Showmen's Trade Review (Jul-Sep 1946)

SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW, August 17, 1946 15 The Time of Their Lives Universal Comedy 82 Mins. AUDIENCE SLANT: Somewhat of a departure from the usual Abbott & Costello fare, this comedy has less slapstick and more story, with results that are all to the good. It is fresh, funny and fantastic. BOX-OFFICE SLANT: (Family) There are the stars, of course, and in this they can be billed as the NEW Abbott & Costello. Sell 'em on the "different" angle; you can't miss. Cast: Abbott & Costello, Marjorie Reynolds, Binnie Barnes, John Shelton, Gale Sondergaard, Jess Barker, Robert H. Barrat, Donald MacBride, Anne Gillis, Lynne Baggett, William Hall, Rex Lease, Harry Woolman. Credits: Exec, producer, Joe Gershenson. Producer, V. L. Burton. Direction, Charles Barton. Original screenplay, Val Burton, Walter De Leon, Bradford Ropes. Additional dialog, John Grant. Photography, Charles Van Enger. Plot: Lou Costello is Horatio Prim, a tinker who in 1780 arrives at Danbury Manor to vie with his rival Bud Abbott for the hand of housemaid Anne Gillis. He and Mistress Melody (Marjorie Reynolds) are mistakenly shot by American troops as traitors and buried in a well under a curse that binds them to Danbury acres until "crack of doom." Since, as spirits they can not get away to join their loved ones in what apparently is heaven, they decide 160 years later to haunt the house until the inmates find a paper that clears them of the traitor charge. After many attempts they succeed and Lou is last seen waiting outside the pearly gate, which is closed because of Washington's Birthday. Comment: Remember "The Ghost Goes West" and the Topper pictures? This new Abbott & Costello vehicle is out of the same barn. The boys make use of just about every possible situation that can arise from the ghost premise and they do a wonderful job of it, too. Materializing at will and fading out of sight when they want to, Costello and Marjorie have a grand time wandering through the picture to everybody else's discomfort, although it seems Lou can't fade through closed doors as Marjorie can, which is a help to the audience. There is a strange strain of wistfulness running through the picture which is very effective; Lou becomes a real actor and Marjorie makes a wonderful foil for his doings. They are really cute together. Although the comedian does his share of pratt falls, the effective story provides him with fresh material and a new background for his antics. That's why the picture is different from any other Abbott & Costello and why you can sell them as the NEW Abbott & Costello. What more do you want? The Killers Universal Mystery 102 Mins. AUDIENCE SLANT: (Adult) An extremely powerful, suspenseful drama that will keep audiences thoroughly absorbed every minute. BOX-OFFICE SLANT: Lack of marquee draw will not keep this outstanding offering from becoming one of the top box-office money-makers, especially after word-ofmouth praise spreads. Cast: Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Edmond O'Brien. Albert Dekker, Sam Levene, Charles D. Brown. New STR Service Audience classifications of features as designated by 3 national reviewing committees now are reported weekly in our Booking Guide section. This information enables the theatreman to quote National Board of Review, General Federation of Women's Clubs or National Legion of Decency classifications of "Family" or "Adult" when queried by local groups or individuals about a current or forthcoming feature. Donald McBride, Phil Brown, John Miljan, Queenie Smith, Vince Barnett, Credits: Directed by Robert Siodmak. Screenplay by Anthony Veiller from a story by Ernest Hemingway. Photography, Woody Bredell. Produced by Mark Hellinger. Plot: When the body of a man is found in a rooming house, only an insurance adjuster takes interest in finding the killers. Through the clue of a green handkerchief plus underworld informers, he learns that the dead man belonged to a gang that had staged a successful robbery some years before. The dead man and a girl, involved with the gang, doublecrossed the others, and the killing was the result. Comment: For a sure-fire box-office mystery picture, one that will need no marquee draw once word-of-mouth praise spreads, "The Killers," is one of the best of