The film adaptation of author James T. Farrell's "Studs Lonigan" trilogy takes place in the slums of Chicago's South Side in the 1920s. It centres on the growing pains of the eponymous hero, including his tempestuous relationship with his father, his attempts to make easy money with his buddies, and his randy ways with the two women in his life. A cracking tale about growing up hard and fast in an unforgiving world.