The Film Daily (1921)

°\ Some Short Reels "Chicken, Country Style" — Universal Type of production 1 reel comedy This one reeler features Dorothea Wolpert, whose face is her fortune, not because of her beauty, but rather because of the lack of it. It's hard to find laughs in it although there are one or two situations that are funny and some amusement in about half the footage. Miss Wolpert does a lot of mugging in front of the camera which is funny for a few times and then it becomes monotonous. She has a grotesque make-up which makes love scenes in which she figures, absurd, but aside from that the stuff is time worn. In this one she is maid of all work in a farm house. Love letters to the daughter of the family are mis-delivered into her hands and she thinks several men want to marry her. When she tells them all to come to her window, the boys all think the answers are from the daughter of the house. Result; they all get caught in her room by the farmer. Then she finally lands one of them. There isn't enough to it to warrant calling it anything but a mediocre offering. "Voices Of The Sea"— Bruce-Educational Type of production 1 reel scenic Following the idea of its title, this reel endeavors to visualize all the various sounds of the ocean which contribute to the great roar. It is made up of a succession of shots of the sea, in deep water, on rocky coasts, on sandy beaches, and some blue tinted bits that are fine, but there is too much sameness and the reel becomes monotonous, in spite of its artisticness. The average audience will tire of it when about half way through. One or two moonlight shots at the finish are especially well done. Whether the beauty in it will be apThis should make a good filler to accompany any feature with preciated or not depends largely on the class of your patronage. a story of the sea. "On The Hip"— Fox Type of production 1 reel animated cartoon Mutt sees an ad offering a reward of $5,000 for the return of baby Jasper, heir to millions, and sees a chance to get the dough. He shaves Jeff's whiskers off and dresses him like the kid. Old man Jazzbo welcomes his lost son with open arms and is about to hand over the money to Mutt when Ma Jazzbo insists on identifying Baby by the mark on his hip. Jeff has a fine time to keep from being undressed. When they find he is shy the mark the stuff is off, and they land on their heads in the street. A good number of laughs in the reel which is more amusing than the average. "Edgar's Country Cousin" — Goldwyn Type of production 2 reel comedy One of Booth Tarkington's "Edgar" pictures, featuring Johnny Jones, whose interpretation of The author's boy character is as "Tarkingtonesque" as any one could make it on the screen. This one is full of quiet amusement, and the "boy" humor is of the type that will be especially appreciated by high class audiences. It is thoroughly enjoyable all the way through, and except for those who demand riotous slapstick in their comedies, it should please nearly everyone. Edgar from the city, goes to visit his country cousin, and at once begins to impress him and his gang with the superiority of life and ways in the city. His brave effort to go barefoot, "like we do in the city" causes him much pain, and everything in which he attempts to demonstrate the city's superiority, results disastrously. However, a black eye, a face full of bee stings, and the general bawling out of the gang fails to conquer him, and he declares that he is laving a bully time. The little incident of Edgar's life is well told, and provides a high class two reel offering. "Catching Up In Canton" — Paramount-Burton Holmes Type of production 1 reel travelogue Burton Holmes, for this reel has photographed the most interesting portions of Canton, China, and has secured some views that will afford surprise as well as interest. Travel pictures of the Orient are always good bets in this line, and this one should prove very satisfactory. It is surprising to find much of the city very European in appearance. Views are shown of new skyscrapers, with women outnumbering the men as laborers. Several views of the water front show a combination of the old and new civilization which makes an interesting bit. The huge wall of Canton built four hundred years ago, is being torn down, and some shots of this work are shown. A bit of footage shows the old quarter of the city which has not progressed any for centuries. The reel concludes with shots of the girl students at the Presbyterian school, showing a general tendency toward modernization in their work and play. It is a good travel reel. "Screen Snapshots," No. 17— C. B. C. Film Sales Type of production 1 reel fan magazine This number "peeps into the private life" of an unusually large number of stars, and gives a lot of "off the lot" close-ups that should be interesting to star fans. The reel ©pens up with a shot of the old Charlie Chaplin studio, now occupied by the DeHavens, and shows Mr. & Mrs. DeHaven arriving to inspect their new property. Then come some shots of the Los Angeles auto races, with close-ups of many of the stars who were present. Bryant Washburn, Betty CompsOn, Douglas MacLean, Lloyd Ingraham, Tom Mix and Earle Williams, all smile into the camera. H. B. Warner then gets a little excited over a race, and Charlie Ray turns all the way around to be sure he isn't left out. Others shown at the races are Wallie Reid, Herbert Rawlinson, Eileen Percy, Sessue Hayakawa. Two close-ups of S. L. Rothafel, of the Capitol Theater are next. Then Will Rogers twirls a mean rope and grins for the photographer. Next comes the shooting of a scene where a building is burned, then some shots of Universal City Zoo, and the reel ends with Mae Murray posing in several gowns and furs from her extensive wardrobe. The titles are well done, and it is a very good number of the series. "The Spirit of '21"— Universal Type of production 1 reel comedy Some fairly good business develops in this reel, featuring Dorothea Wolpert. Most of it is simple stuff, but it gets across and makes about half the reel fairly amusing. There isn't quite enough business to fill all the space, and Miss Wolpert depends too much on mugging to fill the gaps. The idea is that the servants are celebrating while their employers are at a masquerade ball, and Dorothea, as the cook, imbibes too heavily. Going to bed she soon has a series of bad dreams, in which the furniture moves about and the tiger skin on the floor takes life and chases her. As she wakes up and prepares for flight, the family comes home dressed as a skeleton and the devil. This completes her terror, until they finally take off their disguises. Some parts of it are fast, and there are two or three laughs. It is a fair offering. Pathe Review No. 88 This reel opens with some tinted close-ups of the Flower of Good Hope showing in detail, the delicate construction of the blossoms. The next subject, which is a very interesting bit, shows the entire intricate process of lace manufacture by machinery. The complicated workings of the machines are clearly explained, after which the lace is seen coming from the machine in various patterns. Next, some Ditmar views of a clever monkey at the zoo, are shown. The reel concludes with views of the city of Fez, Morocco, The portion devoted to lace manufacture, makes the reel of more than average interest,