its kind. In quality, it is comparable to any of the proven top box-office winners, since it has all the essential ingredients usually found in good, exciting murder dramas. It is so extremely powerful that it should make top spot in any situation and is a particularly outstanding offering for the neighborhood and subsequent houses. Everybody connected with it deserves the highest praise, from producer Mark Hellinger, who had the foresight to buy Ernest Hemingway's short story and elaborate it into such a splendid film, down to the smallest bit player. Outstanding and letter perfect in his first screen role is Burt Lancaster, as the big, dumb Swede. Lancaster is a real find, with looks plus acting ability. Ava Gardner, as the weak, sexy moll, turns in the best work of her career and Charles McGraw and William Conrad, who play the hired killers, are as menacing a pair of individuals as have ever appeared onvthe screen. The rest of the cast are splendid too. Director Robert Siodmak reveals here why he is rated one of Hollywood's best through his extremely skillful handling of numerous tense situations. Scenarist Anthony Veiller must take a bow for his remarkably tight script, considering the picture runs 102 minutes, yet never lets down in pace. Shadows On The Range Monogram Western 59 Mins. AUDIENCE SLANT: (Family) Mediocre; fails to maintain the pace set by predecessors in this series. BOX-OFFICE SLANT: Should get by nicely at box-office because of Johnny Mack Brown's well established name value. Cast: Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Hatton, Jan Bryant, Reed Marshall, James Hilliard, Jack Lambert, Oscar Wharton. Credits: Supervisor, Charles J. Bigelow. Director, Lambert Hillyer. Screenplay, Jess Bowers. Photography, James S. Brown. Plot: Johnny Mack Brown masquerades as an outlaw to trap a gang of rustlers. Brown is successful, although before he rounds up the gang he is nearly shot by the daughter of a slain rancher. The girl comes to realize Brown is actually an agent of the Cattlemen's Protective Association, called to the Western community by an old employee of the murdered rancher to combat the rustlers. Comment: This is awfully slow in getting started and never manages to pick up any noticeable speed. Dialogue is below par for Westerns. Brown and Raymond Hatton try hard, but can't surmount the obstacles in their paths. Some one should have checked the musical background more carefully because the very same few bars keep running throughout the film, in a most monotonous fashion, considerably lessening the effect for which the music is supposed to be inserted. Photography is cloudy in spots, and on the whole, this one is not up to the series' par. The Big Sleep WB Mystery 118 Mins. AUDIENCE SLANT: (Adult) In this mystery, which co-stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, the average patron will find that Bogart is as excellent as usual and that Miss Bacall is okay in the same type of role she originally scored in. Film is a good mystery for all. BOX-OFFICE SLANT: If advance exploitation possibilities are taken advantage of, this should be a top box-office attraction everywhere.. Cast: Humphrey Bogart. Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers, Dorothy Malone, Peggy Knudsen, Regis Toomey, Charles Waldron, Charles D. Brown, Bob Steele, Elisha Cook, Jr., Louis Jean Heydt, Sonia Darrin, James Flavin, Thomas Jackson, Tom Rafferty, Theodore Von Eltz, Dan Wallace, Joy Barlowe, Tom Fadden, Ben Welden, Trevor Bardette. Credits: Directed by Howard Hawks. Screenplay by William Faulkner. Leigh Brackett and Jules Furthman. From the novel by Raymond Chandler. Director of Photography, Sid Hickox. A Howard Hawks Production. Plot: Bogart is retained by a rich general to straighten out the mess his younger daughter has gotten herself into. Checking on this, he discovers that there is blackmail, murder, drowning and poison involved and six men meet untimely ends before he clears up the mystery. Comment: Selling this picture, with the exploitation possibilities the co-starring names of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall carry, should be a cinch. Especially when the general public is informed that this is a Raymond Chandler story and that Bogart plays the private detective, Philip Marlowe, (Continued from Page 40)