Yes - good guy - I saw Bugsy Malone when it came out and always thought that a brave film. I mean the entire idea sounds so shite. There's some excellent very naturalistic scenes in Melody - I think of the ones with the kids sitting around nattering about stuff - I think there's something in that BFI clip where Parker describes how they made use of the kids' own words/ways of speaking. Also heard a rumble that he directed one or two of those bits.
Whilst I really like that film, great music, great fun, and a couple of really good bits of choreography too, but I think the ending would have been better, and if the final custard pie fight had been a Pekinpah massacre, albeit given its a kids' film, maybe Bugsy ans Blousie could escape. Up to then, everyone pie'd or "splurged" stayed splurged, which is a moral of sorts
