Moving Picture World (Jul-Sep 1914)

107& THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD "Lay Down Your Arms." Baroness Bertha Von Suttner's WorldFamous Tract Against Militarism Makes Deep Impression as Pictured by Great Northern. Reviewed \>y Hanford C. .ludson. WHERE war lays out its shambles, dead and wounded together; where its victims, lacking shelter, are huddled along the wall outside; where death swings its scythe; where there is heart-break and hopeless wailing at home; where pestilence, crept in from the putrid fields, is devastating quiet villages, this is where the picture, "Lay Down Your Arms." takes us. It shows us these things not to give us divertisement, but earnestly and solemnly to give us satiety and disgust at war as war was seen by the Baroness Bertha Von Suttner, who wrote the novel, from V.' uh the picture is taken, to open the world's eyes to the bceac ay Ijown Your Arms" (Great Northern). horrors ul war and militarism. The picture, too. was produced with a purpose; it was ordered by the peace advocates and was intended to form a part of the regular program at the peace convocation that was purposed to be held at Vienna this summer, but isn't to be held at all. Yet the picture will serve a good purpose and be its own peace convention wherever it is shown. The Great Northern studio is noted for the artistic quality of its photography and for dramatic stories as well. The ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^B s^ 1 ■^r'r^SBTS Scene from "Lay Down Your Arms" (Great Northern). spectator will find the beautiful camera work exemplified in this picture, for it has some of the loveliest of scenes and most charming of pictures. On the other hand, whenever its purpose is to show gashes and wounds, it is just as effective. The story was built, not to be merely dramatic, but to serve the author's purpose and is somewhat arbitrary, though emotional — it is a tract and we have never seen a tract that was not over-accented. It opens showing us a beautiful home in a militarist country. There has recently been a war and sorrows due to war have already visited it. Then war breaks out again and the same shadows once more come with anxiety and dread. These scenes have been produced in a dignified way and are followed by freshly conceived battle pictures showing an advance of foreign troops across the frontier followed by a rout. They are e.xciting scenes, but there is none of the usual feeling about them. The glory of war is a matter of mental attitude solely; this picture keeps in view only the horrors of war and the enthusiasm is kept religiously out of sight. .-Kfter war has done its worst, pestilence comes to finish the job and add more anguish. How will it go in your show, Mr. Exhibitor? It is a competently made picture of a novel that was sold all over the world. That it will be counted a wholesome lesson, there is no doubt. If you show it, some of j'our patrons may say to you, "It's a good picture and, though I didn't find it entertaining, I'm glad }^ou rented it. \\'e need such a picture. It'll do us good. It will help to convince the world that motion picture shows are doing their part in raising us to higher things." Others may say that it is a weakling picture of weaklings who lacked the courage and selfishly were unable to bear sorrow and loss for the sake of maintaining a fire on the national hearth. But these latter will be only the few; the many will heartily commend its purpose. If this country had just gone through a terrible war, it would be too poignant a picture to show. L'nder such conditions, some one would be sure to bellow and set the whole house to sobbing. But there are some of us who truly need to be shown that war is what a certain general called it. OLCOTT IN THE GAP OF DUNLOE. One of the most picturesque spots in Ireland is the beautiful Gap of Dunloe, near which the Sid Olcott company have their headquarters for the summer while doing some real Irish features with genuine backgrounds. The accompanying picture was taken in this beautiful gorge between two big mountains through which thousands of tourists pass every year. The Gap is on tlie regular route from Killarney to the lakes, the trip being made by carriage, jaunting car or sight seeing coach as far as the Gap, then seven miles through the Gap on ponies and then down the lakes by row boats, back to Ross castle, where jaunting cars or coaches p'ck up their parties and take them to Killarney. Vs.entine Grant and Pat O'Malley of the Olcott Company. There was a small revolution in the Gap about si.x years ago when the Cook's Tours Company attempted to run their big sight seeing coaches through the Gap to the Lakes. There are about a hundred and twenty pony boys in the Gap and these men make their living hauling the tourists, of whom there are about a hundred and fifty Or two hundred every day. But the pony boys did not intend to be thrown out of what they considered their own and so they tore up the roads and went up the mountain side with their rifles and shot down a few horses on the coaches until the Irish constabulary were called out. But even the police were unable to cope with the brave, hardy mountaineers who were fighting for what they considered their lawful rights by heritage and finally the Cook company was forced to give up the battle.