Underworld USA - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia

Having witnessed his fathers murder, a young man works with a detective to clean out the powerful syndicate.

Underworld U.S.A. (also known as Underworld USA) is a 1961 American neo-noir film produced, written and directed by Samuel Fuller. It tells the story of a fourteen-year-old boy who goes to enormous lengths to get revenge against the mobsters who beat his father to death. It stars Cliff Robertson, Dolores Dorn, and Beatrice Kay.

A bitter young man sets out to get back at the gangsters who murdered his father.

Plot

Fourteen-year-old Tolly Devlin sees four hoods beat his father to death. Twenty years later, the killers have risen to the top of the crime syndicate. Ever since his adolescence, Tollys (Cliff Robertson plays him as an adult) goal has been to avenge his father. Tolly has even become a criminal and gotten himself sent to prison so that he could get close to one of the perpetrators. Tolly becomes as vindictive and sadistic as the men he is after. He rejects the two relationships that could redeem him, his mother-figure (Beatrice Kay) and his moll (Dolores Dorn) in favor of cold, hard vengeance.

Underworld U.S.A. movie scenes The first time I saw Underworld U S A was back in 1961 at the Loew s Oriental in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn I lived about six blocks away and

Becoming a secret informant for the government, Tolly ends up playing both sides against the middle in his cagey campaign to bring down the remaining mobsters. Tollys nihilistic vendetta eventually robs him of his own humanity (and more).

Cast

Cliff Robertson as Tolly Devlin

Dolores Dorn as Cuddles

Beatrice Kay as Sandy

Paul Dubov as Gela

Robert Emhardt as Earl Connors

Larry Gates as John Driscoll

Richard Rust as Gus Cottahee

Gerald Milton as Gunther

Allan Gruener as Smith

David Kent as Tolly as a teen

Production

Underworld U.S.A. movie scenes There is no let up in Fuller s world it is ruthless raw and consistently bleak throughout filled with sweaty close ups and an atmosphere of doom

Producer Ray Stark asked Fuller to write and direct a film based on the title of a magazine article written by Joseph F. Dinneen. Fuller also was inspired by a book, Here Is to Crime, by newspaperman Riley Cooper.

An opening scene with a Union of Prostitutes was deleted by Sam Briskin and other Columbia executives. Fullers character Tolly is a loner motivated by revenge using the United States Government as well as his own devices to even the score. Fuller heard the reaction of a real life gangster who reportedly said "If only my son would have that kind of affection for me!".

Critical response

Film critic Dennis Schwartz liked the film, and wrote, "Samuel Fullers revenge crime thriller is shot in the same brisk and violent manner he shoots his war films. The timely crime film hopes to cash in on the publics thirst for mob stories, as it takes place after the well-covered mob gathering in Apalachin, New York; Fuller based his film on a series of expose articles in The Saturday Evening Post ... Fullers violent noir film shows the inhumanity of the soldiers in the war on crime, where neither the syndicate or Tolly react with basic human responses. Their drive to succeed overrides everything, even love. The FBI is shown as stymied without the help of the public coming forth with information or willing to act as witnesses despite the risks, but the lawmen do not play fair by not telling how dangerous its to be a witness against the mob."

Legacy

A wanted poster of Tolly Devlin appears in a police station in Columbias film of Sail a Crooked Ship (1961).

References

Underworld U.S.A. Wikipedia

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Underworld U.S.A. IMDb Underworld USA themoviedb.org