Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

First you get Paul Newman who just owns screen time and rightfully so. then, a decent supporting cast making the movie gel and a soap-opera type story is upon you with all the ingredients that keep you interested. The perception that attorneys are all-knowing, all-powerful and rule their worlds is let loose here and each attorney handles if differently. Rich old people who have no life but put on airs that they do abound in this movie. When watching this you get your time and monies worth even though it shamefully feeds your dream-life and imaginations. The scenes are not drawn-out except in a couple of place otherwise the movie moves along and covers quite a bit of ground. High society, hypocrisy, power, love affairs, drinking, socializing, law, courtroom drama, war, orphan issues, mom, dad, ups and downs all resulting in ....

We begin with a prologue. In 1924, poor lower-class Diane Brewster (as Kate Judson) marries wealthy upper-crust Adam West (as William "Bill" Lawrence). On their honeymoon, he says, "I can't love you, Kate, I can't love anyone!" Apparently, he can't have sex. She goes crying to working class Brian Keith (as Michael "Mike" Flanagan), who she previously rejected as too poor, and becomes impregnated by him, instead. Though Mr. Keith wants to marry widow Brewster, she wants her son to grow up with the advantages of the "Lawrence" name. It doesn't make a lot of sense, but that's the back-story...Jumping to the present, we find Princeton class of 1947 student Paul Newman (as Anthony "Tony" Lawrence) working for Keith's construction company, while studying to become a lawyer. One of Mr. Newman's co-workers has fender-bender with beautiful Barbara Rush (as Joan Dickinson). Newman sides with Ms. Rush, probably because she is prettier than "big ape" Leonard Bremen, and they fall in love. However, Rush's upper-crust father John Williams (as Gilbert Dickinson) doesn't approve of lower-class Newman. Yes, this is a soap opera, revolving around the protagonist's climb to the top...Watch for Newman's alcoholic roommate and best friend Robert Vaughn (as Chester "Chet" Gwynn) to steal the movie. Taking center stage for the film's last, and most engaging, story, Mr. Vaughn received "Best Supporting Actor" consideration for his performance. The delightful Billie Burke entertains as a millionaire avoiding taxes, attractive Alexis Smith offers Rush some competition, and Richard Deacon makes a strong impression as a booze-sniffing butler. This probably should have been titled "The Young Philadelphian" (singular) as it is mainly about the character played by Paul Newman.******* The Young Philadelphians (5/21/59) Vincent Sherman ~ Paul Newman, Barbara Rush, Robert Vaughn, Richard Deacon

It has commonly been said that full-fledged soap opera can never be a real work of art, but this excellent film proves to be a glorious exception to that rule. Director Vincent Sherman's luminous film adaptation of author Richard Powell's best-seller THE PHILADELPHIANS manages to tell the story of at least two generations in a single picture without ever feeling cramped, forced, or haphazard. The film's story line that begins as a romance, evolves into an underdog business story, and ends as a courtroom drama, and Sherman impressively manages to take all of these various story threads and create a completely coherent motion picture that never feels disjointed or episodic. Sherman also keeps things movie at a remarkably brisk pace – the film never feels even half as long as it's 136-minute runtime. The entire cast turns in superlative work, with Newman being particular well-suited to his role as a good-natured-but-flawed lawyer (he would return to this type of role with even better results in the 1982 classic THE VERDICT). Barbara Rush, Brian Keith, Dianne Brewster, Billie Burke, and Robert Vaughn are all excellent, and Alexis Smith is particularly memorable as sexy socialite. Speaking of sex, the film retains a surprisingly sensual aura throughout, which helps to keep it from aging for modern audiences. Inexplicably forgotten by many classic film fans, THE YOUNG PHILADELPHIANS is a moving, compelling motion picture that holds up remarkably well nearly fifty years after it's original release.

By 1959, Paul Newman's career was moving into high gear, with CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, THE LONG, HOT SUMMER, and SOMEBODY UP THERE LIKES ME all critical and commercial successes. Even his harshest critics grudgingly admitted he was far more than just a "Brando look-alike" (as he had been labeled in his first films), but his contract to Warner Bros. forced him to also appear in potboilers (THE HELEN MORGAN STORY), and misguided comedies (RALLY 'ROUND THE FLAG, BOYS!), and Newman was chafing at the bit to be able to pick and choose his own projects.Vincent Sherman's THE YOUNG PHILADELPHIANS, the last film under Newman's WB contract, proved to be one of the best, and he showed the dazzling sexuality and near-arrogant confidence that would mark many of his films of the next decade. As Anthony Judson Lawrence, illegitimate son of Brian Keith (performed with a brogue and a wink, as Keith was, actually, less than 4 years older than Newman), and social climbing mother Diane Brewster, he carried the name of an 'upper crust' father (Adam West, as wooden as he would be in "Batman"), whose homosexuality had been carefully hidden and whose inability to 'perform' and suicidal death on his wedding night would result in a 'deal' between mother and in-laws; the boy could keep the name, but would not have access to the family fortune.Flashing ahead a few years, Lawrence is a strapping, 'blue collar' kind of guy, much to the chagrin of his mother, who hopes that his name will gain him inroads into Philadelphia 'society'. Working construction with his (yet unknown to him) birth father, between semesters at law school, he meets pretty socialite Joan Dickinson (Barbara Rush), who quickly falls for his sweaty, sexy charm. Lawrence's best friend, to his mother's relief, is alcoholic fellow student 'Chet' Gwynn (Robert Vaughn, in an Oscar-nominated role), heir of another elite family, who sees in Lawrence a personal courage he lacks. Vaughn's performance is a film highlight, quite similar to Lew Ayres' role in HOLIDAY, twenty years earlier, through the early part of the film.Young Lawrence is fighting his mother's battle for acceptance, and, in the first of several 'upwardly mobile' decisions, he postpones a quick marriage to Joan, in return for help in his law career. While he is convinced the delay would help the two of them, it costs him her love. Bitterly, he decides to 'play the game', using whatever means necessary to get ahead. With a brief interruption by the Korean War, his career flourishes, aided by a willingness to use 'inside' information to obtain a choice clerking appointment, while toying with a near-affair with the 'younger' wife of the aged lawyer he is studying with (Alexis Smith, gloriously beautiful at 38). When he achieves a spot in a prestigious law firm, he 'woos' a major client (Billie Burke) over to him. With unscrupulous ease, he reaches a pinnacle his mother had only dreamed of.But Lawrence's world is about to come crashing down, as Gwynn, his college friend, crippled in Korea, has been arrested for murder, and begs the lawyer to represent him. The trial promises to expose the seamy underbelly of Philadelphia society, revealing secrets that could destroy many lives, including his own.Lawrence faces a moral dilemma, whether to save his friend, or preserve the fiction of his own life...Entertaining and at times powerful, THE YOUNG PHILADELPHIANS is a fitting conclusion to the early stage of Paul Newman's career; ahead was EXODUS, and a decade of roles that would cement his position as a superstar!