Canadian Film Weekly (Dec 4, 1946)

THE PICK OF THE PICTURES Vol. 11, No. 49 Great Day with Eric Portman, Flora Robson, Isabel Jeans RKO 69 Mins. AN INTERESTING ENGLISH PRODUCTION FORTIFIED WITH SOME AMERICAN NAMES; STRICTLY ADULT ENTERTAINMENT. To enhance the film’s domestic value, RKO has wisely included the talents of Flora Robson and Isabel Jeans, two fine actresses whose faces are familiar to audiences on this side. The picture offers much for adult family fare, but should be exploited from its dedicatory angle: ‘‘Dedicated to the members of the women’s institutes who throughout this war have given freely of their time and knowledge, and who by the work of their hands and without gain to themselves have greatly increased their country’s resources.” The film is intriguing from its opening sequence when it takes you to a small English village during the war years where Eleanor Roosevelt, on tour in England at the time, is scheduled to make an appearance. The women of the village are given 24 hours notice of her arrival and they set about under the guidance of Flora Robson to prepare a suitable reception. Robson delivers a _ creditable performance in her role as the wife of an ex-Army captain, Eric Portman, who has been living in his past glories since World War I, and has unconsciously lost his sense of responsibility to his family. Sheila Sim, their very beautiful daughter, mindful of the unhappy economic situation at home, nearly accepts a marriage proposal from a wealthy farmer much older than she, but an English soldier, her true love, changes her mind. To climax the incidents prior to the “great day” of Mrs. Roosevelt’s arrival, Portman, arrested for stealing money to pay for a round of drinks at an inn that evening, considers himself a failure and is about to commit suicide for causing his family undue humiliation when Sheila convinces him that it is braver to live than to die. CAST: Eric Portman, Flora Robson, Sheila Sim, Walter Fitzgerald, Isabel Jean, Philip Friend and Marjorie Rhodes. CREDITS: Preducer, Victor Hanbury; Director, Lance Comfort; Screenplay, John Davenport, Lesley Storm, Wolfgang Wilhelm. DIRECTION, Good. PHOTOGRAPHY, Good "Danger Street Paramount’s ‘Danger Street,” starring Jane Withers and Rob ert Lowry, is ready for release. Kt « the CBNSOILN YOTIOS REVIEWS FROM FILM DAILY, NEW YORK A Scandal In Paris with George Sanders, Signe Hasso, Carole Landis United Artist:; 114 Mins. COSTUME FILM WITH FRENCH SETTING HAS ENOUGH FASCINATION TO GET IT OVER THE TOP. The strength of its cast names and the enticement of its title should go a long way in putting “A Scandal in Paris” in the winning column. George Sanders, Signe Hasso and Carole Landis play the top roles. There you have bait for both men and women. For all its faults, the film possesses a certain fascination natural to any story of a charming and personable scoundrel with a Casanova complex. Inspiration for the film is the career of Bugene-Francois Vidocq, a criminal of the early days of the French Republic who unwittingly became a law-enforcement official in an ironic twist of fate. The first half of the film is more or less episodic, wasting more time than is necessary in establishing WVidocq’s criminal background. The film gathers momentum and gains interest when it describes how Vidocq happened to become Paris prefect of police. Largely responsible for his change of character is his love for a girl of noble blood. He obtains a clean bill of health for himself by promising to make amends for all his past crimes. The treatment of Vidocq’s story leans to the light side with highly dramatic incidents intruding from time to time to give added strength to the entertainment. There is a romantic air to the film that will not be lost on audiences. The performances are easygoing for the most part. Sanders exerts plenty of charm even if he isn’t too convincing as Vidoca. Signe Hasso plays the girl of his heart. Carole Landis dresses up the film as a wench who almost causes Vidocq’s downfall. Akim Tamiroff, Alma Kruger, Gene Lockhart and Jo Ann Marlowe are other important players. CAST: George Sanders, Signe Hasso, Carole Landis, Akim Tamiroff, Gene Lockhart, Jo Ann Marlowe, Alma Kruger, Alan Napier. CREDITS: Producer, Arnold Pressburger; Associate Producer, Fred