''So Young, So Bad'' is a 1950 American

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

film.Overview for So Young, So Bad (1950)
" ''

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

''. Retrieved on November 29, 2008. It stars

Paul Henreid Paul Henreid (November 10, 1908 – March 29, 1992) was an Austrian-British-American actor, director, producer, and writer. He is best remembered for two film roles; Victor Laszlo in ''Casablanca'' and Jerry Durrance in ''Now, Voyager'', bo ...

, and was directed by

Bernard Vorhaus Bernard Vorhaus (December 25, 1904 – November 23, 2000) was an American film director of Austrian descent, born in New York City. His father was born in Krakow, then part of Austria-Hungary. Vorhaus spent many decades living in the UK. Eearly ...

.Full Credits for So Young, So Bad (1950)
" ''

''. Retrieved on November 29, 2008. It was the first major screen role for

Anne Francis Anne Francis (also known as Anne Lloyd Francis; September 16, 1930 – January 2, 2011) was an American actress known for her ground-breaking roles in the science-fiction film ''Forbidden Planet'' (1956) and the television action-drama seri ...

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...

, and

Anne Jackson Anne Jackson (September 3, 1925 – April 12, 2016); retrieved April 16, 2016Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2016. was an American actress of stage, screen, and television. She was the wife of actor Eli Wallach, with whom she often co-sta ...

Plot

Three girls flee from Elmview Corrective School for Girls, a

reform school A reform school was a penal institution, generally for teenagers mainly operating between 1830 and 1900. In the United Kingdom and its colonies reformatories commonly called reform schools were set up from 1854 onwards for youngsters who were ...

. Two manage to steal a truck and escape while the third hides nearby. The next day, Dr. John Jason (

), a psychiatrist on staff, is told to resign by Riggs (Cecil Clovelly), the chief of staff. Dr. Jason refuses, and an investigation in the psychiatrist's methods is begun. Dr. Jason reflects on the circumstances leading up to this day, and the scene changes to his arrival at Elmview. Against the wishes of Riggs, Dr. Jason, is hired to reduce the high rate of

recidivism Recidivism (; from ''recidive'' and ''ism'', from Latin ''recidīvus'' "recurring", from ''re-'' "back" and ''cadō'' "I fall") is the act of a person repeating an undesirable behavior after they have experienced negative consequences of th ...

at Elmview. He meets several of the new arrivals, and naively recommends treatments for them to Riggs and the other staff, who seem to listen to his advice. Ruth Levering (Catherine McLeod), the assistant superintendent, warns him that his efforts will be futile. When he follows up, and explores the school, Dr. Jason is shocked to discover that not only is his advice not being followed but the girls are forced to work as farm hands and in a sweatshop laundry and are punished with

solitary confinement Solitary confinement is a form of imprisonment in which the inmate lives in a single cell with little or no meaningful contact with other people. A prison may enforce stricter measures to control contraband on a solitary prisoner and use additi ...

if they refuse. When he complains, Miss Levering, who had seemed sympathetic to the girls, refuses to back him up. Frustrated, Dr. Jason considers resigning, much to the satisfaction of Riggs. As a passive protest, the girls refuse to sing for the city council when they visit the institution. As punishment, Riggs has Mrs. Beuhler (Grace Coppin), the cruel head matron, confiscate the girls' belongings. In the process Riggs discovers and Beuhler kills a rabbit the girls had been keeping as a pet. In retaliation the girls set fire to their bedding and the blaze destroys the dormitory. Beuhler reacts by bringing the girls to the basement and setting a fire hose on them. Meanwhile, Dr. Jason and Miss Levering meet on their day off and she explains that if she had supported him with the staff she would be fired and would then be unable to help the girls at all. Though Dr. Jason disagrees with this approach and an argument ensues, a friendship begins between the two. When they return to Elmview, they manage to rescue the girls from Beuhler. One of the girls, Loretta (

), a single mother who Dr. Jason tried to help when he first arrived, develops a crush on him as a result. Threatening to report the fire hose incident to the board of directors, Dr. Jason makes a deal with Riggs where he would stay on in a purely administrative role while Dr. Jason and Miss Levering would make all decisions as to the treatment of the girls. Under the new regime, the harsh punishments are abolished, the farm and the laundry are shut down and replaced by vocational training programs, and a number of other reforms are instituted. The morale and behavior of the girls improves dramatically, though Loretta is jealous of Miss Levering and Dolores (

