Mad Youth (DVD)

Middle-aged divorcee Lucy Morgan (Betty Compson) prowls the escort agencies to feed her ravenous sexual appetite. Having squandered her alimony money on young men, Lucy agrees to let her precocious and promiscuous daughter Marian (Mary Ainslee) hold an unsupervised party for "the gang" in return for a loan. Lucy goes out to "play bridge" with an escort as Marian's party degenerates into an unfettered orgy. Mom's favorite escort is Count Dekoven (Willy Castello), a handsome intellectual who recently emigrated to the United States. Lucy's lascivious obsession with the Count blinds her to her daughter's increasingly alarming behavior. Raw, carnal sparks fly between Dekoven and Marian who begin dating behind mom's back. The tense love triangle explodes and Marian winds up a prisoner in a brothel of teenage girls.

Featuring legendary star Willy Castello as a gigolo with a heart of gold, Mad Youth is a jaunty, naughty '30s exploitation picture perfectly propelled by a knowingly silly script. Hardly a serious morality play like Edgar G. Ulmer's VD masterwork Damaged Lives (1933), Mad Youth seductively depicts vice and lustful behavior while pretending to warn us of the dire consequences.

• exploitation