Independent Exhibitors Film Bulletin (1950)

'BROKEN ARROW THRILLS, ROMANCE, BEAUTY IN TECHNICOLOR WESTERN Rates '• • • generally 20lh Century-Fox 93 minutes James Stewart, Jeff Chandler, Debra Paget, Basil Ruysdael, Will Geer, Joyce MacKenzie, Arthur Hunnicutt, Raymond Bramley. Jay Silverheels, Argentina Brunetti, Jack Lee, Robert Adler, Harry Carter, Bill Wilkerson. Directed by Delmar Daves. "Broken Arrow" is an unusual western, blessed with a multitude of action, drama, romance, beauty and an important theme. It will undoubtedly reap a rich harvest at the boxoffice in anv type of theatre. One is hard put to think of a previous film dealing with the conflict between the Indians and the white men that approaches this in intelligence of approach, dramatic power, scenic delights, strikingly enhanced by Technicolor, and authenticity. True, there have been wilder and woolier epics, more ostentatious productions, greater melodramatic fireworks on the subject, but none with the blend of thrills, romance, beauty and pathos presented with such good taste and outright entertainment value. Based on the novel, "Blood Brother," by Elliott Arnold, "Broken Arrow" takes a page from history for its story of the efforts of a frontiersman to bring an end to the bloody battles between the Apaches and the encroaching white men in Arizona shortly after the Civil War. It dispels the myth of the redskins as howling savages whose sole aim was to garner the greatest number of paleface scalps, and reveals in fascinating fashion their true mode of living, loving and performing the everyday tasks as human beings with normal emotions. An integral part of the story is the tender and appealing romance and marriage between the white man and an Indian maiden. The poignant and tragic climax to their heartwarming idyll will leave hardly a drv eye in the audience, males included. With James Stewart for the marquee and word-of-mouth sure to be highly favorable, "Broken Arrow" merits added exploitation effort by 20th-Fox and exhibitors, to chalk up the smash grosses it deserves. Stewart is ideally cast as the daring frontiersman who stakes his life on the Indian's honor. His scenes with Debra Paget, as the Indian girl, are gems of lyrical romance and the relationship he develops with Jeff Chandler, as Cochise, leader of the Apache tribes, exemplifies the dignity of man. Chandler is magnificent as the Indian chief, portraying his role with a stature and intensity that dwarfs his white opponents. Miss Paget, in her first important screen role, gives a sensitive and wholly appealing performance that marks her for future stardom. Delmer Daves' direction paces the violent action with the more placid se quences to make an engrossing and in pressive piece of screen entertainment. STORY: Jeff Chandler, head of th Apache tribes in Arizona around 187< harasses the white invaders of his terr tory in savage and bloody fashion aftf his people are betrayed by an America Army detachment under a flag of truct James Stewart, a frontiersman sickene by the destruction and firm in his belie of Chandler's intrinsic honor, goes singh handedly to the Indian's stronghold in a attempt to persuade him to let the ma through. Impressed with Stewart's sii cerity, Chandler agrees and they becom friends, while Stewart finds himself a tracted to Debra Paget, an Indian gir Hearing of Stewart's success, Presider Grant sends a top general, Basil Ruy; dael, to make a just peace with th Apaches, and with Stewart's aid, a trie period of truce is effected. During thi period, Stewart and Debra are marrie in Apache fashion. Renegades of bot factions threaten the peace and a grou of white dissidents ambush Chandlei Stewart and Miss Paget. The latter i killed, Stewart wounded, and Chandle escapes, returning to rout the treachei ous whites. When the heartbroken Stew art atttempts to kill one of the survivors the wise Chandler prohibits it and th peace becomes permanent as white mei and red are drawn together in their sym pathy for the girl's death. BARN. 