Exhibitors Herald World (Oct-Dec 1930)

46 EXHIBITORS HERALD-WORLD October 18, 1930 onded by Benita Hume in the role of Ellen. She is very attractive and executes her part with a naturalness which is perfectly in keeping with the spirit of the character she portrays. The others of the cast are decidedly capable, particularly Lawrson Butt as Roderick Dhu, Haddon Mason in the part of Malcolm Graeme, and James Douglas, who plays Douglas, the outlawed nobleman. The picture, unusual in theme and especially in treatment, is a fine production which should be peculiarly attractive for children, since they are so familiar with the story. It appears to be the type of picture which will be most appreciated at special showings. — Charles S. Aaronson, New York City. A THE FOURTH ALARM DARMOUR FEATURE.— Directed by Phil Whitman. Original story and dialog by Scott Littleton. Settings by Frank Dexter. Sound engineers, Neil Jack and Charles Franklin. Photographed by Herbert Kirkpatrick. Assistant director. Paul Malvern. Edited by Carl Himm. Cast: Nick Stuart, Ann Christy, Tom Santschi, Ralph Lewis, Jack Richardson, Harry Bowen. Distributed by W. Ray Johnston. _L HE latest production turned out by Larry Darmour Productions is a feature called "The Fourth Alarm." It is an entertaining piece of work and, I believe, the best the company ever has turned out. It is, as the title implies, a fire story, and is packed with thrills towards the climax of the show where Stuart as a fireman goes to the rescue of his sweetheart. It is a story filled with human interest and although the same theme has been used over and again it has, so far as I have ever found, been a highly entertaining premise on which to build a picture. Darmour has presented the fire stuff, in a manner that is convincing and rapid. Much footage has been given it but the realism of it makes the footage well spent. The work of Stuart is commendable. Ann Christy is quite charming but her line reading is not of the very best caliber. Harry Bowen contributed numerous good comedy scenes. Tom Santschi is his redoubtable self as the heavy. Ralph Lewis is the father of the young fire-fighter and gives a nice performance. Jack Richardson's work is adequate. Among the most outstanding factors in the production is the staging. Sets and costumes, wardrobe and lighting, as well as photography are of the first water. — Douglas Hodges, Hollywood. A THE UTAH KID HORSES, HORSES.— Produced by Tiffany Productions. Directed by Richard Thorpe. With Rex Lease. Dorothy Sebastian, Tom Santschi, Walter Miller, Mary Carr, Lafe McKee, Bud Osborne, Boris Karloff. Story and dialog by Frank Howard Clark. Photographed by Arthur Reed. T IFFANY'S "Utah Kid," featuring Rex Lease and Dorothy Sebastian, is a Western "Meller" of the. "bandit going straight" brand. The rather familiar story tells of a hunted cowboy, Utah Kid, played by Rex Lease, who marries the heroine to save her honor among a gang of outlaws. The girl is already engaged to the town sheriff who has a warrant for the Kid's arn-ht. Explanation by the girl, that the bandit wa forced to marry her, proves a good alibi to the desperate sheriff and he tears up the warrant. In the meantime, the girl has fallen in love with her new husband. He leaves, promising to return when he "makes good," knowing that if he does return the sheriffs bullet will find its mark. Sebastian and loin Santschi share honors for the besl performances. Santschi has his usual fir-t battle, losing i" Lease, though the latter i-i half hi size. The direction, dialog and photography are satisfactory. Tom Hacker, Hollywood. RENO RUTH ROLAND'S RETURN.— Pro duced and distributed by Sono Art-World Wide. Director, George J. Crone. Author, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jr. Adaptation and dialog by Harry E. Chandlee and Douglas W. Churchill. With Ruth Roland, Montagu Love, Kenneth Thompson, Sam Hardy, Alyce McCormick, Edward Hearn, Doris Lloyd, Judith Vosselli, Virginia Ainsworth, Beulah Monroe, Douglas Scott, Emmett King, Henry Hall, Gayne Whitman. Release, October 1, 1930. Footage, 7,200. Running time, 1 hour, 20 minutes. JL HREE factors in "Reno" make for box office — title, subject matter and the return of Ruth Roland to the screen. A fourth might be the name of the author, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jr. The picture itself, however, does not match the exploitation possibilities. This is due primarily to the story, which lacks originality and as a consequence has offered no opening for unusual twists in plot development. Two sequences in the picture give Miss Roland opportunity for the thrilling moments which were hers when she reigned as serial queen. One is when, mounted on a horse, she speeds to her little son. The other is the automobile race with her husband who she fears will kidnap the child. Miss Roland has a very nice recording voice, both in her speech and in her singing. She needs, however, a better story before full advantage can be taken of her talents. Three men in her support — Montagu Love, Kenneth Thompson and Sam Hardy — give good accounts of themselves, especially Hardy, whose comedy relief adds much to the picture as a whole. "Reno" tells of the wife who is harassed by a