Exhibitor's Trade Review (Nov 1925 - Feb 1926)

November 28, 1925 Page 31 BOX OFFICE REVIEWS THE BIG PARADE A Metro-Goldrvyn-Mayer Photoplay. From the story by George Slallings. Directed by King Vidor. Length, 10 reels. CAST AND SYNOPSIS James Apperson John Gilbert Melisande Renee Adoree Mr. Apperson Hobart Bosworth Mrs. Apperson Claire McDowell Justyn Reed Claire Adams Harry Robert Ober Bull Tom O'Brien Slim Karl Dane French Mother Rosita Marstini Jim Apperson, happy-go-lucky rich man's son, enters the great war as a buck private. He leaves behind his parents, a brother, and sweetheart, Justyn. While billeted in France, Jim meets Melisande, a French girl, and loses his "heart to her. Theirs is an idyllic attachment. The trumpets sound a sudden call to the trenches, and Jim and Melisande take a heart-breaking good-bye as he boards a motor lorry. Jim emerges from the great conflict minus a leg. Arriving home he discovers that Justyn has transferred her love to his brother. He quickly returns to France for a blissful reunion with Melisande. By Michael L. Simmons 'J'HIS is the kind of picture that moves a showman's reviewer to say to showmen: "Boys, out with your pencils. Sign on the dotted line. 'The Big Parade' is in! A walk-over for the cash-till. A picture that should put wings on your tickets and give the machine a clicking cramp!" That is one way of reporting on this fine screen achievement. Another way is to call attention to the specific elements that contribute toward its greatness. To begin with, you have the story by Lawrence Stallings. Stallings went through the war. He observed it with faculties trained by newspaper experience to project his mind incisively into the heart of things. He felt his environment with only such feelings as a man can experience who has emerged from the shambles minus one of the legs God gave him. This incisiveness, those feelings, have been molded into graphic form with a dramatic force rivalling, if anything, the booming of the hell-dealing "Big Berthas" depicted in some of the scenes. Some of the material is frightfully grim. But how tell a war story without the grimness of inevitable details? Audiences may quiver, may squirm at the gory message of death, but it will grow on them as will also the by-play of exquisite humor and good cheer. Pictorially, the film attains great heights. Long range shots loom up in all the regal beauty of classic composition. The direction inveigles you into not merely believing that it is all true, but that you are a breathing, venturesome, pitiful performer in the teeming spectacle. Perfection of detail is paramount. The acting is a revelation in purity of characterization and dramatic flawlessness. John Gilbert and Renee Adoree convey a wealth of meaning that comes only from inspiration. Their portrayals receive splendid coordination from those in the supporting cast. THE UNGUARDED HOUR First National Photoplay. From the story by Margaret Tuttle. Directed by Lambert Hillyer. Length, 6,61 3 feet. CAST AND SYNOPSIS Andrea Milton Sills Virginia Gilbert Doris Kenyon Bryce Gilbert Claude King Duchess Bianca Dolores Cassinelli Russell Van Alstyne Cornelius Keefe Gus O'Rorick Jed Prouty Steho Charles Beyer Elena Lorna Duveen Annie, the Maid Vivia Ogden The Butler J. Moy Bennett _ Virginia Gilbert is caught by her father just as she is about to elope with a casual boy friend. Gilbert Senior, dissuades her, and sends her on a visit to Italy, to be the guest of the Duchess Bianca, to whom he is engaged. There she meets Bianca's nephew, who is indifferent to feminine charms. Hoping to attract the Duke, Virginia feigns drowning. He rescues her only to discover her saving his sister a few minutes later. He succumbs to her charms. This sister has been indiscreet in her love with Count Stelio. Virginia, hoping to plead Elena's cause, is found with the Count in her room by the Duke. When Stelio leaves, Virginia discovers that Elena has killed herself. The Duke rushes to Stelio's room to kill him. In the struggle Stelio falls out of the window and is killed. The tragedy brings Virginia and the Duke to an understanding of their love. By Michael L. Simmons J FIND very little in this picture, outside some of the names in the cast, and the settings, that has much value at the boxoffice. The story is of little consequence, the acting uninspiring, and