The Film Daily (1919)

a From cales of Antlers" .p through the forests of far I nothern Quebec we pursued the primitive, passing the mt of the flashing trout, spybirds and small animals, prising the white-tailed deer, 1 at last entering into the ad of the Moose. None of m looked pleasant, and all re•mbered important dates as \n as they realized what was Opening, but nevertheless we i"close-ups" of them all— from i' babies to the big bulls A r-raising picture, toward the ;— and heart-quickening all >ugh. AN OUTING MESTER PICTURE pUSE CHANGES (eville, Cal. — Frank R. Jones of '. itro, who formerly appeared at ■cade as singer, has purchased |,yhouse and will act as manager. iix City, la.— L. Weil of Royal i smodel house to seat 1,200. ajoll, la. — Geo. Van Teicher has fcyal. Louis — King's is under managekf Louis K. Sidney. francisco — Max Blumenfeld of my will shortly reopen Jewel on :k Street. ifieda, Calif. — Kalisky, Lamb and al have bought Alameda, and Park theaters here. Getting Together to I FID'S DAILY) He, Wash. — The Northwest Joard of Trade held luncheons hibitors in Tacoma and Portorder to get exhibitors of ritory together to present to the plan for mobilizing a army of film men and exfor fighting movements threaten the industry in the Northwest. tMA DAILY Monday, March 84, 1918 Gets Across As Entertaining Comedy With Some True Characterization jic without a headache" is a *tt good slogan for any exhibirjr. E. Carpenter. Paramount»flss, Salt Lake City. Bryant Washburn in "POOR BOOB" Paramount DIRECTOR Donald Crisp AUTHOR Margaret Mayo SCENARIO BY Gardner Hunting CAMERAMAN Frank Garbutt AS A WHOLE Similar in most respects to previous Bryant Washburn comedies; has a number of good points. STORY Adaptation of play lends itself to needs of the screen. DIRECTION Gets effective atmosphere in village scenes. PHOTOGRAPHY Good LIGHTINGS Nothing unusual demanded. CAMERA WORK Conventional. STAR Acts sincerely and succeeds in bringing out the human qualities of the leading character. SUPPORT Wanda Hawley well cast in role of a stenographer instrumental in bringing about the "Poor Boob's" success; Dick Rosson and Theodore Roberts are numbered in first rate company EXTERIORS . Appear genuine. INTERIORS Office and hotel sets suffice. DETAIL Sub-titles kept in mood of the story account for a number of the laughs. CHARACTER OF STORY Harmless comedy LENGTH OF PRODUCTION 4,307 feet. The characterization in the first reels of this comedy is stronger than that toward the close, when thing? are allowed to happen rather arbitrarily, in order to carry the plot through to a fitting conclusion. This convenient arrangement need not necessarily lnrm the production as a whole, for all in all it is amusing and well done. Some folks, however, may wish that the study of human nature had been carried through more normally, according to the promise of the opening sequences, in which Bryant Washburn is seen as a village ne'erdo-well, generally referrd to as the simp, merely because he lacks the spunk to assert himself. There feems to be a chance here for a trulv human narrative, but the characterization is largely overshadowed by the somewhat artificial plot development toward the close. We ?ee how ineffective the "simp" is when a shrewd lawyer calmly appropriates a canning factory, which should have gone to Bryant, who receives just enough money to take him to the city where he gets a $25 a week job. Maintaining the same self-erf acig attitude, and considering himself a failure because he has been called such ever since his boyhood, Bryant gives no indication of getting out of tl e rut, althoi g'l a br ght stenographer, played by Wanda Hawley, and an energeti: office boy, presented by Dick Rosson. try to wake him up. A number of these office scenes are accurately depicted, centering the interest in the three characters already mentioned and showing why the "s'mp" is always in trouble with his irritable employer, Theodore Roberts. When a big contract is hanging fire, Dick Rosson, for the joke of the thing, introduces Bryant to the prospective customer as the silent parMer of the firm. Just before this, Waida Hawley has given the boss a bit of advice which accounts for his getting the contract, and by way of celebration, he announces a week's vacation for his office staff, informing Bryant that he may forget to come back. At this juncture, the stenographer tells the despondent clerk that it is time for him to learn how to throw a bluff. To carry through her admo itions, Wanda insist? that Bryant return to his home community in the guise of a millionaire, with Dick Rosson acting as h;s valet while she takes the place of secretary. An automobile is secured and they make a triumphant entry into the village. Here the plot begins to run along extravagant lines, but there is quite a bit in the way of comerly and village characterization in the incidents preceding Bryant's acquisition of the factory, which a few years before had been taken away from him. Owing to Wanda's clever manipulations, the "Poor Boob" ends by doing the townspeople a favor in allowing them to invest money in his manufacturing plant. Some incidental touches of comedy are derived from the clerk's disillusionment when he meets the sweetheart of his boyhood dreams, now the fat girl of the village. Of course, he turns to the little stenographer, who hai transformed him from a failure into a success. No Danger of This Falling Flat if You Exploit it Properly Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor. There can be little doubt about this scoring reasonably well as a program comedy picture. If you are familiar with the type of stories in which Bryant Washburn is in the habit of appearing, you may judge pretty well the general tone of this film. It is up to the standard of his recent productions and possesses, what so many photoplays lack, a bearing on actual life. It strikes me as being distinctly worth while to work to increase the following of this star. He is consistently portraying types found in commercial life with an unassuming sincerity that makes them appear like real human beings. Mr. Washburn is to be commended for avoiding the conventional mannerisms of a moving picture hero and the more your folks see of him, the more they will come to realize the worth of his natural method of acting. The star is fortunate in the cast selected for his support in this film, Wanda Hawley, in particular, standing out as an admirable exponent of a clever young business woman who matches her feminine wits against the blustering irrascibility of her employer. Miss Hawley certainly should be mentioned in your publicity, as should Theodore Roberts, although his interpretation of the business man is not remarkable. The name of Margaret Mayo, as the author, will mean something to patrons of the theater who associate her with the famous farces "Baby Mine'' and "Twin Beds." For catchlines try something like: "Do ycu know the value of throwing a bluff? Bryant Washburn didn't and that's the reason they called him the 'Poor Boob' in his latest Paramount comedy." Or, "Have you ever t'ied to figure out the dividing line between success and failure? If you haven't, you can't afford to miss seeing Bryant Washbilrn in 'Poor Boob'." FRANCE AMERICA CORPORATION PARIS DIVISION OF FILMS 220 WEST 42nd ST. NEW YORK LONDON