'PEGGY' FAIR TECHNICOLORED CAMPUS CAPER Rates • • • — in small towns and family Universal International 77 minutes Diana Lynn, Charles Coburn, Barbara Lawrence, Charlotte Greenwood, Charles Drake, Rock Hudson, Connie Gilchrist, Griff Barnett, James Todd, Jerome Cowan, Ellen Corby. Directed by Frederick de Cordova. "Peggy" is one of those light college campus capers of little significance which provides mild entertainment for the entire family. Good grosses should be realized by this affable little Universal Technicolor programmer in small towns and naborhoods generally. It is of course, an unsatisfactory attraction for action spots. Some laughter will stem from the dialogue, capably handled by Charles Coburn and the talented Charlotte Greenwood, but it lacks originality and is too repetitive to sustain the comedy. The script, a nonsensical effort by George Slavin and George W. George, is concerned with un naborhoods real and highly improbable situations, such as sisters Diana Lynn and Barbara running one-two in a beauty contest in which all femime students, regardless of talent or looks, must participate. Shots of the actual Tournament of Roses in Pasadena are particularly effective in Technicolor. Without taking it too seriously, "Peggy" can be digested with no ill effects. In the title role. Miss Lynn appears as an ideal Jane College, and in keeping with that character, is never seen with a school book. Coburn is fine as her retired professor-father, around whom all the laughs revolve. As the Rose Queen, however, Miss Lawrence is not quite convincing. Frederick de Cordova's direction of the Ralph Dietrich production is less than adequate, with a bit of cutting and tightening definitely in order. STORY: Retired professor Charles Coburn and his two lovely daughters, Diana Lynn and Barbara Lawrence, arrive in Pasadena where Coburn hopes to find refuge from the Ohio State campus and Rock Hudson, the football player t< whom Diana is secretly wed. Instead o: peace and quiet, they find themselves ii the midst of the excitement which ac companies the contest for Queen of th( Tournament of Roses and the annoyinglj excessive neighborliness of Charloth Greenwood. Because of a ruling whicl requires all single female students to com pete for the Rose title, Diana finds her self in a dilemma. She must enter th( contest or reveal her marriage and fact the probability of her father instituting annulment proceedings. Coburn finds hei wedding band hidden in Diana's room, and contest winner Barbara, trying to cover up for her sister, tells him she is married to Miss Greenwood's son. Coburn goes to tell the contest judges Barbara is ineligible and Diana is named Rose Queen in her sister's place. Diana confesses, Barbara is crowned Rose Queen, Coburn is reconciled to Diana's marriage and the film winds up with the Tournament of Roses and the kickoff of the New Year's Day classic. TAYLOR. 'FIFTY YEARS BEFORE YOUR Rates • • + in newsreel houses; OK su Warner Bros. 70 minutes Narrated by Arthur Godfrey, Quentin Reynolds, H. V. Kaltenborn, Clem McCarthy, Andre Baruch, Norman Brokenshire, Milton J. Cross, Dwight Weist. Produced by Alfred Butterfield. An interesting pictorial rundown of the happenings of the past fifty years, "Fifty Years Before Your Eyes" is an intelligently produced documentary which contains some old and familiar newsreels and a good helping of unfamiliar news shots taken since 1900. It does a good job of tracing this country's history in the past fifty years. Generally it covers all the EYES' sporting feature elsewhere important personages of the world affairs, entertainment and sports fields. As a result, it is a natural for exploitation of the "remember when" type. Mom and Dad and everybody else in the family old enough to remember the pre-World War II era should get a big kick from seeing and remembering the good old days. There is no specific audience to which this documentary will appeal, but it should go over well generally as a capable underpinning for a twin will. Newsreel houses will, of course, gross very well on this number since it is right in the slot for them. Warners has collected the cream of the commentators for the sound track. Running the gamut from Godfrey to Kalten born, the picture includes the services ol Quentin Reynolds, Clem McCarthy, Milton Cross, and a few others. Considering Godfrey's present popularity, it would be well to play up his name particularly. Fashioned after the recent "Golden Twenties," this story also bears a marked resemblance to the popular Murrow record "I Can Hear It Now" where the eras covered by these two cross. The material in both is much the same, running through Roosevelt's various speeches and some excellent shots of the Hindenburg disaster, as well as the events of the last war. The picture closes, as in the current fashion, with a few military shots and some commentary on the Russian question. RAY. 8 FILM BULLETIN