The Exhibitor (1953)

October 21, 1953 EXHIBITOR ments ensue, but all ends happily for the young wife, Fontaine. Fontaine, in order to protect her wavering loyalty to the memory of her dead husband, tells a final tale, “The Doctor’s Daughter,” about a beautiful young lady doctor, Fontaine, who finds her love spurned by Jourdan, handsome young knight, who has wed her at the command of his king. After the story telling, Fontaine allows herself to be convinced that Jourdan truly loves her. X-Ray: Mounted impressively and handsomely photographed in Technicolor, this bit of fantasy will have to be sold to specialized audiences. The droll, and sometimes dull, pace may be too sophisti¬ cated for the average audience. Art houses should find this attractive. It is not family entertainment. Based on the saucy classic?, “Decameron Nights,” by Giovanni Boc¬ caccio, with screen play by George Oppenheimer, this should lend itself per¬ fectly to exploitation ideas. The presence of some names should also help. Legion of Decency: “B.” Tip On Bidding: Fair price for special¬ ized audiences. Ad Lines: “Boccaccio’s Famed Droll Stories On The Screen”; “A Stellar Cast Brings To The Screen One Of The Liter¬ ary Classics Of All Times”; “A Master¬ piece Of Saucy And Droll Story-Telling.” Louisiana Territory (2-D) (435) (3-D) (405) Travelogue 65m. Estimate: Documentary may appeal in some situations. Cast and Credits: Val Winter, Leo Zinser, Julian Meister, Phyliss Massiot, Marlene Behrens; produced by Jay Bonafield and Douglas Travers; directed and photographed by Harry W. Smith. Story: Some 150 years ago, American ambassador Robert Livingston, portrayed by Val Winter, arranges for the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon and then decides to see what the territory looks like today. He and the camera travel through Minneapolis, Des Moines, Kansas City, St. Louis, Little Rock, Ark., and New Orleans. The latter receives the most attention, with the camera following Julian Meister and Phyliss Massicot as they meet. He shows her around the city with a romance developing. Seen are the old French Quarter, restaurants, parks, museums, preparations behind the Mardi Gras, and the Mardi Gras. Winter returns to the spirit world pleased with his purchase. X-Ray: A pleasant documentary, this has some colorful interludes and settings with a thread of a story centered in the budding romance between a pair of col¬ lege-age youngsters. It is rather long for its purpose, but it can round out the program on the lower half. The original screen play is by Jerome Brondfield. The need for the use of 3-D is not quite appar¬ ent outside of a few gimmicks flying at the cameras. This is also available in 2-D. Tip On Bidding: Lowest bracket. Ad Lines: “History Brought Up-ToDate In Third-Dimension”; “A Large Part Of The United States On Parade Before The 3-D Cameras”; “A Colorful Yarn About The Louisiana Territory.” REPUBLIC El Paso Stampede Western (5244) 54m Estimate: Routine series entry. Cast: Allan “Rocky” Lane, Eddy Wal¬ ler, Phyllis Coates, Stephen Chase, Roy Barcroft, Edward Clark, Tom Monroe, Stanley Andrews, William Tamien. Pro¬ duced by Rudy Ralston; directed by Harry Keller. Story: During the Spanish-American war, federal agent Allan “Rocky” Lane is sent to investigate some cattle rustling of government-ordered beef. Before he finds out the culprits, murder is committed, but Lane finds the stolen cattle, and clinches with Phyllis Coates. X-Ray: About par for the series, this routine western combines gun battling, fist fighting, hard riding, and ornery go¬ ings-on to a degree that should make it suitable for the action fans. Arthur Orloff wrote the screen play. Ad Lines: “A Mystery That Puzzled The Nation . . . Vast Herds Of Cattle Vanish Without A Trace”; “Fast, Furious, And Packed With Action”; “ ‘Rocky’ Lane Rides To The Rescue”; “Another Slam Bang ‘Rocky’ Lane Western.” Sea Of Lost Ships Action Drama (5213) 85“ Estimate: Fair sea action programmer. Cast: John Derek, Wanda Hendrix, Walter Brennan, Richard Jaeckel, Tom Tully, Barton MacLane, Erin O’BrienMoore, Darryl Hickman, Roy Roberts, Tom Powers, Ben Cooper, Richard Hale, James Brown, Douglas Kennedy, Steve Brodie, John Hudson. Produced and directed by Joseph Kane. Story: John Derek, whose father, Bar¬ ton MacLane, was killed in action, and Richard Jaeckel are raised by Jaeckel’s father, Walter Brennan, also a coast guardsman. Both enter the Coast Guard Academy, and Jaeckel falls for Wanda Hendrix, the admiral’s daughter. Hendrix is in love with Derek, who, rather than hint Jaeckel, gives her up, gets drunk, and is thrown out of the Academy. He