Boxoffice (Apr-Jun 1961)

FEATURE REVIEWS Story Synopsis; Exploitips; Adlines for Newspaper and Programs THE STORY: "The Hand" ( American-IntT) Capt. Derek Bond and two men, Reed De Rouen and Bryan Coleman, on reconnaissance patrol in Burma in World War II, are captured by the Japanese. During interrogation, both De Rouen and Coleman refuse to betray whereabouts of their comrades. Japanese Commander Walter Randall takes ^ his revenge by cutting off their right hands. Bond breaks down gives the Japanese the information they require, and he saves his hand. Years later, police in England investigate the murder of an old drunk, Harold Scott, found with his hand severed and in his left hand clutching 500 pound notes. More murders follow, subsequent investigation disclosing that Bond had hatched a macabre plot — he hired other men to have their hands amputated, the severed hand sent to De Rouen, unbalanced since the war, who had demanded that Bond, too, lose his right hand. As police close in, Bond falls to his death from a railroad trestle. A passing train severs his right hand. EXPLOITIPS: Screen this for veterans of the Burma Campaign. Invite remaining prisoners-of-war of Japanese camps in that theatre of operations to recall their experiences for local columnists and radio-TV commentators. CATCHLINES: Out of the Past — a Macabre, Mad Plot for Murder! . . . He Trudged Through the Jungles of War With This Man — Now He Wanted His Death! THE STORY: "All Hands on Deck" (20th-Fox) Dennis O'Keefe, captain of a U. S. Navy LST at the Long Beach Naval Base, is quietly fishing overboard while his men are attending a nearby movie: Buddy Hackett, a , Chickasaw Indian sailor, gets excited at the western being / "Wo shown and runs amuck. Being the "richest sailor in the Navy," Hackett pays for the damages but the Admiral is incensed and determines to make an official inspection of O'Keefe's ship. Meanwhile, Pat Boone, young lieutenant, falls in love with Barbara Eden, girl reporter covering the theatre fracas, and Hackett brings on a turkey which is adopted as the ship's mascot. When the ship docks after a routine trial trip, the Admiral makes a surprise visit of inspection and all hands are hard put to hide Barbara, who is stowing away in Pat's cabin, and the turkey, who has been mated with a pelican. When Barbara is discovered, she manages to quiet the Admiral's rage by mentioning that her uncle is chairman of the Navy appropriations committee. EXPLOITIPS: Play up Pat Boone, singing favorite of the teenagers, by making a tieup with local music shops for window displays of his many record albums. Invite his fan club heads to an afternoon performance. CATCHLINES: Stand by for the Gayest Gob-and-Gal Get-Together of the Year . . . It's the Stars-and-Stripes Fun^Hit of 1961 . . . S.O.S.! Blonde Below Deck, Breaking Loose on the Seven Seas. THE STORY: “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" (Cont'l) Albert Finney, a good-looking, arrogant youth who works in a Nottingham factory, has a slogan, "What I want is a good time — all the rest is propaganda." Finney is friendly with a fellow-worker, Bryan Pringle, while having an affair with the latter's wife, Rachel Roberts, leaving by the back door when the husband arrives at the front. But, when Finney meets Shirley Ann Field, they start going around together although Shirley holds out for a wedding ring. When Rachel tells Finney she is pregnant, he tries to get her to "fix" matters but she decides to have the baby. Pringle finally guesses what has been going on and has two of his soldier friends beat up Finney. Shirley is sympathetic even when Finney tells her about his affair with Rachel. He returns to his factory job with a new outlook on life a v and plans marriage with Shirley. /e evi EXPLOITIPS: Ca5 The selling campaign should stress the film's similarity to "Room at the Top," in order to attract moviegoers who saw that award-winning British film. Mention that “Saturday Night" was nominated for six British Academy Awards and won three. Arrange for bookstore tieups. CATCHLINES: Passions Explode on Saturday Night — With Sunday Morning