Film and Radio Guide (Oct 1945-Jun 1946)

October, 1 945 FILM AND RADIO GUIDE 47 terial for discussion. From the point of view of cinematographic art, which is better — the book’s plot and ending or the motion picture’s plot and ending? Is it necessary to have romantic love in every motion-picture story? To what extent should motion pictures change material taken directly from popular novels? If you have read the book, have seen the stage play, and have seen the motion picture of And Then There Were None which gave you the greatest interest and created the most powerful suspense? This much appears certain — the book keeps a secret until the very last ; the stage-play and the motion picture show a charming young man and a lovely young woman. An observer naturally says, “Oho ! A lover and his lass ! They will come out all right, marry and live happily ever after.’’ Introducing such conventional love interest satisfies craving for passionate romance but dissipates mystery. A powerful cast makes Aud Then There Were None a notable production. Here are Barry Fitzgerald, Walter Huston, Louis Hayward, Roland Young, June Duprez, C. Aubrey Smith, Judith Anderson, Mischa Auer, Richard Haydn, and Queenie Leonard — all in one picture ! A picturesque setting adds to effect. Far out from land, waves dash high upon the ledges of a small rocky island. On this island is a princely mansion to which come ten individuals, each one summoned by a “Mr. Owen’’ whom none of them knows. Each person has committed an unpunished crime. On that island, from which no escape is possible, vengeance stalks each criminal. Such a mystery story, with such a cast, certainly will hold any person’s interest. NOB HILL. Romance of early San Francisco. 20th Century-Fox. Henry Hathaway, Director. Recommended for adults. Nob Hill — Katie in the wonderland of old San Francisco’s Barbary Coast — tells the story of a little girl (Peggy Ann Garner) whom fate sends straight from Ireland into the wild activities of one of San Francisco’s liveliest dance halls. This Bret Harte situation does not lead to reform on the part of the hardfisted dance hall proprietor (George Raft), but it does lead to happiness for him and for one of the two women who love him. On the way across the Atlantic little Katie Flanagan has become acquainted with rich and aristocratic Harriet Carruthers (Joan Bennett) , who lives in one of the ornate mansions on San Francisco’s Nob Hill. Quite innocently the child leads her dance-hall protector into the almost forbidden streets and homes of Nob Hill, and into familiarity with the young woman of wealth and fashion. The result not only completely upsets the peace and happiness of a very beautiful and extremely redheaded dance-hall star (Vivian Blaine) , but also the success and welfare of the Barbary Coast itself, with all its glittering attractions and luring pleasures. Two young and beautiful women face each other — and they do much more than face each other, for they engage in actual fisticuffs, hair-pulling, and general roll-and-tumble, with neither one much hurt. Which one gets her man? Not even the little Irish girl could have foretold the winner, but it was she who ended the triangle — two women fighting for one man ! Technicolor, strong use of close-ups, numerous active group scenes, some of the toughness and roughness of old San Francisco, and a gi-eat deal of the blare, music, gaiety, and dancing of the Barbary Coast give the production the slap-dash spirit of the city destroyed by the great earthquake and fire of 1906. In and with all this, Peggy Ann Garner presents the simplicity and wistfulness of a child to whom everything is new and almost everything is worthy of respect. Without her as a foil, the picture would be merely a kind of “western” ; with her, it gains a background that lifts it from crassness and crudity. A n ordinary house mouse plays a part in this picture story. Look for the mouse! The only “star mouse” of the movies I BLITHE SPIRIT. Fantasy. In Technicolor. Produced by Noel Coward from his stage-play, for United Artists release. This is a sophisticated, satirical comedy about a wife who has died young and whose spirit comes back to the house of her re-married husband to get him to join her in heaven. In the end, he does, but not before Wife No. 2, in an accident intended by the spirit of Wife No. 1 for the husband 07ily, also becomes a ghost — so that the Eternal Triangle continues in spirit land! Of interest to students of film appreciation is the remarkably successful use of makeup and lighting to create the effect of a living spirit. In this. Technicolor is a great advantage. It will be interesting to compare some aspects of this film with comparable elements in Wo)ider Boy, the Sam Goldwyn production. English teachers will find the Noel Coward theme reminiscent of Rossetti’s Blessed Damozel, though wholly different in treatment. Here’s hoping that a screen version of the Rosetti poem may some day appear in Technicolor as a romantic fantasy in the mood of Smilin' Through! Holly woutl, please note. w. L.