Canadian Film Weekly (Mar 31, 1948)

| ewe VSS ves ow + % . George THE PICK OF THE PICTURES Vol. 18, No. 18 Albuquerque with Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton, Paramount “a 89 Mins. EXCITING MELODRAMA OF STAGE COACH DAYS IN CINECOLOR IS EX CELLENTLY DIRECTED AND SPLEN. ACTED: SHOULD REGISTER’ DIDLY SOLIDLY AT THE BOXOFFICE. LS This Clarion Production is the most ambitious offering that has been undertaken by Producers William Pine and William Thomas. It has been given excellent direction by Ray Enright. George “Gabby” Hayes is outstanding as an ore freight rider, while Lon Chaney is convincing as a heavy. One:of the best per formances is given by George Cleveland, while Russell Hayden and Catherine Craig, who are also featured, do well as brother and sister, | : The story is laid in the turbu ‘lent days of 1870, with George Cleveland, owner of freight and stage coach lines, a law unto himself and determined to spread _ his empire. Catherine Craig, a passenger: on one of Cleveland stage coaches, who, with her brother, planned to start a freight line in opposition to Cleveland; is robbed of $10,000. Randolph Scott, a Texas: Ranger .and nephew of Clevelarid, is a fellow passenger. . Cleveland welcomes Scott. at Albuquerque, learns that his uncle is behind the robbery, and forces him. to return the money. Scott joins Miss Craig and Russell Hayden in their new freight line. Cleveland imports comely Barbara Britton to try and learn secrets of the new line. : One of the most exciting sequences is that of the thrilling ride down a treacherous mountain road by Scott and Hayes, riding heavily-laden freight wagons. The picture culminates in a wild gun fight between the freight riders, led by Scott, and Cleveland’s men. ° Barbara, who has seen the light, falls in love with Hayden, and Scott with Catherine Craig. The Clarion production is in Cincelor, with Fred Jackman Jr., handling the photography effect * ively. _CAST: Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton, “Gabby” Hayes, Lon Chaney, Russell Hayden, Catherine Craig, George Cleveland. CREDITS:. Producers, William Pine and William Thomas; Director, Ray Enright; Author, Luke Short; Screenplay, Gene Lewis and Clarence Upson Young; Cameraman, Fred Jackman, Jr. ; "Weep No More’ William Dieterle will RKO’'s “Weep No More.” — direct but. Scott soon. Sa ' REVIEWS FROM F eS: Three Daring Daughters with Jeannette MacDonald, Jose Iturbi Jane Powell MGM 115 Mins. LOVELY TO LOOK AT, DELIGHTFUL TO HEAR AND ALMOST CERTAIN TO PLEASE: MacDONALD, ITURBI AND POWELL ESPECIALLY EFFECTIVE. ‘Set in both metropolitan .and tropical splendor, Jeannette MacDonald parades through this in an assortment of beautiful creations casting an aura of charm. Miss MacDonald is cast as the head of a successful publishing house, and mother of three adolescent daughters. Needing a rest she is persuaded. to take a vacation and decides on a trip to Cuba. Although divorced from the girl’s father (Charles Morgan), she has: never told . them any reason except that his job as a newspaper man had kept him -too far from home. Actually, he had refused to father ‘the. family. and had left her. -Meanwhile, -Miss MacDonald has captivated Jose Iturbi and marries him. ES: ' Having always been very close to her daughters, she hates’ to tell them the news over the phone or by letter and decides to © wait till she gets back. Jose agrees and does not accompany her home on the day their ship _ docks in New York. Before she has a chance to. tell the girls they tell her that their father is about to land.. Frantic with the news, she persuades Iturbi not to announce the news yet, and goes to her former husband’s publish er to see if he can stop him. The girls deliberately try to ignore Iturbi, confident that when their father returns their mother will forget all about Jose. Knowing how much they mean to his wife he decides that since the girls haven't’ taken to him maybe the marriage was a’ mistake. They part, and it is only then that the three learn the awtul truth about their father from Nelson. They try to right their wrong, and with the help of Nelson, reunite their mother and Iturbi. : ‘CAST: Jeannette MacDonald, Jose Iturbi, Jane Powell, Edward Arnold, Harry Davenport, Mayna MacGill: CREDITS: Producer, Joe Pasternak; Director, Fred Wilcox; Original screenplay by Albert Mannheimer, Frederick Kohner, Sonya Levien, John Mee han; Director of Photography, Ray June. ° ~ DIRECTION, Very