The Film Daily (1924)

Sunday, August 31, 1924 THE Virginia Valli in "K— The Unknown" Universal-Jewel As a Whole... DISAPPOINTING AS A MYSTERY DRAMA. FAIRLY GOOD MATERIAL BUT DEVELOPMENT LACKS SUSPENSE AND IS CROWDED WITH TOO MUCH IRRELEVANT AND UNIMPORTANT DETAIL. Star. . . .Pleasing but has had far better vehicles than this. Role doesn't give her particularly fine opportunities. Cast. . . .John Roche poorly suited as the famous surgeon. Maurice Ryan a sorrowful figure as the disappointed lover. Greatly overacts the part. Margarita Fisher fair but given too many unbecoming close-ups. Percy Marmont has the best acting part and makes the most of it. Type of Story. .. .Romance-mysterydrama; from the novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart. Both because Mary Roberts Rinehart has some first rate mystery dramas to her credit and because the title suggests somethin" far more baffling than what you really get, "K — the Unknown" is disappointing. You naturally expect a much more mystifying plot than this offers. Except that the real identity of the hero is not disclosed, there is nothing for you to wonder at and even Pthen it is easy enough to read the denouement in the numerous sub-titles. Director Pollard hasn't handled his material advantageously. To start with he has wasted far too much footage on the silly antics of a couple of rube admirers of the pretty nurse. The overacting of Maurice Ryan, as the over-sized lover, consunies much unnecessary footage. Sidney Page, a pretty nurse, plans to marry Dr. Wilson, the only man capable of performing the operation made famous by Dr. Edwards. Edwards, unknown to Sidney, is the man who boards at her house. ^ He is hiding away from a manslaughter charge. Wilson is shot by a jealous admirer of Sidney and Carlotta, the girl whom Wilson tried to abandon, clears Edwards of the charge and Sidney decides it is he that she loves. Box Office Angle. . .Cannot be boosted for its mystery angle since the plot has little suspense. Cutting this down to a reasonable footage will help immensely. Exploitation Very likely the name of Mary Roberts Rinehart will attract attention wherever it is used in conjunction with the title. Virginia Valli is popular and if you have shown such of her pictures as "The Storm", "The Shock", "Lady of Quality" and "The Signal Tower", you probably won't have difficulty getting them in to see her latest. The title readily suggests a variety of teaser stunts. Direction. .Harry Pollard; could have made much more of the story. Author .... Mary Roberts Rinehart Scenario. .Wm. Leighton-Hope Lor ing-Raymond Schrock Cameramen Jacob Kull-Chas. Stumar Photography All right Locale Small city Length 8,146 feet Charles Jones in "The Desert Outlaw" Fox As a Whole.... EXCEEDINGLY GOOD WESTERN OF PROGRAM TYPE. CONTAINS PLENTY OF EXCITEMENT, GOOD THRILLS AND FINE RIDING. SHOULD EASILY PLEASE WESTERN FANS. Star Isn't on the screen all the time, but holds them when he is. Handles the stunt stuff in excellent shape. Cast. .. .Evelyn Brent, the girl, looks particularly well and does entirely satisfactory work. William Haynes plays the girl's weak young brother. Others not important. Type of Story Western drama. Directed by Edmund Mortimer from a story by Charles Kenyon, it doesn't differ much in plot from the average western. The difference lies in the rapidity with which the action keeps going and the good thrills which are injected here and there throughout the five reels or so of footage. These are all done by Jones, and include swimming a swift stream while handcuffed, jumping off a cliff into a river while mounted, stopping a team of runaway horses and other similar stunts. A young boy becomes one of a gang of outlaws and is chosen to rob the safe in the express office. His sister, thinking him a ranch owner, comes to visit him. She is rescued from the runaway team by Landon, a wandering cowpuncher, who later is mistaken for her brother and accused of the robbery. There are numerous twists and complications of an exciting nature which keeps the tension tight and the interest at high-pitch throughout. A last minute rescue of the girl in which the hero rides his horse into a barroom, herding his enemies into a corner, is also effective. Box Office Angle .... Play up the stunts in this, especially the handcuff sequence, the hand-to hand fight in the water between the hero and the villain, the runaway, etc. Tell your western fans and thrill chasers about it. It's a good average Western and where that type of picture is liked, it is sure to go over. Exploitation Interest them by a trailer and plenty of stills in the lobby. Catchlines such as "Love laughs at handcuffs. So docs Buck Jones in 'The Desert Outlaw' " might be used. Appeal to the lovers of out-doors. Direction. .Edmund Mortimer; good. Kept story moving all the time. Author Charles Kenyon Scenario Charles Kenyon Cameraman Jos. Brothcrton Photography Good Locale The West Length 5,576 feet. Length 8,146 feet. Ora Carew in "Paying the Limit" Gerson Prod. — State Rights As a Whole GETS OFF TO A RATHER POOR START BUT