for the Pcry-Off . . . Nominated for Six British Academy Awards . . . The True Story of Britain's "Angry Young Men" Who Laugh, Love and Live It Up. THE STORY: “Blast of Silence" (U-I) Allen Baron, a professional gunman, is hired by a New York syndicate to “rub out" a local racketeer. After being given part of his fee, Baron studies the habits and haunts of his quarry and then gets a gun with a silencer from a fat, repellent go-between, Larry Tucker. Baron, who has come to hate the racketeer, is a lonely man who accidentally meets a boyhood friend and his sister, Molly McCarthy. Persuaded to attend a Christmas Eve party, Baron, finds Molly sympathetic but when he tries to kiss her she drives him away. Later, when Tucker learns about Baron's plan to kill the gangster he tries blackmail so he is forced to strangle him. The frightened Baron then calls on Molly but finds her with a strange man in her apartment. Baron finally ( "h. ambushes the racketeer and kills him. Lured to a deserted in th beach area to get his final payoff, Baron is trapped and sr>t r killed by the syndicate. EXPLOITIPS: With no selling names, play up the title and theme and compare the picture to France's “New Wave" pictures to attract moviegoers who patronize the art spots. If possible, play the recording of "Lome's Theme," with its electronic sounds, to catch the attention of passersby. CATCHLINES: A Lonely Killer With Only Murder on His Mind . . . Entirely Filmed in Manhattan's Greenwich Village and Harlem Night Spots. THE STORY: “The Teacher and the Miracle" (President) Aldo Fabrizi, a widower with a young son, Eduardo Nevola, is a country schoolteacher who hopes to establish an art school and interest his boy in painting. On the day that permission arrives from the Ministry of Education for the art school, he is away at a party so Eduardo runs to him with the letter and is killed by an oncoming car. Fabrizi is plunged into despair and asks permission to resign his schoolteacher post. Without warning, a beautiful child, Marco Paoletti, the same age as his dead son, appears in his classroom and gives Fabrizi a new reason for living. When Marco tells Fabrizi he must leave town with his parents, the boy leaves his address, which turns out to be the village church. Fabrizi, searching for the boy, enters the church and sees Marco smiling at him from his pedestal with the Madonna. The next morning Fabrizi takes a new pride in teaching his other boy pupils. EXPLOITIPS: Religious groups, especially Catholic organizations, will endorse the picture. Arrange for a special morning show for nuns and priests, who will spread the word to their pupils and parishioners. Play up the Venice Festival Award and mention that Aldo Fabrizi starred in "Open City" CATCHLINES: A Film of Rare Beauty, Imagination and Inspiration . . . \ ixr Winner of the Venice Festival Award ... A Picture That ' " ^ Touches the Hearts of All Moviegoers. THE STORY: "Shadows" (Lion Int'l) Lelia Goldoni, a light-skinned Negro girl who lives with her two brothers, Hugh Hurd, a jazz musician, and Ben Carruthers, a young drifter, in Greenwich Village, meets Anthony Ray, a white fellow, at a literary party and they fall in love and have an affair. Later, when she brings him home, Ray is amazed to learn that the dark-skinned Hurd is Lelia's brother. Realizing that Ray is shocked, Lelia takes up with a Negro friend of her brother although she is more in love with the white boy. The story has no definite conclusion and winds up unhappily for all concerned. EXPLOITIPS: Because cast names are unfamiliar, play up John Cassavetes, who played in MGM's “Edge of the City" and in many TV shows and series. Stress that Cassavetes' film won the Film Critics' Award at the Venice Film Festival and the John Georges Auriol Award in France in 1960. CATCHLINES: John Cassavetes' Modest-Budget Film Which Won Awards ( in Europe and Is a Smash London Success ... A Startling Story Dealing With New York's Greenwich Village HalfWorld . . . See the Daring Film That Had to Be Made . . . Dark Shadows on the Street — Dark Pigment in Her Skin. BOXOFFICE BookinGuide :: April 17, 1961