Good. PHOTOGRAPHY, Splendid, ILM DAILY See .RKO eaTSET , NEW YO =o —~ Man About Town with Maurice Chevalier 89 Mins. WILL NEED SELLING AFTER INITIAL ATTENDANCE WAVE SUBSIDES: GASLIGHT PARIS, PIGALLE, CHEVALIER, L'AMOUR, GAYETY AND GIRLS: SALEABLE STUFF. Rene Clair. worked in many slick directorial touches when he fashioned’ this production. It brings back Maurice Chevalier in a vehicle that manages to com -pliment the Gallic star’s talents, establish and maintain a period. ‘But it also exposes the general audience to the confusion result-. _ ing when Chevalier, as both nar rator and star, steps out of character at frequent intervals and switches from French -dialogue to English translation. Whole segments. of the story's machinations are skipped, or lightly glossed over when this occurs. Long absent from the American screen Chevalier should prove a welcome sight. The audience that remembers such divertissements' as “The Smiling Lieutenant,” “The Big Pond” and the many Lubitsch numbers ' should turn out in. force. for “Man About Town.” : _ At the comic expense of the basic medium — early’ French silent days — the script, which was written by Rene Clair, shows -Chevalier a -producer, knocking ‘out quickies with all the hoopla of the voiceless era. It is Paris in the Spring of 1906. Chevalier operates at Fortuna Studios. Young Jacques, a handy-man actor at the studio, is taken un-’ der Chevalier’s wing and schooled in the ways of the world, particularly women. Madeleine, daughter of a ham actor acquaintance of Chevalier, comes to the city. Her father is on tour. She has no place to £0 So Chevalier takes her in, gives her a job in pix. The general order at the-atelier is “hands off.” She meets up with J acques. They romance and. then Chevalier finds himself in love with the girl.” Meanwhile the pair have been getting along famously. It all comes out when Chevalier realizes he is not the man for Madeleine and arranges for the fulfilment of their romance. CAST: Maurice Chevalier, Francois Perrier, Marcelle Derrien, D Robert Pizani, Rayment Cord a Rebio, CREDITS: Produced, written by Rene Clair; Robert Pirash; Thirard, DIRECTION, Good. PHOTOGRAPHY, Fair. directed and English adaption, Photography, Armand REVIEWS INFORMATION RATINGS $2.00 Per Annum Secret Beyond The Door with Joan Bennett, Michael Redgrave Anne Revere Empire-Universal 538% Mins, CONFUSING AND INVOL VED TREATMENT RELEGATES THIS ONE TO THE LESSER CATEGORY; HAS NAME VALUES, Just about enough of the gus. pense element is included in this Fritz Lang number to make it quite confusing. It is not one of the better examples of Lang's technique. His handling has an aspect of imitation. Too, the players, who certainly can do very much better, are inclined to keep the idea in mind that they are always acting. Redgrave has been stacking up a number of good roles lately, This is not one of them. However, it stands to show him off to his following. Maybe something went wrong or out the window in translating Rufus King’s story to film terms. What _ eventually comes off is in the nature of a do over of the “Rebecca” story. Miss Bennett weds Redgrave in Mexico. At first they are quite happy. She is an heiress. He pub-: lishes an architectural magazine, collects rooms. He talks about “felicitous” rooms but his collection: is given over to chambers where death in violent form has occurred. : Before Redgrave is called off to the States there is some queer business at a bedroom door which irks Miss Bennett. She follows Redgrave. to his suburban home where there is assembled @ strange assortment of people. She tries to fit herself into the picture as Redgrave’s wife. He acts strangely. He loosens up ultimately. They stage a party during which he exhibits his collection of rooms—all but one. Only Redgrave has a key to it but Miss Bennett, via a bit of sly work, manages to have another made and investigates. She finds it a duplicate of her room and at that time Redgrave makes his derangement known. Miss Bem nett runs off but soon returns to assist in restoring his mental balance for after all he’s her husband and they loved each other. The Redgrave place burns dow”: The pair return to the scene ° the original happiness in Mexico : ichael Redgrave Kons Raves BS Nel Natalie Schaefer, Anabel Shaw, Rosa aie s CREDITS: ‘alter Wanger ation; Cetin Ties Richards; Baer on a story by Rufus King; a directed by Fritz Lang; A Diana duction; Photography, Stanley Corte DIRECTION, Fair. PHOTOGRAPHY, 6°04 —