The Film Daily (1924)

THE Jiday, October 5, 1924 ■^SH DAILY "Hearts of Oak" Fox Lia Whole.... MELODRAMA IN /HIGH SELF-SACRIFICE IS IHE KEYNOTE. SITUATIONS AIL TO GAIN SYMPATHY. A :ORE CAREFUL DEVELOPENT WOULD HAVE HELPD CONSIDERABLY. ;a....Hobart Bosworth worthy of tter things, though entirely caple. Theodore von Eltz fair. Panic Starke is the sacrificing heroine hose heart causes all the mix-up •e of Story. .. .Melodrama; from L James A. Heme stage play. You ^t can't create a feeling of sym thy for the three characters in Ived in this love triangle. They t so contrary. Of course the self crifice of the trio should gain mpathy. It is intended to but ere's something about it that igs false, unreal. It doesn't seem ssible that a girl, reunited with youth whom she loves, would c him up in order to marry her 1 guardian even though she ows it will make him happy. Nor it at all convincing that the > ardian would fail to realize that i was an object of pity rather than I.e. Director John Ford hasn't len successful in making these ps in the development convinc '. Nor is there any great sus -e. or final surprise. It's just . ou suspect. The aged husband, ntuall}' realizing that he has a the cause of cheating the two nig people of their happiness, 'larks on an Arctic voyage which ins sure death. Then the two once more reunited. It seemed necessary to picture the suffering the heroic old man in the far th. It drags the ending and the ntual happy reunion of the ITS. The scenes of the rescue ship iking through the ice floes are lily recognizable as having been : of a news reel. The produc ^1 generally is adequate and some the storm scenes contain fair ^lls. Office Angle.... May please a too critical audience. Lack of ipathy for the character fails gain sufficient interest to holo m for five reels. )itation . . . . You can probably them a good idea of this by yfing up the story with catchlines h as "If you loved one man and sorry for another, which would marry? See how the situation •ks out in Fox's latest release, arts of Oak' at the blank ther." You can use the names of bart Bosworth and Paulin rke in your announcements and tion that the story is an adapon of the James A. Heme stage tion John Ford; fair. jr James A. Heme rio Charles Kenyon raman .... Geo. Schneiderman •graphy All right e Seaport town :h 5,336 feet. Jack Hoxie in "The Western Wallop" Universal As a Whole. . . .FORMULA WESTERN THAT HAS THE USUAL LINE OF AUDIENCE PULL. VERY OBVIOUS DEVELOPMENT IN THIS MAKES FOR POORLY SUSTAINED INTEREST. HOLDS NO SURPRISES. Star. . . .Has one of those typical sacrificing hero roles wherein he struggles against adversity but with the usual reward. Repeats his past performances. No chance for variation. Cast. .. .Margaret Landis suitable lead. James Gordon Russell a regulation villain who fills all requirements. Others Charles Brinley, Duke R. Lee. Type of Story. .. .Western; from the story "On Parole" by Adolph Bannauer. "The Western Wallop" follows closely in the wake of most preceding westerns. Its plot is pretty much of the formula variety with very little to distinguish it from the hundred and one other westerns. It has a hero, a villain and girl and all do the usual thing. Hero tries to protect the girl, villain tries to win her, hero wants her himself but isn't free to tell her so. Then the complications, the fighting, the runaways and rescues pile on. They all provide the right sort of action and thrills and the customary touch of romance. But there isn't a time when you can't pretty well imagine what is going to follow next. It's a particularly obvious development that director Smith has followed. Hero is released from prison on parole but must not cross the California state line. He saves a bag of money belonging to the girl and gets a job on her father's ranch as a reward. He recognizes a neighboring rancher as the bandit and he. in turn, discovers that hero is an ex-convict. They hold each other to silence the rancher scheming to get hero across the border and thus back to prison. He succeeds but the sheriff arrives with a pardon, freeing hero and holding the rancher. Box Office Angle. .. .Average western entertainment. You know where it will fit in. Exploitation. .. .If Jack Hoxie happens to be a favorite you can use his name prominently and run trailers showing him at some of his action stunts. He does a couple of thrilling rescues, offers one good fight, and there's a spill with his horse that is exciting and probably was accidental. Margaret Landis is a pleasing lead and you mignt use stills of her. You might mention the original title, "On Parole" for those who may have read the story. Direction ... Cliff ord S. Smith; should have covered un obvious development a little better. Author Adolph Bannauer Scenario Wyndham Gittens Cameraman Harry Neumann Photography Good Locale California Length 4 611 feet Buddy Roosevelt in "Biff Bang Buddy" Producer: Lester F, Scott, Jr. Distributor: Artclass — State