The "Delicate Delinquent" was originally written for Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin, but it became Jerry's first solo film. The movie is a departure from the slapstick comedy Lewis had done with Martin. I would describe it as a drama with comedy. Jerry plays a young man in a tough city who isn't exactly a "delinquent", but certainly has stopped attempting to live up to his potential. Jerry's speech in the middle of the film is certainly devoid of humor: "When I was a kid I was jerky, now I'm a man, and I'm lonely...I'm a nowhere, a no place." However, a false arrest turns his life around as a police officer takes a special interest in "reforming" him.

Dean Martin turned the film down, before the partnership desolved, becuase he didn't want to play a cop, but Lewis turns this black and white story into a personal epic about standing on your own and making a difference (a fitting message for someone who had just launched into a solo career after coming off what was then the biggest act in American history).

Yet another Lewis classic that should be on DVD.

This is a very good movie, but I would have to say it isn't Jerry's best. It is very low budget, but Jerry makes up for that. It is definatly a must see, but as I said, Jerry has done better.

In this endearing comedy, Lewis plays a youth caught between gangster-type friends and the grown-up world. Mike Damon (McGavin) takes a shining to this delinquent and determines to help him become a star citizen. Sydney enrolls in the police academy which sets off a wide array of antics that disrupts the entire school. The Delicate Delinquent is a charming boy-to-man film. A must have for any Jerry Lewis fan.