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Poster for Boys Town

Boys Town

1938 · 96 min

A warm, earnest story of second chances that tugs at the heart with its faith in human goodness.

Directed by
Norman Taurog
Genres
Drama
Starring
Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, Henry Hull
Tagline
"No boy is bad, if given a chance!"
Overview
Devout but iron-willed Father Flanagan leads a community called Boys Town, a different sort of juvenile detention facility where, instead of being treated as underage criminals, the boys are shepherded into making themselves better people. But hard-nosed petty thief and pool shark Whitey Marsh, the impulsive and violent younger brother of an imprisoned murderer, might be too much for the good father's tough-love system.

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Rent or buy in the UK
  • Apple TV Store
  • Amazon Video
More options Data from JustWatch
Directed by
Norman Taurog
Genres
Drama
Starring
Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, Henry Hull
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • earneststrength 3 of 3
  • warmstrength 2 of 3
  • upliftingstrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • redemption
  • found family
  • faith
  • coming-of-age
  • guilt
Places
  • small town
  • school
Era
period
Audience
family
Form
  • true story
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex none
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action3
Horror1
Humour3
Realism7
Romance1
Tension4
Darkness4
Complexity4
Emotional weight7

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Where to watch in the UK

Rent or buy
  • Apple TV Store
  • Amazon Video

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
drama
Directed by
Norman Taurog
Written by
Dore Schary, John Meehan
Starring
Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, Henry Hull, Leslie Fenton, Gene Reynolds, Edward Norris, Addison Richards, Minor Watson
Music
Edward Ward
Cinematography
Sidney Wagner
Runtime
96 min
Country
United States of America
Languages
English

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