Rights As a Whole GOOD, PEPPY WESTERN THAT VARIES, IF ONLY SLIGHTLY, FROM THE GENERAL RUN OF WESTERN PLOTS. WILL PROBABLY BE CONCEDED A FIRST RATE FILM OF ITS KIND. Star. .. .Likeable and a good worker, especially when it comes to proving his innocence and winning the hand of the girl he loves. Cast.... Jean Arthur a pretty little heroine and loyal to the "stranger' even though her dad thinks he isn't on the level. Al Richmond the stereotyped villain. Others Robt. Fleming and Buck Connor. Type of Story Western. Of course there's a villain still trying to put away a hero but then there's a stronger romantic element than usual and a bit of mystery in connection with the outlaw, Shane McCune, which really does make "Biff Bang Buddy" a little different from the regulation western formula. Reginald C. Barker's (not the di rector) theme contains a pleasing love story that will probably make this of a little more than average interest to women patrons while at the same time it has enough first rate action and thrills to still get it over with the men folks. Buddy Roosevelt is a likeable hero who does his stunts easily enough. They include a jump, on horseback, from a moving freight, a number of novelty escapes and rescues and his several near-deaths such as being bound and placed in the path of an approaching train, and the like offer further thrills. The story deals with hero's love for a certain girl, of her supposed father's attempt to punish him because he thinks he is in league with an outlaw, of hero's friendship for the outlaw who it later develops is not really an outlaw but the girl's father. Box Office Angle. . . .Satisfying western film that your folks will undoubtedly like thoroughly well You might try to gain their interest for Buddy Roosevelt since he is making a series of these western pictures. Exploitation. .. .Stills or a trailer showing Buddy Roosevelt tied hand and foot and placed on a track in front of a rushing locomotive wil probably be all you'll need to bring in some of your patrons. It gives a good idea of the kind of thrills contained in the film. Play up the romantic element for the benefit of your women patrons and the action side for the others. Direction. .. .Frank L. Inghram; all ripfht. Author Reginald C. Barke. Scenario Reginald C. Barker Cameraman Irving Ries Photography Satisfactory Locale The West Length 4,.S00 feet "The City That Never Sleeps" Paramount As a Whole STORY A BIT FARFETCHED PERHAPS BUT THEY'RE GOING TO LIKE IT. JUST THE SAME. HAS SPLENDID HEART INTEREST IN MOTHER LOVE ANGLE. LOUISE DRESSER GIVES EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE. Cast .... Louise Dresser practically steals the picture in the role of a sacrificing mother. Ricardo Cortez good looking and capable. The same applies to Pierre Gendron. Virginia Lee Corbin, quite grown up, does fairly well in a flapper role. Type of Story Drama; from Le roy Scott's novel, "Mother O'Day." A certain amount of credit goes to Leroy Scott, to be sure, but the bulk of it belongs to James Cruze and Louise Dresser. Together they've made an interesting picture of Scott's novel. The story, in reality, is probably an exaggerated mother love theme. It didn't seem necessary that Mother O'Day should have put her daughter out of her life entirely in order to have her brought up properly. But, of course, that was a clue for a plot and so it had to be. Cruze, as always, injects a lot of fine touches that cannot fail to make a situation interesting. His early sequence, the old corner saloon wtih its free lunch counter and characteristic trade, seems very real. The "Sidewalks of New York" accompaniment naturally lends additional atmosphere. There are some attractive settings and gowns later on that also make for good audience appeal. And through it all there is a very sincere, very compelling mother love theme. Louise Dresser's handling of the mother role fs fine. Hers is a life of sacrifice for the daughter who does not know her. How she foils a fortune hunter who would marry her daughter is followed by a happy reunion of mother and child. Box Office Angle "The City That Never Sleeps" might be generalized as one of the modern girl stories if it weren't for a fine heart interest angle brought out through mother love. It ought to sell readily and easily. It appeared to please a Rialto holiday audience greatly. Exploitation. .. .Run a trailer that will include bits of Louise Dresser's performance and use catchlines such as: "There is no end to a mother's love. 'The City That Never Sleeps' contains a fine example." Of course you will want to use James Cruze's name prominently and recall his "The Covered Wagon," "Ruggles of Red Gap," "Hollywood" and "To the Ladies." Mention the orignal title of the novel and arrange for book-store tie-ups. Direction. .. .James Cruze, first rate Author Leroy Scott Scenario Anthony Coldeway — Walter Woods Cameraman Karl Brown Photography Good Locale New York Length 6,097 feel