IMPROVES. FAIR STORY MATERIAL THAT CONTAINS POPULAR ELEMENTS OF APPEAL. Star. . . . Good in the role of reformed crook. Handles the part quite satisfactorily. Cast Helen Howell a trifle awkward and not well photographed. Jay Morley typical he-man hero whose belief in the girl helps her to reform. Eddie O'Brien, Stanley Sandford and Hal Stephens others in the cast. Type of Story Drama. "Paying the Limit" is one of the ever popular crook regeneration themes and not a bad one at that although it could have been handled with a little more finesse. The titles are an outstanding weak point, especially the initial one which reads: "The simple tale of a girl and her past". Tom Gibson, who directed the picture, didn't get his story off to a very good start, allowing too many gaps in the development. This, however, may not be entirely a fault of direction, as the picture shows evidence of bad cutting not only in the early reels, but throughout. Ora Carew holds it up well with a first rate performance but she isn't fortunate in having a good supporting cast. Most of the players are amateurish in their work. The plot deals with the efforts of a girl, once known as the "firefly", to reform. She secures a place as maid in a rich household and learns that a former accomplice is luring her employer's daughter into marriage for her money. To expose the man would be to expose herself. The daughter steals an option from her father at her lover's bidding and the maid is accused. How she clears herself, wins the respect of her employer and the heart of his foreman, closes the story. Box Office Angle Will do nicely enough where they aren't apt to be critical about production flaws and faulty direction. Ora Carew is a good asset in this one. The rest of the cast does not mean anything particularly. Exploitation. . . . Probably catchlines relative to the hardships endured by a girl who wants to reform, wuold be an effective means of getting their attention focused on "Paying the Limit", Say: "Is 'once a crook, always a crook' your creed? Or would you give a deserving person another chance? See the an.swer in 'Paying the Limit', with Ora Carew". There are no big names to use so you'll have to stick to the regulation line of interest getters. Direction Tom Gibson; fair. Author Tom Gibson Scenario Not credited Cameraman Geo. Crocker Photography Sometimes pretty poor Locale California Length About 5,000 feet. "Messalina" Producer: Enrico Guazzoni Distributor: Film Booking Offices As a Whole ITALIAN PRODUCTION, BUILT ALONG HIGHLY SPECTACULAR LINES, OFFERS FACTS AND FIGURES BOTH IN PRODUCTION AND STORY ANGLES THAT MAY BRING THEM IN. Cast Countess Rina de Liguoro, an Italian noblewoman, very beautiful and stately. Shows splendid use of make-up when properly photographed. Giovanna Terribili entirely too stilted. Lucia Zamissi suitable as the slave girl. Gino Talamo capable but not the type of hero folks in this country would admire. All foreign performers whose names mean nothing here. Type of Story Romantic drama in historical setting. Enrico Guazzoni, producer of sucli previous spectacles as "Quo Vadis" and "Julius Caesar," now offers "Messalina," a story of an empress, "known as the wickedest courtesan in history — a love-maddened vampire." The production is supposed to have been sponsored by the King and Queen of Italy and the cost, according to publicity reports, closely resembles the alleged cost of some important American films. "Messalina," however, in spite of it colorful atmosnhcre and general massivcness, will hardly appeal generally to the American public. Nevertheless it is worth seeing. It presents a talented and beautiful heroine in the person of Rina de Liguoro. She carries her role well. The settings are immense and the mob scenes large, and usually well handled. The direction, also, is good and the interest nicely sustained. There are some threadbare spots in the drama that aren't covered in the best style and the opening reels, evidently considerably shortened, are a bit jumpy as to continuity. The titles are numerous, and too literal. The story deals with the love of the Empress Messalina for a Persian slave boy, of the jealousy and revenge of Princess Mirit, and the eventual death of Messalina. Box Office Angle Depends almost entirely on class of patrons you cater to. Should be a particularly h'g drawing card in Italian localities. They'll be sure to patronize the home product. Exploitation Where they can be attracted by productions of spectacular proportions it should be easy to interest them in "Messalina" by giving them facts and figures regarding the production. Let them know the story deals with the loves of a Roman Empress and of her subsequent death as the result of her love for a slave boy. Appeal particularly to your Italian patrons, promising a native production and announcing that the film was endorsed by the King and Queen of Italy. There are no names to bring them in. Direction Enrico Guazzoni Author Enrico Guazzoni Scenario Enrico Guazzoni Cameraman Alfredo Lunci Photography Varymg Locale o'.^^T! Length 8,473 feet ^J