Motion Picture Herald (Nov-Dec 1948)

FEATURE REVIEW The Snake Pit Twentieth Century Fox — A Study in Realism From the artistic and cinematographic point of view "The Snake Pit" undoubtedly represents an achievement, destined to stand out in Hollywood's quest for realism and proof of the medium's ability to interpret human problems to the masses. Director Anatole Litvak here presents ex viewer's Rating : Excellent for realism and hibitors with a film of unusual interest, a performances.— Fred Hift. motion picture dealing with a woman gone 01?fle*se ^te. "g1 seV Running time, 108 minutes. r , °. . j , FLA No. 12490. Strictly adult audience classification. insane, her long Stay in an asylum and her Virginia Cunningham Olivia de Havilland eventual Cure. It is merchandise filled With Robert Cunningham Mark Stevens . rr , Ta ■ , j • , , Dr. Kik Leo Genu DOX Office dynamite, it IS also a frightening Glenn Langan, Helen Craig, Leif Erickson, Beulah picture and what laughs there are come at Bondl; LueeT,Patri?,k' Howard Freeman, Natalie Schaf r, r ° , ter, Ruth Donnelly, Betsy Blair the expense of some of the poor mentally unbalanced going through the blank and SSSL rou,mes their l",,',ink,ng mmds September's Tax Olivia de Havilland, an actress of distinction, •* here gives the performance of her life. To a 1 Ah (\ r1 /"k O O C% ~l 1 large degree she is the picture and her portray i fx Tft I m ~m m ~l "1 S I I al of a mind tortured with past experiences ■* v^C* MfptJ f S*J*J J ^ J J and gradually shocked back to sanity and un derstanding is overwhelmingly realistic. She Washington Bureau is supported by a large and uniformly capable General admission tax collections, up cast headed by Leo Germ as the doctor and sharpl over 1947 in August, were off Mark Stevens as the husband. ,. * J r . . . 0 „ , , Realism bordering on the documentary, a su slightly from 1947 levels in September, the perb script by Frank Partos and Millen Brand, Bureau of Internal Revenue reported last fashioned from the best-selling novel of the week. September collections reflect box same title by Mary Jane Ward outstanding office business in August, performances and a top-notch direction job e 0 „ , combine to make this Darryl F. Zanuck presen September, 1948, collections totaled $35, tation what probably will be one of the most 933,211, compared with $37,068,543 in Sep talked-about films of the year. There will be tember last year. August, 1948, collections those who will hail "The Snake Pit" as superb of $34 068,543 were close to $5,000,000 cinema and there will be others who will argue ( . Q .y that it is the task of the screen to entertain and aiiead ot August, ly-V. not to shock. And there will be a third group, The general admission tax figures include who, still hearing the screams of Miss de Havil collections at sports events, legitimate thea land in their ears and remembering for days treg and other bHc exhibitions in addition after the pitiful and deeply impressive scene of . . r , , , her relapse into insanity, will debate the dis to m0tl0n Plcture theatres, but do not in cretion of using the material on the entertain elude roof garden and cabaret taxes nor ment screen. taxes on various brokers sales, leases and The producers, Litvak and Robert Bassler overcharges. All admission tax collections have spared no effort to avoid all indications ot . c . . t j t a^n /-7i nnn make-believe in the insane asylum wards. At >n S^te™b"^n S *° $40'67\009' f™" the same time they have cleverly played on re pared with $42,330,292 in September, 1947, cent publicity pointing up crowded conditions in and $38,820,739 in August, 1948. the nation's mental hospitals. The film ranges from the tragic to the deeply emotional and c -pi , w. 1 the comic, although this last element is un ZUth TOX I heatre Video doubtedly unintentional on the part of the pro nl « • KJ L I ' > ducers. The preview audience promptly laughed r lan5 INtiDUIOUS with a sense of relief when an insane inmate Twentieth Century-Fox's theatre televi did a fantastic dance in bare feet. There are s;on plans now are "more nebulous than many who will view that sequence with a strong ,, , , . , . . ' / r j a I ever and the company is currently weigh feehng of distaste. . . , ^ r . J ,. J . ° Litvak has succeeded admirably in creating mg the advantages of direct as against m the desired atmosphere and the touch of his termediate theatre television, Earl I. Spon skilled hand enhances the production with im able> research director for 20th-Fox, said portant values. Genn does a fine job as the . ^ v , , , p, , , . doctor in this picture to end all psycho-analyti 111 ^ew Yo^ last week Plans for the m cal pictures. Celeste Holm, Grayce Hampton stallation ot an RCA direct-throw set in and especially Betsy Blair, whose face will be the Roxy theatre, New York, have been long remembered by those who see the picture, postponed indefinitely since 20th-Fox still do outstanding jobs. The same is true of the t t , , . . , , . " 7 1 ■ „„r-a, AifroA Wo™, Ieels tnat the direct-projection method is not actresses portraying the nurses. Altred JNew , , . man's music and Leo Tover's photography de as yet perfected to the point where its use serve highest praise. in theatres is practical. "The film-storage The story is told in the same manner as the type of theatre television has certain advanbook, with Miss de Havilland m a mental , , hibif. • mnrerned " blackout some of the time, and thinking reason ^escas ia^,as ,th^ ex«lbltoi is concerned, ably, although as in a daze, the rest of the Mr. Sponable declared, but the exhibitor time. The film also uses to an effective end also has a problem in installing the rapid the stream-of-consciousness technique which processing equipment in his theatre." give the audience a chance to hear the some times clear, sometimes muddled, thoughts of a ... . woman suffering from a severe nervous break To DUlla Florida House down. Beach Theatres, Inc., of Jacksonville Previewed at the Academy Award theatre, Beach, Fla., has obtained a permit for the Hollvwood, before a press audience which gave . c nA1 , iiuiiy^u u, 1 r , , iatt the erection of a new 991-seat theatre to cost the picture enthusiastic applause, but left the ,j,1Anf.AA , . . , . „ , " theatre in a somewhat depressed mood. Re $1UU,UUU, and to be called the Surf theatre. OLIVIA de HAVILLAND, "an actress of distinction, here gives the performance of her life." Dividend Payments for Nine Months in 1 8% Decline Dividend payments by film companies during the first nine months of this year were 18.1 per cent below those in the like period of 1947, the U. S. Department of Commerce has reported. Companies' publicly reported cash dividends totaled $34,290,000 for the 1948 period, compared with $41,894,000 in the first nine months of record-making 1947. The September, 1948, figure was $7,478,000, compared with $8,599,000 in the same month of last year. The fact 20th-Fox reduced its dividend and Columbia failed to pay a September dividend accounted for the drop, according to Commerce Department officials. Payments for the third quarter of this year totaled $11,038,000 as against $15,497,000 last year. Astor Acquires 16mm Rights To UA's "Copacabana" Astor Pictures has acqnired world-wide 16mm distribution rights to United Artists' "Copacabana," Jacques Kopfstein, executive vice-president of Astor, has announced. The 92-minute musical stars Groucho Marx, Carmen Miranda, and Andy Russell and will be released by Astor commencing in May, 1949. Other musicals released by UA and acquired by Astor for 16mm release include "Hi Diddle Diddle," "Sensations," "Knickerbocker Holiday," and "Melody Master." Omaha Staffs Shifted Universal-International's Omaha salesman, Nate Galbreath, has resigned because of illness. Paul Black and Kenneth Weldon are new salesmen for RKO Radio and Monogram, respectively; and Phyllis Otto of United Artists has been replaced by Gerry McAuliffe. 18 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, NOVEMBER 6, 1948