Pressburger; Director, Douglas Sirk; Screenplay, Ellis St. Joseph; Cameraman, Guy Roe. DIRECTION, Okay. PHY, Good. PHOTOGRA Home Sweet eo e@ Homicide with Peggy Ann Garner, Randolph Scott, Lynn Bari 20th-Fox 90 Mins. PLEASANT COMEDY IS CHARMING ENTERTAINMENT WITH STRONG APPEAL TO FAMILY TRADE: ACTING HELPS A LOT. In “Home Sweet Homicide” 20th-Fox has produced a comedy that should be warmly welcomed by those who crave a change from the usual comedy fare. Its divergence from routine will bring a grateful public trooping to see it. There is nothing big about the film, to be sure; but it is capable of giving more pleasure than many a pretentious and costly production. It is human all the way through, and there is a warmth and an intimacy about it that makes it irresistibly appealing. One may even go so far as to credit the film with charm. The comedy is not boisterous but heart-captivating. The film, consistently amusing, is surefire stuff for the family trade. The appeal is not limited solely to those in search of laugh. Its picture of a household dominated by a group of youngsters is manna for femmes, while the melodrama that has been injected into the plot gives the film added weight where the meller crowd is concerned. The children in the case are Peggy Ann Garner, Dean Stockwell and Connie Marshall. Their mother, Lynn Bari, a writer of crime fiction, is too busy with her scribbling to give much time to the running of the household; so the kids take over. Inspired by their mother’s writing, the youngsters undertake the job of solving a murder committed next door. Their childish meddling gets them in the hair of the police investigators headed by Randolph Scott. Eventually the crime is solved with their help. The youngsters also take upon themselves the task of engineering a romance between mom, a widow, and Scott. The success of the picture is due in large measure to the work of its cast. CAST: Peggy Ann Garner, Randolph Scott, Lynn Bari, Dean Stockwell, Connie Marshall, and James Gleason. CREDITS: Producer, Louis D. Lighton; Director, Lloyd Bacon; Screenplay, F. Hugh Herbert. DIRECTION, Good. PHOTOGRAPHY, Good, | iMrORMATION fh | RATINGS $2.00 Per Annum The Bachelor’s Daughters with Gail Russell, Adolphe Menjou, Clair Trevor Ann Dvorak United Artists 89 Mins. SUPERB COMEDY-DRAMA WITH DEFINITE BOX OFFICE APPEAL; WHOLESOME ENTERTAINMENT FOR THE FAMILY. Built on the premise that most of us go through life wishing we could sample the wealth we read about, live in the dream homes of magazines, and wear the clothes modeled by society, Andrew Stone has not only produced and directed with charm the original story, for which he also takes credit, but has projected a piece of entertainment that boasts belly-laugh comedy, melodrama, fine music and human appeal for the masses. The cast is especially wellsuited to the variety of roles, with Adolphe Menjou playing the pivot of attraction as the hard-boiled-on-the-outside floorwalker of a big department store, and soft-hearted-on-the-inside bachelor who has unwittingly become the adopted father of four of the girls. The film introduces Eugene List, the G. I. pianist who received world-wide publicity when he played at the Potsdam Conference. Stone wrote a part into the story making him the object of Jane Wyatt's affection, and son of the owner of the store. Getting off to an unusual opening with the credit titles appearing as they might have in the silent days, and then getting in a scene showing Billie Burke and Thomas Meighan in the silent days, with piano accompaniment of course, the film establishes Burke. Ann Dvorak, one of the girls with ambitions for the theatre, discovers an empty mansion next door to Russell Hicks, Broadway producer; and sets the plan whereby each involved pool their resources to pay the rent, hire furniture from a theatrical warehouse, and put up a wealthy front. CAST: Gail Russell, Clair Trevor, Ann Dvorak, Adolphe Menjou, Billie Burke, Jane Wyatt, Eugene List, Damian O'Flynn, John Whitney and Russell Hicks, CREDITS: Producer-Director, Andrew Stone; Assistant to Producer, Don MeElwaine; Original screenplay, Andrw Stone; Assistant Director, Aaron Rosenberg; Cameraman, Theodore Sparkhul. DIRECTION, Good PHOTOGRAPHY, Joan Harrison's Next Joan Harrison's next picture for RKO will be “Honor.”