The Film Daily (1918)

Sunday, December 29, 1918 T&£A AlLY Interest in Evelyn Nesbit May Put This Over. Otherwise Will Flop Evelyn Nesbit in "I WANT TO FORGET" Fox. DIRECTOR James KirkwoocL AUTHOR James Kirkwood. CAMERAMAN Not credited AS A WHOLE Depends largely upon notoriety of Evelyn Nesbit; meller situations fairly well handled. STORY Has German spy plot as basis; follows usual lines. DIRECTION Keeps star within her limitations and gives some animation to hackneyed plot. PHOTOGRAPHY Fair LIGHTINGS A bit harsh at times, but for the most part satisfactory. CAMERA WORK Mainly straight stuff. STAR ...... Photographs reasonably well and shows improvement in acting. SUPPORT Russell Thaw appears in one scene. Burden of performance carried by Henry Clive and Alphonz Ethier. EXTERIORS Suitable to action of story. INTERIORS Conventional. DETAIL Doesn't bother much about fine points, but avoids obvious slips. CHARACTER OF STORY Won't offend. LENGTH OF PRODUCTION About 5,000 ft. Evelyn Nesbit gives indications of becoming more of an actress as her screen experience broadens. In "I Want to Forget" she plays with moderation and succeeds in conveying some degree of emotion in her facial expressions. She takes a good close-up, for her dark eyes register effectively, and this is distinctly an advantage considering the star's main bid for public favor. Your folks don't go to see Miss Nesbit because they think she is a superior actress, but because of the somewhat morbid appeal of her life story. This being so. it is natural that they should want to get as inti mate views of the tragic shero as possible. Closeups bring the needed intimacy quicker than anything else and the production profits through their use. As a story, this isn't worth bothering about. It's the old stuff of German spies operating in this country while secret service men try to run them to earth From first to last it's the type of meller that has been done with great frequency and there are no distinguishing points to raise the film above the average of its class. Miss Nesbit plays a dancer who hails from Vienna. tt seems that her earlier activities have made her weli known to the leaders of German propaganda in the United States and when this country goes to war, a representative of the Central Powers looks to the girl to do her part. As might be expected, the plotting emissary of autocracy thrusts his unwelcome attentions upon the dancer who insists upon her loyalty to America. Opposing the schemes of Willun Alphonz Ethier is Hero Henry Clive, a lieutenant in the army who keeps in close touch with the work of the Secret Service Department. He too, falls in love with Evelyn, but events are so arranged that he concludes the dancer and her foreign admirer are double crossing him. Here they bring in the usual stuff of the rivals meeting in the girl's apartment, under circumstances that place her in a questionable light. Then for the fifth reel climax, when it is necessary for Evelyn to prove her loyalty, they give her a chance to take a hand in secret service work by accompanying Willun Ethier to a country estate which has been made the rendezvous of the German band. The development from this point on is according to meller convention, with the girl resisting the advances of her persistent annoyer and playing an indispensable part in aiding Hero Henry Clive and the secret service men in rounding up the spies. In the cast are William R. Dunn, and Jane Jennings. Katteijohn Films^ announce iour special productions of superior feature value produced under the iiioividual management of their creator £ — -o Monte MJ6tterJQhn author oT ** Gaimen of the 1-Gondike The "Flame of thenikon and The Clodhopper. 730 SouLth Olive Street Los Angeles CaliPornia.