Canadian Film Weekly (Jan 1, 1942)

Page 4 R.K.O. DANGEROUS MOONLIGHT This may be a surprise package in Canada. It’s an Englishmade film about an exiled Polish pianist who leaves his comfortable American refuge and a hostile wife to join the RAF when France falls. The film has the unusual mixture of lovely music and action via air-fighting. The lead is played with utter conviction by Anton Walbrook, who gets support from Sally Grey and Derek DeMarney. It slows down occasionally but it’s a wholly sincere presentation of the problem of many an exile. ALLIANCE BIRTH OF THE MOVIES A 40-minute history of the screen, dealing with both technical and thespian sides. It has plenty of appeal for old and young. showing the favorite stars of yesteryear in action. The picture being English, many of the players of the silent days are unfamiliar but that detracts little from the interest. The English industry, one learns, lost the upper hand to the USA while busy with the Germans during the last war. PARAMOUNT LOUISIANA PURCHASE This stunner, though it’s about the political scandal of some years ago, has a kind of tip-topicality about it. A musical satire, it’s tuneful, tinted and terrific. If laughs were its only purpose, it would still be a top Bob Hope effort. But when you get everything you can ask of a musical comedy and more, brother, that’s plenty. Bob Hope, Zorina, Victor Moore and “Louisiana Purchase” live up to every em of advertising and publicity about them. This’ll do the business in a big way. R.C.A. “High Fidelity” Sound Systems Northern Electric ‘Mirrophonic” Sound Systems Motiograph Projectors Century Projectors Ashcraft Arc Lamp Equipment {mperial “Stedypower”’ Generators Forest Rectifiers R.C.A. Hurley Screens Celotex Acoustical Materials ... Also Other Miscellaneous Booth Supplies. DOMINION SOUND EQUIPMENTS LIMITED Canadian FILM WEEKLY MR, asst January Ist, 1942. WARNERS YOUR IN THE ARMY NOW A right royal romp on army life. All Jimmy Durante, strongly supported by Phil Silvers. Durante is the same old scream to those who like him—and many do. He and Silvers are a couple of vacuum-cleaner salesmen who talk their way into the service by mistake and proceed to demonstrate the benefits of mechanization to their horse-minded colonel. Donald McBride is the colonel whose daughter, Jane Wyman loves Regis Toomey. It has a musical number and an Apache dance shared by Durante togged out as a female. Fast and funny all the way. REPUBLIC MERCY ISLAND A good little picture showing the Florida Keys and the unusual folk who live near them. A fishing group stumbles on the hideout ofa doctor wanted for a mercy killing. Otto Kruger plays this role well and Ray Middleton, as a semi-crazed lawyer who would surrender him to the law that he may defend him and further his own legal career, gives a good performance. Terry Kilburn, kid star grown large lately, is all through the picture. Gloria Dickson is the patient wife of Middleton, Don Douglas the friend and Forrester Harvey the fishing guide. It holds up well all the way. FLYING CADETS A corny story about a popular subject but with a couple of good names. Edmund Lowe is the mature flying fool who settles down when he finds how he has mistreated his son, whose identity has been kept from him while a pupil. William Gargan, Frank Albertson and Peggy Moran serve. The aviation bugs will like it. REGAL DESIGN FOR SCANDAL A design for lightheartedness and laughter. Though the story payoff is a foregone conclusion, it has enough entertainment to hold the audience to the finish, then send it home happy. Set up in the usual MGM grand style. Rosalind Russell is a lady judge who whacks Edward Arnold with a hefty alimony sock. The enraged Arnold hires Walter Pidgeon, an employee, to make love to the judge as the background for scandal. You can guess what happens. Helping are Lee Bowman, Guy Kibbee, Jean Rogers and Bar bara Jo Allen. Don’t Let This Happen to You, Says Harland Rankin A while ago a fellow-exhibitor from an opposition show visited me. He was a congenial person and I tried to make him welcome on his short visit. It wasn’t long before the talk turned to show business, as it always does with theatre managers. I told him about several stunts we found helpful, such as the Chatham Centre Theatre Birthday Club, a radio idea, and I showed him our Baby Buggy Garage. ~ All this was taken by my friend as old stuff. He impressed on me, not braggingly, that he had been at this business some 25 years and looked back at such dropped around to visit this manager and see his house on a Sunday. Luckily he was running an evening show for the benefit of a local band and I watched him work. This manager, who had outgrown antiquated ideas, never bothered with his public. He left it to his staff. His leisure time was spent talking to the projectionist or working on his books—when I consider that he should have been on. the floor. 4 So this man, who had left current ideas behind because he thought most of them foolish today is, after 25 years, looking after a B house. A job, I think, not Head Office: 1620 Notre Dame Street West, Montreal TORONTO WINNIPEG REGINA CALGARY VANCOUVER things as unnecessary work. He had ‘gotten over all this. Other suggestions of mine were squelch NRT TON TH EST RE. SERVIC EB) i the samo manner, He left me in a quandry so I the envy of an average manager. The moral is ‘Don’t let this happen to you.” We should always be open for ideas and accept them wherever and whenever we can. Buancouts ar HALIFAX