The Film Daily (1919)

Sund; March JO, 191! -&4k AIL.Y Gets Across As Entertaining Comedy With Some True , , , Characterization 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. BTAi-i Acts sincerelv rn ' 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. NTERIORS 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 ENGTH OF PRODUCTION 4,307 feet. The characterization in the first reels of this comedy stronger than that toward the close, when things re allowed to happen rather arbitrarily, in order to arry the plot through to a fitting conclus:on. This onvenieit arrangement need not necessarily h'rm le prodrction as a whole, for all in all it is amusing nd well done. Some folks, however, may wish that the study of liman nature ha 1 been carried through more normal, according to the promise of the opening sequences, 1 which Bryant Washburn is seen as a village ne'erp-wi'll. generally referred to as the simp, merelv beuse lie lacks the spunk to assert himself. There r-ms 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 see 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-ettacing attitude, and considering' himself a failure because he has been called such ever since his boyhood, Bryant gives no indication of getting out of the rut, although a br.ght stenographer, played by Wanda Hawley, and an energetic 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 partner of the firm. Just before this, Wanda Hawley has given the boss a bit of advice which accounts for his getting the contract, and by way of celebration, lie 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 admonitions, Wanda insists that Bryant return to his home community 111 the guise of a millionaire, with Dick Rosson acting as his 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 comedy 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 has 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 reasonly well as a program comedy picture. If you are niliar with the type of stories in wh'ch Bryant Washrn is in the habit of appearing, you may judge pretwell the general tone of this film. It is up to the Hard of h's recent productions and possesses, what many photoplays lack, a bearing on actual life. it strikes me as being distinctly worth while to jrk to increase the following of th:s star. He is isistently portraying types found in commercial life :h an unassuming sincerity that makes them appear ; real human beings. Mr. Washburn is to be commded for avoiding the conventional mannerisms of loving picture hero and the more your folks see of , the more they will come to realize the worth of 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 btismess man is not remarkable. The name of Margaret Mayo, as the author, w.ll 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 you 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 tried to figure out the dividing line between success and failure? If you haven't, you can't afford to miss seeing Bryant Washburn in 'Poor Boob'."