)), a chronic runaway, still has trouble socializing. Eventually Dr. Jason and Miss Levering arrange a dance, inviting boys from a nearby trade school. The night of the dance, one of the girls "borrows" a bottle of perfume from Mrs. Beuhler who directs her anger at Dolores by cutting off her hair. The rest of the girls go to the dance leaving Dolores in tears. Loretta, hurt by Dr. Jason's rejection of her at the dance, runs back to the dormitory where she finds Dolores has committed suicide. When Riggs sees the body, he suspends Dr. Jason and Miss Levering and puts Mrs. Beuhler in charge of the school. Fearing a return of harsh conditions, Loretta escapes with two other girls, Jane and Jackie, as seen at the start of the movie. Dr. Jason, thinking that Dolores had cut off her own hair, blames himself for not realizing she was suicidal. But Jane emerges from hiding and reveals that Beuhler was actually responsible. At a hearing to determine the fate of Elmview, things don't go well. The suicide and runaways are blamed on Jason's methods and Jane and the other girls refuse to corroborate the incidents with the fire hose or the hair cutting. Miss Levering's testimony is discounted because of her relationship with Dr. Jason. Loretta and Jackie, now fugitives, visit the maternity home where Loretta's baby is living in an attempt to get money. But on spending some time with him, Loretta decides to keep the baby rather than putting him up for adoption. They learn of Jason's predicament and return to Elmview to testify. With Loretta and Jackie there, the other girls also corroborate their harsh treatment by Beuhler, revealing they had been whipped to prevent them from telling the truth, which leads to Riggs and Beuhler being placed under arrest. In an epilogue, Dr. Jason and Miss Levering, now Mrs. Jason, are running the school, Loretta is paroled and looking forward to raising her son, and many of the other girls leave to lead productive lives.

Cast

as Dr. John H. Jason * Catherine McLeod as Ruth Levering * Cecil Clovelly as Mr. Riggs * Grace Coppin as Mrs. Beuhler *

as Loretta *

as Jackie * Enid Pulver as Jane *

as Dolores Guerrero (credited as Rosita Moreno) ot_to_be_confused_with_Rosita_Moreno,_a_Spanish_actress_who_was_43_years_old_at_the_time..html" ;"title="Rosita_Moreno.html" ;"title="ot to be confused with Rosita Moreno">ot to be confused with Rosita Moreno, a Spanish actress who was 43 years old at the time.">Rosita_Moreno.html" ;"title="ot to be confused with Rosita Moreno">ot to be confused with Rosita Moreno, a Spanish actress who was 43 years old at the time.

Production

Vorhaus received his idea after he read a newspaper article about abuses at a women's reformatory. Vorhaus and writer Jean Rouverol visited several institutions to gather ideas. Studios initially showed interest, but they backed out since Vorhaus and Rouverol's politics made the studios uninterested; both Vorhaus and Rouverol were blacklisted before ''So Young, So Bad'' saw release. Paul Henreid says it was the first film from the Danzinger brothers. Henreid agreed to produce and star though the Danzingers would be credited; Henreid took 50% of the profits. The film was shot with a very low budget. Filming locations included areas in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

Yonkers Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...

, and

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

. A Jewish home for blind and elderly people in

upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...

was used to represent the Elmview Corrections School for Girls, a fictional institution.Spotlight: So Young, So Bad
" ''

''. Retrieved on November 29, 2008.

Reception

'' described the critical response to ''So Young, So Bad'' as "tepid" because independent film-making techniques were not as appreciated in the 1950s as they were in later years. Many critics made jokes out of the title. Some critics accused ''So Young, So Bad'' of plagiarizing the similarly themed film, '' Caged''. The two movies were released one day apart. ''So Young, So Bad'' profited in the United States and received an international distribution agreement. Henreid, ignoring the warnings of his agent, placed a 50 percent stake in the film. Henreid reported that ''So Young, So Bad'' made him more money than any other film of his career. Henreid wrote "the picture did well and I made more money out of it than of anything I've ever been connected with."

References

External links

* * * {{The Danzigers 1950 films 1950 drama films American black-and-white films American drama films Films directed by Bernard Vorhaus Films shot in Connecticut Films shot in New York (state) Films with screenplays by Bernard Vorhaus United Artists films Women in prison films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films