping his fingers. The rest of the cast isn't bad and they probably had a good time making this movie. Definitely a fun way to spend 65 minutes.

The acting's middling, the direction poor, and the sets look cheap. Then there's the cinematography. They must have used really low-budget camera and film, because the DVD shows little detail, and in some scenes the white levels are so high, details are lost. Now, I love old black-and-white films that have high production values (Casablanca and Citizen Cane come to mind) but this film isn't in their class.Now for the flaw in the plot. The gang's leader drives his white T-Bird to every crime they commit. Then why would the cops go to the trouble and risk of putting a stool pigeon in a gang, when it be easy for the cops to tail the T-Bird and catch the crooks in the middle of their burglary?

This is without a doubt one of the finest movies I've seen, a real period classic. It's obscure, but well worth the time it would take to find a copy. Vic Tayback is especially good -- in a small role, admittedly, but displaying early hints of the greatness he achieved in later roles.