The Film Daily (1918)

Sunday, November 17, 1918 Bli^ DAILY 25 Misses Fire as Propaganda Meller But May Appeal to Sensation Lovers Enid Markey and Edward Coxen in "MOTHER, I NEED YOU" Carleton Prod. — Ernest Shipman, Distr. DIRECTOR Frank Beal AUTHOR Wycliff A. Hal! SCENARIO BY Joseph Roach CAMERAMAN William G. Thompson AS A WHOLE May get over but lacked convinc= ing note to put main thought over effectively because of obliging dove=tailing of situations and complicated plot. STORY Started out with preachment and Garden of Eden sequence followed by much involved modern sex meller based on Eden prologue. DIRECTION Provided good atmosphere but failed to make this hit any really dramatic high spots and rapid shifting of characters made plot in= coherent and frequently tiresome. PHOTOGRAPHY Generally very pleasing LIGHTINGS Some very fine; frequently too con= trasty on faces. CAMERA WORK Double exposure opening rather effective and composition and angles generally very good. STARS Miss Markey frequently missed in dra= matic moments and was handicapped by light= ings at times; Coxen very satisfactory. SUPPORT Satisfactory ETERIORS Eden sequence very well handled; generally satisfactory and fitted atmosphere. INTERIORS Some very good; Chink set rather well done. DETAIL Overburdened plot makes it rather messy at times. CHARACTER OF STORY Involves delicate situa= tions and shows Eve entirely nude; hardly for the family circle. LENGTH OF PRODUCTION About 5,600 feet THIS has been put out as a sort of preachment to show why mothers should enlighten their daughters as to the big problems of life, but it involves so many other complications of a delicate and somewhat questionable nature that most folks are going to find it pretty hard to draw a real moral from this as a whole. Undoubtedly this will make money in certain sections because of the theme presented and the delicate matters involved but I am afraid that many folks will consider it pretty raw. This starts out with an allegory showing the creation of the world, with Adam and Eve shown absolutely nude through considerable footage and the way this has been presented, while it might not be classed as objectionable if viewed in the right light, is going to cause a few guffaws and remarks in any mixed audience which will embarrass folks who would otherwise pass on it as artistic. While they have attempted to show in this that the mother of Shero Enid Markey was really responsible for her wrong-doing by not telling her things and being too much engrossed in a rescue mission to pay any attention to her own daughter or the company she was keeping, they have brought in other situations which, instead of pointing out a moral, are more apt to put ideas into the heads of our young daughters reaching womanhood. We had a scene where Enid was inveigled aboard Jack Standing's yacht by being made to believe that there would be others in the party and then we saw her drugged and staggering to a bed. The scene cut where Standing was seen entering the stateroom and after a title, "The following morning" we saw Shero alone on the bed with her clothes torn and hair disheveled which left no doubt as to what had taken place the night before. Later, upon learning that she is to become a mother and not being able to get her mother to listen to her story, Enid confides in a friend who gives her the name of a doctor who will help her out of the difficulty. We even have the doctor seeing a vision of himself in stripes, which he knows to be the penalty for malpractice and still the twists of the story at the finish allow him to go free providing he promises not to do it again. I fail to see the moral in that. The story was very much involved all the way with many characters figuring in the plot and being brought together very obligingly, regardless of whether the action shifted from New York to California or not. This was not only painfully convenient but frequently confusing and kept the entire offering from registering as real or impressive. The relation of the many characters in this to each other certainly gave the offering a mechanical effect that detracted considerably from its dramatic punch and the main theme presented. The cast included Jack Standing, Clarissa Selwynne, Eugenie Besserer, Marion Warner, Elsie Greeson, William Quinn, (1. Raymond Nye and Arthur Allardt. HOBART HENLEY (MJUXAJ Directed— * "LAUGHING BILL HYDE" The REX EBACHs^oiy m^cl^mUtWGmgm'tei (You have read the xaeViewp)