Michael_Elliott Gallant Sons (1940) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Decent teen drama has Johnny (Gene Reynolds) having a fall out with his best friend By (Jackie Cooper) after his father is sent to prison for murder. Johnny believes that By's father, a newspaper man, mistook some evidence and was the main reason his father was sent up. By, wanting to save their friendship, comes up with an idea to try and see if his father really was guilty or not. GALLANT SONS isn't a great movie and there are countless plot holes in it but I think fans of the cast members are going to have a good time. It seems like MGM wanted to get just about every kid star on their lot with the exception of Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney who were off doing bigger projects at the time. Not only do we get Reynolds and Cooper but there's also Bonita Granville from Warner's Nancy Drew series, William Tracy and Leo Gorcey who was doing time before the East Side Kids. I've always enjoyed watching these actors in their own films so it was another treat seeing them all together even if the screenplay doesn't hold up too well. The direction is also a tad bit off the mark because it's never quite clear if they're wanting this to be a dark drama or some light comedy with a few dramatic elements. There are moments where we get all sorts of silly slapstick including a scene where the boys are trailing the possible real killer and one of them falls down a flight of steps after seeing a black cat. These comedy bits really don't work too well but the drama is pretty good because the actors sell that. I thought Cooper and Reynolds were both quite good in their roles and the best moments of the film happen early on after the father is in jail and the two have a falling out. I've always enjoyed Granville's performances and it always shocked me she was never able to get out of these "B" roles because she was a fine little actress and she also had the looks. Gorcey offers up the type of performance that you'd expect from him but I'm guessing this is because he really couldn't give any other type. His "Dead End" type performance goes against what the other kids are acting but his fans will still get a kick out of him. GALLANT SONS ends in a rather silly manor but fans of the stars will at least be entertained throughout, which is a lot more than most movies can say.

bkoganbing Some of the best known juvenile stars from pretty disparate movie backgrounds got together for Gallant Sons, a comedy/drama in which the gang gets together to solve a mystery for which one of their fathers has been arrested.Gene Reynolds is the kid whom they are trying to help. His father is Ian Hunter who is a professional gambler, owner of a swank club who's been accused of murdering a woman who had something on him. The rest of the group is Jackie Cooper, June Preisser, Bonita Granville, Leo Gorcey, Tommy Kelly, and William Tracy. After a little Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew type sleuthing, when they have their suspect in mind the boys use a bit from none other than Master Will Shakespeare himself. As Hamlet said, 'the play's the thing where I'll catch the conscience of the king' and the kids put on a play to get their quarry rattled enough to confess. The juvenile cast is most appealing and Gail Patrick is also in the film, taking a break from her usual roles as the 'other' woman.This is a fine film from MGM's B picture unit. And for once MGM did a film about young people without Mickey and Judy getting together to 'put on a show'. Come to think of it, that is what the kids did here.

David (Handlinghandel) This is such a find and succeeds so far beyond any reasonable expectations one might bring to it, I'm tempted to rate it a "10."The only flaw, to my mind, was including Leo Gorcey in the cast of juveniles; but he is relatively toned down.Gene Reynolds was a most appealing actor playing in this age range. Here, we see him looking a little plump (especially in the derriere); but he was handsome and a fine actor. Too bad his career as a star didn't continue into adulthood. (He made a big name for himself behind the scenes, but that was a loss, because here and in such movies as "The Get-Away" he was an excellent actor.)The plot involves two friends, one of whose father is put in jail for a murder he didn't commit. The other's father is a newspaper man who printed the story.These two and their pals do some good sleuthing and come up with a suspect. To smoke him out, they put on a play, a la the play within the play in "Hamlet," which they feel will make him confess.It's all suspenseful, exciting, and fun.

cinema_universe For fans of mystery films, this is not the stuff of great whodunits, but if you like Saturday Matinee fare with an "A-Film" look (though not budget), then don't pass this up.It stars some of the cream of the period's juvenile actors, in their teenage prime. The only one who is older than his "star-kid" days is Jackie Cooper. (but he went on to a successful adult acting career, anyway-- mostly on TV).Bonita Granville, who received 2nd billing to Cooper, did her best (which is not much different than her 'Nancy Drew' roles at Warners). I've always been fond of Granville in supporting roles (or B-film leads), but a little bit of Bonita can go a long way. She wisely gave up acting before outgrowing her youthful charms.Gene Reynolds, who was billed 3rd, was easily the best of all of this film's young actors. As the central character, who's innocent father is imprisoned for a murder that all the teens set out to solve, he pretty much steals the show.Reynolds, a good-looking and accomplished young actor, made many films as a teenager but none as an adult. He did, however, go on to become an extremely successful (and extremely rich) TV producer-director. Reynolds would become best known for winning numerous Emmys for his long-running hit television series, "M.A.S.H.".Leo Gorcey, fresh out of the 'Dead End Kids', but before starting in Monogram's 'East Side Kids' series, isn't given much to say in this film, and is actually relegated to a role as one of the 'background' kids! He probably never forgot this experience. -- When Gorcey was adult enough to have a hand in producing the 'Bowery Boys' films, he made sure that he had ALL the lines, and that the other guys (except Huntz Hall) had only enough lines to discern them from the backdrops.Gail Patrick, the leading female adult in "Gallant Sons", has a pivotal role in this story playing Bonita Granville's mother. A much under-rated actress, Gail Patrick gives a lot to this supporting part. She received 4th billing, after Cooper, Granville and Reynolds.The film has the usual MGM polish, though none of the excesses of the Rooney-Garland juvenile extravaganzas produced in the same period. (And, thank goodness, no singing & dancing...)I thoroughly enjoyed "Gallant Sons", and I especially liked seeing Gene Reynolds handle the most complex role of any of the young characters. Certainly more endearing than Cooper or Gorcey, I can't help wondering why Reynolds didn't pursue acting as an adult. Could he have seen the coming bonanza that television producing would bring his way?