T-BIRD GANG (1959) ***

John Brinkley watches in horror as his night watchman father is gunned down by a gang of thieves.  He vows revenge and infiltrates the gang to bring them down from the inside.  When Brinkley is arrested, he tells his plight to a concerned cop (Coleman Francis), who allows him to be a police informant.  It doesn’t take long for the seasoned ringleader of the gang (Ed Nelson) to smell a rat.  

In some ways, T-Bird Gang feels like an early Point Break prototype.  Written by co-stars Brinkley and Tony Miller (who plays one of Nelson’s crew), it’s only an hour long, moves at a breakneck pace, and has a cool jazzy score.  It’s also highly entertaining.  The performances are strong across the board too, with Nelson being the standout as the slimy kingpin.  Even Coleman Francis is rock-solid as the straight-laced detective on the case. 

Some viewers might feel cheated as this is sort of a bait-and-switch.  Even though it was sold as a juvenile delinquent movie, it’s actually a taut crime thriller.  If it’s JD kicks you’re looking for, I’m afraid you’ll have to look elsewhere.  If, however, you’re craving a brutally efficiently little B picture, T-Bird Gang should fit the bill nicely.  It’s a shame director Richard Harbinger didn’t direct anything else because he delivered a crackling potboiler on a meager budget and coaxed some fine performances from his cast.