the treatment of all the values, quite commonplace. There is a grain of humor that comes to the surface now and then, carried out not by situation but by the titling. The titling is good. This film may find a niche in the small houses, supported by uncritical audiences. The picture has a sprightly start, opening up with a party at a high-society home to which the hostess has invited a gang of underworld toughs, intended to establish the restless, adventurous spirit of the heroine, supplies what little humor the film contains. It might have enlivened the film considerably had it been amplified, but it runs its complete course early in the first reel. In appearance, Milton Sills is the same impressive figure he always is, but somehow he fails to add any of his power to the story. That's just it, the story lacks force. Had Sills been capitalized to the able extent of his unquestionable talents, the film probably would have achieved the object its director aimed for. Doris Kenyon is in turn vivacious, smiling, grave and subdued, but never with the moving power that a real flesh-and-blood portrayal suggests. There is no doubt but that Miss Kenyon has an entertaining bag of tricks, but somehow, she, too, fails to register. I have said something about excepting the quality of the sets from the charge of faultiness. The sets are really a redeeming feature. They are elegantly appointed, striking in design, and faithful to the locales. THE GREEN ARCHER Pathe Serial. Ten Chapters. From the novel by Edgar Wallace. Directed by Spencer Bennett. CAST AND SYNOPSIS Valerie Howett Allene Ray Jim Featherstone Walter Miller Abel Bellamy Burr Mcintosh Julius Savini Frank Lackteen Fay Savini Dorothy King Walter Howett Stephen Grattan John Wood William R. Randall Coldharbor Smith Walter Lewis Spike Holland Wally Oettel Butler Tom Cameron Elaine Holding Ray Allan Creager Jack Tanner In a New York suburb, Abel Bellamy, a day laborer who has become a millionaire, resides in a castle the exact replica of a feudal structure. Valerie Howett, who believes that a woman missing for eighteen years is hidden away in this castle, purchases an adjoining untenanted estate. She bribes Bellamy's valet to supply her with information. The ghostly figure of a green archer haunts the premises, leaving arrows stuck into walls and doors. These are accepted as portents of destruction. A former prison warden who had been on calling terms with Bellamy, is suddenly refused admission to the castle. He threatens to reveal damaging information. That night he is found dead with an arrow through his heart. The questions now arise : Who is the green archer? Who killed the warden? What is the mystery of Bellamy? What is Valerie's interest in him? By Michael L. Simmons JF the next three reels of "The Green Archer" measure up to the promise established in the first three, patrons of serials are going to be treated to a highly satisfactory performance in the serial line. As it stands now, it is much better than most of the serials I've witnessed. Of essential importance in the success of a serial is its power to reach a climactic interest at the end of each episode, thus stimulating the spectator's desire to see the succeeding number. This, "The Green Archer" does with intriguing regularity. The interesting element that sets this one apart from the usual run of serials is the employment of the subject of archery. It is around this novel sport that the plot and the attendant particulars revolve. The use of the bow and arrow, demonstrations of remarkable skill, are worked into the dramatic sequences in a manner that is truly novel. They make for welcome innovations in a class of picture, which in most other cases depends on the lurid use of gun-play, blackjacking and sundry, for sustaining interest. Yes, archery is a welcome change and an interesting theme. A word about principals. They help measurably to make the picture as good as it is. The types are well chosen and convincing. The bad men really look bad. The hero is an alert, handsome-looking chap, of interesting bearing and intelligent countenance. Alleen Ray, as the heroine, deserves a paragraph to herself. She is, first, very pretty — an important thing in a serial; she is deft in her movements; and she has the personality that will keep the spectator's interest stimulated throughout.