Party Girl

Year: 1958

Runtime: 99 mins

Language: English

Director: Nicholas Ray

RomanceDramaCrimeCrime

At the toughest parties in town, slick defense attorney Thomas Farrell—who has built a career defending mobsters—encounters a charming showgirl. Their meeting makes him see life is about more than winning courtroom battles. When he tries to leave the racket, mob boss Rico Angelo threatens the showgirl, forcing Farrell to confront his choices.

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Party Girl (1958) – Full Plot Summary & Ending Explained

Read the complete plot breakdown of Party Girl (1958), including all key story events, major twists, and the ending explained in detail. Discover what really happened—and what it all means.

Thomas Farrell is a slick lawyer who has built a career defending Chicago mobsters in court. At a party for Rico Angelo, the mob boss, he meets chorus girl Vicki Gaye, who accepted money to attend the event, along with another payoff from Louis Canetto, earned from his gambling winnings.

Farrell gives her a ride home, and both share a wary view of how crime pays. Joy Hampton is later found dead by suicide, pregnant by a married criminal, a tragedy that shadows the night. After a long night of police questioning, Farrell asks that Vicki be given a raise and featured in a number at the Golden Rooster club, which Rico owns.

The two begin a romance, and she is struck by the way Farrell, who is lame, uses his disability to sway jurors while helping Canetto dodge a murder charge. A surgeon may repair Farrell’s hip, so he travels to Stockholm for the operation.

Cookie La Motte, a cold-blooded killer, is coming up for trial, but Farrell, changed in his outlook, would rather not defend such a man. Rico threatens Vicki if the lawyer won’t comply. Cookie jumps bail and plans to eliminate prosecuting attorney Jeffrey Stewart while at large, only to be cut down by other racketeers in an Indiana diner.

Stewart decides to pressure the mob by going after anyone connected to it. He begins by placing Farrell under arrest. Canetto goes to Vicki to offer protection, but instead takes her prisoner. The district attorney releases Farrell, hoping to smoke out the mob. Canetto, caught in a crossfire, is killed.

Farrell then confronts Rico, but the gangster grabs a bottle of acid that he intends to disfigure Vicki with if the lawyer refuses. A fight erupts, with the bottle smashing into Rico’s face. Eyes and face burning, he plunges from a window to his death.

Last Updated: October 07, 2025 at 08:35

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