Mickey Rooney

I agree, Mickey was good in this but then I tend to enjoy watching his movies; from when he was a kid on up.

You say the story is realistic and you're probably right. People in real life are just as foolish as Stan is in the movie. Here's the lesson: if you know someone is a mobster and you don't really want 'your girl' to go into acting, don't introduce them to each other. It didn't make sense on any level for him to do that; except he was trying to impress her. And, the fact he had to tell Sonny 'she's my girl', means he already knew what a lecherous creep the guy was.

Stan, himself, found her attractive and had to practically force himself on her. Why wouldn't he think Sonny would feel and do the same? If he could convince Jane to go out with him who had nothing, she would certainly be putty in Sonny's hands. He had so much more to offer her and, by her own admission, she was in search of anyone who could help her get what she wanted.

There was really no reason for Stan to 'warn' Jane about Sonny. That only put her at risk and it wouldn't have helped his own situation any. Sonny did not want people to know what he did for a living; especially not some big mouth, disillusioned girl, threatening to squeal. Stan seemed to be trying to get back at both of them. That said, I don't even believe Jane would have reacted the way she did. She didn't care that much about Stan that she'd take such a stand on his behalf. Also, her personal ambition, not friendship, is what drove her; that was the motivating factor in her life. Whether she got help from a gangster or anyone else didn't seem to matter to her. Sonny may have been stringing her along but what she wanted was to make contacts; she could've still done that through him.

My point is Stan may not have been guilty of murder, per se, but both Sonny and Jane ended up dead because of him. He was hardly the hero of the story. He was a stalking pest whose meddling ways led to the deaths of two people who otherwise would not have died. In a lot of ways, Stan was much more of a threat to Jane than Sonny ever was and just as much a criminal. The most were ever Sonny so was run a bookie service. One could argue his 'victims' were willing participants. On the other hand, Stan stalked Jane like a predator after his prey. He wanted her and couldn't care less what she wanted; even if it meant dashing her dream of becoming an actress.


Woman, man! That's the way it should be Tarzan. [Tarzan and his mate]