self-centered, domineering husband, a husband who has never been defeated in the business world and does not propose to be when his wife, with their little son, rushes to Reno for a divorce. When it appears that the husband, through his treachery, has halted her divorce plans and has brought her back to him "crawling on her hands and knees," he is killed in an automobile accident and the wife is free to marry the man she has always loved. A play on the title and on the divorce question should be made in all exploitation. — Jay M. Shreck, New York City. A SHE GOT WHAT SHE WANTED SATIRICAL! Produced by Samuel Zieler. Distributed by Tiffany. Directed by James Cruze. Art Director, Robert Lee. Written and adapted by George Rosener. Photography, C. E. Schoenbaum. Cast: Betty Compson, Lee Tracey, Alan Hale, Gaston Glass, Dorothy Christy and Fred Kelsey. A SATIRE on marriage and the foibles of women, "She Got What She Wanted" is capably directed, superbly cast and well written. And it is produced in exactly the same manner as a legitimate play is produced, crowded with dialog to the point where action is almost excluded. There isn't a letup in sparkling conversation from the moment the play opens, and Cruze has used unusually few scenes for a film play. One sees the home of Betty Compson and Gaston Glass, her husband. Again, there is the bookshop adjoining the home, two railroad stations, an interior shot of a train, a gambling-shooting scene, and an exterior shot of two trains. The play opens with Betty Compson disgruntled because her husband spends all his time reading, writing and listening to the radio. She is flirting constantly with a boarder and an ex-boarder, Alan Dale and Lee Tracey, respectively. She thinks they are what she wants in the way of a husband. In the end, her husband sells a book. However, he is no longer her husband, as she has married Dale. She leaves him and later Glass persuades her to elope with him. At last she has what she really wants. To George Rosener goes the credit of sparkling dialog, and to Cruze and the cast go the credit of putting the lines over effectively. Tracy, as a wise-cracking musician, makes the most of his part, and he has hard competition from the rest of the cast. Miss Compson is well-nigh perfect in her role of unhappy wife. Glass scores as the patient husband. Dale, as the gambler, swaggers superbly, and Kelsey is an excellent Irish cop. The sound is good throughout. Cruze direction is apparent in the smooth flow of the product. — Edward Churchill, Hollywood. A MIN AND BILL FINE QUALITY.— Produced and distributed by M G M. Directed by George Hill. Story from Lorna Moon's "Dark Star." Dialog and scenario by Marion Jackson and Frances Marion. Photographed by Harold Westrom. Edited by Basil Wrangell. With Marie Dressier, Wallace Beery, Dorothy Jordan. Marjorie Rambeau, Donald Dillaway. M, [ABIE DRESSLER is Min and Wallace Beery is Bill in a feature of fine quality produced by M G M. Beery's part is much the lesser of the two, but he goes well about the business of putting over the comedy scenes in which they appear together. It is not all fun. There is a distinct note of pathos and tragedy in the show. The climax shows Miss Dressier killing the woman played by Marjorie Rambeau; it depicts her attempted escape and her arrest on a murder charge. Miss Dressier' s acting in this sequence, while her foster daughter is starting on a honeymoon, is the purest pathos. The fadeout is immediate. Marjorie Rambeau's acting is excellent. Her appearance on the screen galvanizes every scene she is in. She is the loose-moraled woman who leaves her baby with a friend and returns several years later to hear that the child is dead. Miss Dressier misrepresents the facts in order to keep the child in her own custody. The child, played by Dorothy Jordan, later is sent to a girl's school and is married to a young man played by Donald Dillaway. It is good entertainment and well directed. It is not sensational because there has been no attempt to make it so. It does, however, boast of having two of the finest characterizations lately to be seen on the screen: those of Miss Dressier and Miss Rambeau, with the greater interest centered on the former. It is a picture intended as a screen, characterization and in producing it Hill has proved it is possible to do a big characterization entertainingly. — Douglas Hodges, Hollywood. A TOO HOT TO HANDLE LARRY DARMOUR PRODUCTIONS R K O— Sound Radio Pictures release. Directed by Lewis R. Foster. Story and dialog by E. V. Durling. Edited by Edgar Scott. Photography by James Brown. Music by Lee Zahler. With Louise Fazenda, Vernon Dent, Fern Emmett, Harry Bernard, Lyle Tayo, Irving Bacon, Hilliard Karr. Length 2,000 feet. Louise Fazenda in two reels of slapstick comedy packed with laughs. A fine supporting cast assists the star who, as the story goes, attempts to teach etiquette from a "How to be Polite" book to a family who probably knows more about it than she does. The results are hilarious. Fazenda handles the slapstick and hard falls for a big laugh every time. There is not a weak spot in the dialog, gags, and the comedy as a whole. Credit goes to Lew Foster for directing Fazenda in what is considered her funniest two-reel subject.