The Young Philadelphians

Tony and his mother get behind the scenes help from Tony's real father a successful and politically connected Phila contractor who sounds an awful lot like the famous John Kelly (Grace Kelly's Grandfather). Once again the Irish immigrant class are working with a commitment to the future of their people and their family. The real father sees to it that Tony can afford Princeton and law school. And Dad keeps Tony's mother's secret. They even keep it from Tony himself.

Tony does some bad things. He gets suckered by his sweetheart's father when the lovers decide to marry before Tony has his law degree. So he loses the girl. Next he steals a a plum summer job out from under one of his college buddies to advance his own career.

Next Tony does some good things. His super influential summer employer's young wife thinks she is in love with Tony. Tony actually turns her down while making her feel good about the whole thing. He's learning to think on his back as well as his feet. And he uses his inherited Irish blarney to great effect.

Next he saves his old Princeton Buddy from a murder rap, earning the undying gratitude of a socially very important main line family. His original girl friend, good looking and also well connected, marries Tony after her husband is killed in Korea. She wanted him even though she thought he was a sell out. But when she watches him battle his way through a tough criminal rap, in a high risk situation, out of loyalty to his old pal, she stands with a look of admiration and says something like "you are the man. I'm yours for ever"

At that point I was wishing that I was Tony.


What I Want for Christmas...   December 7, 2003
Kelly (IL United States)
4 out of 6 found this review helpful

...is a copy of this movie.

A fifties black and white classic, this movie is everything movies used to be, but, sadly, are not today.

Who's Paul Newman? Sure, he's devastatingly handsome and burns up the screen as Tony, but it's Robert Vaughn who steals the show. His character, Chester, is riveting and achingly fleshed. 1959 Vaughn in a white dinner jacket...and the jail cell scene takes my breath away every time.

The soul of the movie is good triumping over evil, even if it takes good a while to get there. The meandering path the two heroes take on their journey to personal salvation makes us examine our own life choices.

You'll feel better about the human condition (not to mention lawyers) after watching this movie.


Cynical and sexy   January 8, 2003
Joe Sixpack -- Slipcue.com (...in Middle America)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

A steamy "Peyton Place" style sex story, featuring Paul Newman as Tony Lawrence, an ambitous young man whose soul is twisted by his aristocratic family's unwillingness to let him marry for love. Forced to play the power game, he plays it to the hilt, cynically using his sex appeal and ruthlessness to bring ruin to anyone standing in his path. I'm sure they must have toned the film script down quite a bit from what the book was like, but it's still pretty raw. Plus, Newman was one sexy monkey when he was young... if you wanna see him at his shirtless, hunky best, then this is the film for you.