Documentary News Letter (1947-1949)

78 DOCUMENTARY NEWS LETTER DATA Annaum-vs rompletion of ih 4 rvnmintlvr of its 1946 progrtinimt* (all films inert* photographed by Susehitzli if) 'COTTON COMEBACK' An all-dialogue short-story film of Lancashire mill-people thrashing out their industry's future. Directed by Donald Alexander. 'FAIR RENT' The Aberdeen Rent Tribunal and people of that city show how to beat the problem of unfair furnished sub-lettings. Directed by Mary Beales. 'CHASING THE BLUES' Jack Chambers & Jack Ellitt make whoopee with the statistics of money spent on welfare and improvements in Lancashire cotton mills. 'APPLES FROM YOUR GARDEN' Straightforward information to amateur gardeners on how to plant more apple-trees this winter. Directed by James Hill. DOCUMENTARY TECHNICIANS ALLIANCE LTD., 21 SOHO SQUARE, W.l, GERRARD 2826 snsic Finns announce •TWENTY-FOURSQUARE MILES' (formerly 'Country Survey') An analysis of rural conditions based on the book 'Country Planning' — a report by the Agricultural Economics Research Institute, Oxford. Directed by KAY MANDER Available from the Central Film Library Also completed recently: •Type 170* (Bristol Aeroplane Co. Ltd.) 'Take Thou' (Evans Medical Supplies Ltd.) 'Precision Echo Sounding' (Marine Instruments Ltd. BASIC FILMS LI M ITED 18 SOHO SQUARE LONDON. W.l GERRARD 7015 NEW FILMS . (continued from page 75j stewards, and in general acting as a sort of 'Alf"s Button' genie, wafting the audience from location to location in pursuit of his argument. Purists will say that the direction of this film owes more to 'Hellzapoppin' than to the documentary tradition, and they may be right. In at least one sequence Annakin goes too far and becomes ludicrous rather than amusing. Nevertheless the instructional sequence on the relation between exports and consumer goods is clear and convincing. A further important aspect of the film is that it does not beg the question of increased production but poses the need for equal pay, the necessity for the continuation of joint production procedure, etc. This should be a useful film to show in the cinemas. Some of us may be disturbed by the sight of Ken Annakin's homely face appearing through a pair of gaudy curtains and, surrounded by tennis racquets, haranguing us on why we should produce more. But, maybe, that just indicates an oversensitivity about the dignity of documentary directors. This Modern Age series. No. 1. Homes for All. No. 2. Scotland Yard. Producer: Sergei Nolbandov. Associate Producer and Literary Editor: George Ivan Smith. Distribution: G.F.D. 20 mins. each film. J. Arthur Rank's latest contribution to the screen takes the form of a topical monthly review, the first two issues of which have now been released. The standard they have set warrants a sincere welcome to the series. Homes For All is a detailed study of the housing problem and of the progress being made towards its solution. While not an exciting film to look at, it compensates for somewhat dreary pictures by the invigorating honesty and conviction of its argument. Scotland Yard, a dramatized essay on how the police are coping with the crime wave, is a much more lively film to watch ;'nd retains the honest treatment of Homes for All. Apart from showing the machinery' and methods used by the police, it brings home the point that the responsibility for increased crime rests to a large extent on those citizens who patronize the black market. In presenting a series dealing with topical and controversial subjects the producers have taken upon themselves a social responsibility of great importance. If they maintain their present outspoken policy it will provide a very useful service for the cinema-going public. The Railwaymen. Crown Film Unit for Ministry' of Transport and C.O.I. Producer: Alex Shaw. Director: R. Q. McNaughton. Photography: Teddy Catford. Music: Temple Abady. Distribution: C.F.L. Non-T. 23 mins. This is another film in the "vocational guidance' scries, and, as its title implies, it shows the numerous jobs that are available on the railways. The contributions of drivers, firemen. plateLivers, stationmasters, porters, signalmen, and many other grades are fitted into the general pattern of railway organization and some attempt is made to indicate wage Kites, conditions and chances of promotion. When n deals with the latter considerations the film seems a little unhappy, as well it might, for railwaj wages arc not such as to create a stampede for jobs. Per