rejoins as an enlisted man, and is assigned to the same ship as Jaeckel, who is an officer, and Brennan. The feud continues despite efforts of Brennan and Hendrix, by now back with Derek, to make peace. All three of the men risk their lives on an ice patrol to save a marooned ship, and Derek saves Jaeckel’s life. Jaeckel acts as best man at the wedding of Derfek and Hendrix, and the two buddies carry on their Coast Guard careers. X-Ray: This salute to the Coast Guard should please the not too discriminating moviegoer. While little new is offered in the familiar plot, there are sufficient action and some excellent sequences showing icebergs in the Arctic regions. Perform¬ ances are adequate, and production credits are good. The story is by Norman Reilly Raine and the screen play by Steve Fisher. Ad Lines: “The Coast Guard Was His Life, But He Risked It For A Woman”; “These Men Risked Their Lives To Keep The Sea Lanes Clear”; “A Stirring Tribute To America’s Coast Guardsmen.” Shadows Of Tombstone western (5233) 54m Estimate: Satisfactory series western. Cast: Rex Allen, Slim Pickens, Jeanne Cooper, Roy Barcroft, Emery Parnell, Ric Roman, Richard Avonde, Julian Rivero. Produced by Rudy Ralston; directed by William Witney. Story: Young rancher Rex Allen cap¬ tures bandit Ric Roman, but the town’s crooked sheriff, Emory Parnell, is afraid the criminal will reveal the crooked setup as an election is coming up. The sheriff goes into collusion with town gambler Roy Barcroft to discredit Allen, who is planning to oppose him in the election. Spurred on by pretty newspaper owner Jeanne Cooper, Allen and Slim Pickens do some investigating at the town gam¬ bling house, but they are arrested on the charge of disturbing the peace. Sheriff Parnell’s plan is to stage a phony jail break while his men wait outside to pick off the escapees. Roman falls into the trap, but Pickens and Allen manage to escape. Later, they fight it out in the hills, and Allen gets the upper hand aided by a posse. With Parnell dead and Bar¬ croft sent to prison, Allen is elected sheriff. X-Ray: This average western offers rough stuff, gun battling, and hard riding to please the matinee crowd and action fans. The screen play was written by Gerald Geraghty. Ad Lines: “The Shadow Of Death Hung Over The Town”; “One Man’s Courage Pitted Against Crooked Law¬ men”; “A Whole Town Held In The Grip Of A Criminal.” Trent's Last Case Mystery (5212) 90^. (English-made) Estimate: Mystery import will fit into the duallers. Cast: Michael Wilding, Margaret Lockwood, Orson Welles, John McCallum, Miles Malleson, Hugh McDermott, Jack McNaughton, Sam Kydd. Produced and directed by Herbert Wilcox. Story: When financial tycoon Orson Welles is found dead amateur detective Michael Wilding, sent to cover the case by a London newspaper, meets the widow, Margaret Lockwood, and the dead man’s secretary John McCallum. The coroner’s hearing pronounces the death a suicide. Wilding, attracted to Lockwood, presents her with his findings, leaving it up to her to reopen the case. Interested in Wilding, she tells him that McCallum was in love with her and that Welles was jealous of her. Wilding then confronts McCallum, and he relates what happened when Welles decided to take his own life to frame McCallum. Miles Malleson, Lock¬ wood’s uncle, confesses that he shot Welles during a struggle to keep him from shoot¬ ing himself. Wilding decides to leave the case closed. He and Lockwood think about a future together. X-Ray: With mystery, detective work, much conversation, and little action, this will fit into the duallers. Performances are in the satisfactory class and the direc¬ tion and production are okeh. The import otherwise is suitable either for the art and specialty spots. The screen play is by Pamela Bower, based on the story by E. C. Bentley. Ad Lines: “He Was Framed For Murder Because He Loved His Boss’ Wife”; “A Murder That Was Called Suicide By The Police Until Detective Philip Trent Step¬ ped In”; “A Mystery Thriller By Noted Novelist E. C. Bentley.” UNITED ARTISTS The Gay Adventure Comedy 82m. (Renown) (Made in Europe) Estimate: Fair import for the art spots and lower half. Cast: Burgess Meredith, Jean-Pierre Aumond, Paula Valenska, Kathleen Harri¬ son, Richard Murdock, Julian Dalbie, Jose de Almeyda, Kenneth Cove, Henry Pascal, Karei Stepanek, Glyn Lawson, Edward Lexy, Derek Blomfield, D’Arcy Conyers, Eva Savage, Milo Sperber, Richard War¬ ner, Ivan Sampson, Hilda Bayley, Ernest Jay, Natasha Parry, Sandra Dome, James Crabbe, Colin Gordon, Hugh Morton, Richard Molinas, Philip Slessor, Gordon Tanner, Patrick Barr. Produced by Ana Servisection 3 3627