Movie Review: Juvenile Delinquents (2020)

March 8, 2020

Written by DanXIII

Daniel XIII; the result of an arcane ritual involving a King Diamond album, a box of Count Chocula, and a copy of Swank magazine, is a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, artist, and reviewer of fright flicks…Who hates ya baby?

Pedo ass-hat Frank (Jay Amari) gets him self unintentionally murder-ized by a gaggle of juvenile delinquents that come to the rescue of his latest victim Sarah (Corynn Treadwell). Given their past, these dudes are none to anxious to dial ol’ 911, so they get the shit-hot idea to torch Frank’s pad… but his wife Molly (Marie Smalley) arrives home just as the demented deed is about to go down, and finds herself a hostage as these killer kids, and their friends whom soon join them, decide their next step!

As is the way, further static ensues, and the group, once splintered, grows stronger… but will their bond be enough to see them through this patch of dark waters?

To clear the air a bit; Juvenile Delinquents would fall more on the drama side of the equation if one is trying to slap a label on it… but at it’s core this circles the exploitation/action side of things rather firmly. You get your gang of disenfranchised youth trying to stop murders from goin’ down and, with a slight push, this thing could have been like the Cannon Films version of The Outsiders.

As it is, it’s a stylish (some of the lighting in this flick gets it’s Argento on hardcore), well acted affair with a narrative that generates plenty of sympathy for our young heroes, and while the situation they find themselves in is dire as balls, you are never left with the feeling that these scruffy fucks can pull through and perhaps have a semblance of a future.

 While not strictly a thriller or exploitation flick, Juvenile Delinquents dips it’s toes in the tropes of both genres, and is a solid watch for sure… I just wish the film would have pushed further into the drive-in end of things, because the roots are definitely showin’ if ya can pick up what yours cruelly is layin’ down.

 

 

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