The Film Daily (1919)

Coming The Production HE GIRL WHO ^ME BACK" s Stars Wilfred Lucas and Geo Madison rittcn and Directed byWilfred Lucas and Bess Meredyth Ml Rights Protected )NEER FILM CORP. 126 West 46th St., New Yorfk iral Film once kept Zukor big five hours. Zukor just ;ht their offices. benU-C Wt> Kearse Adds Another [eston, W. Va. — T. L. Kearse, T. L. Kearse Circuit, ten over the Burlew Theater :y and is redecorating and reag. He plans to make it the f not the peer, of all of any of ises in the South. The seating y, 1,600, will be increased to will be an orchestra of t Old Sol sa O OVEfi( H£ELS INLovE — 3 lock Toyov Borw/" CttAffi.es Dickens' •Doweey /two Sory'' jM\ DAILY Tuesday, May 13, 1919 Doesn't Register as Real. Many Scenes Spoiled by Miserable Photography Wanda Hawley and Norman Kerry in "Virtuous Sinners" Pioneer Film Corp. DIRECTOR Emmet J. Flynn AUTHOR Not Credited SCENARIO BY Not Credited CAMERAMAN Not Credited AS A WHOLE Looks like an old time production; is lacking in practically all of the elements that go to make up an impressive Dicture. STORY .... Too artificial and trite to carry conviction DIRECTION Occasionally gets human touches, but generally lacks distinction. PHOTOGRAPHY Much of it very bad LIGHTINGS Frequently so poor that the scenes should have been re-taken. CAMERA WORK Poor STARS Wanda Hawley is attractive enough in character of mission worker; Norman Kerry fails to carry conviction as a society crook. SUPPORT Harry Holden gives the best character portrayal in the picture as the head of the mission. EXTERIORS Most of them spoiled by poor photography and lighting. INTERIORS Only ordinary sets are needed DETAIL Nothing to cause comment CHARACTER OF STORY Concerns the benefits of mission work in re-establishing those who have fallen. LENGTH OF PRODUCTION About 5,000 feet THE chances of this picture would not be particularly bright under any circumstances, for the story is rather trite and is given a number of unconvincing twists, but to make matters worse, the photography and lightings in many scenes are unexcusably bad. Four or five years ago audiences might have accepted the defective film without serious complaint, but QOt so today. There are many sequences which should have been re-taken in their entirety in order to bring the picture somewhere near to present standards. I'assing by the defects in the production and considering the story material in "Virtuous Sinners," there i' not much that is noteworthy, although the depiction of slum life as it sifts through the beneficial Influence of a mission, may have a certain appeal. The types chosen for down-and-outers who assemble to receive words of encouragemenl and a cup of coffee, are true enough to life; they help to create an atmosphere, but there is little thai may properly be termed character!/at ion. Probably the truest portrayal is supplied by Harry Holden as the kindly mission worker, who devotes his lite to aiding those in distress. One stormy night, he? finds Wanda Hawley, homeless and friendless and almost exhausted from exposure. Ho takes her to the mission rooms and soon the girl becomes his valuable! ally in carrying on the work. These scenes are reasonable enough and carry some appeal. But, of course, there must be a romance in which Wanda may figure, so the author leads Norman Kerry down to the mission. He is a society cracksman, who, readily impressed by the pretty mission worker, assumes the role of a wealthy benefactor. He blows the crowd to coffee on a night when funds are low, and in due time presents the mission with a new organ, keeping the source of his money supply a secret. An unregenerate stool pigeon, however, resenting Wanda's interest in Kerry, plots to spoil his game. An opportunity comes when one of the faithful mission workers is seriously injured and his life may be saved only through a costly operation. No money being available, the hero, in order to get the necessary cash, and working on the theory that the end justifies the means, turns burglar once more, breaks into a house and because of the treachery of the stool pigeon, is arrested and sent to prison after a trial in which the mission crowd attempts to arouse sympathy for their benefactor. Probably because of its extravagance, rather than because it was a part of the story as originally conceived, the rescue sequence is passed off as a dream, a subterfuge that doesn't really help to make the picture more convincing. Norman is being transferred from one jail to another when his friends put the police escort out of commission and permit the prisoner to escape after a chase through dark hallways and over roof tops. Then they bring about a happy ending by having Norman released on parole in care of Wanda. This is just a case of winding up the story in a convenient and conventional way. and like most of what has gone before, it leaves the audience cold. Title May Put It Over If You Are Catering To Transients Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor With the right sort of exploitation there is a chance of putting this picture over for a single day's showing, preferably in a theater catering mainly to transients. As already noted, the film is decidedly defective in many places and is not the sort of thing to offer fans accustomed to first class productions, but in neighborhoods where it is possible to slide an occasional poor one through without hurting business, it might be worth while to take a chance on "Virtuous Sinners." The title is in its favor. We have had "Virtuous Wives," "Virtuous Men" and now comes "Virtuous Sinners." two contradictory words that, used in combination, may be expected to arouse curiosity. You might ask your folks: "Do you believe that the end justifies the means'/ See 'Virtuous Sinners,' a drama of men v ho went wrong: but did right." or "What is a 'Vir tuous Sinner?' The question is answered in the intense drama starring Wanda Hawley and Norman Kerry." Handle the picture as a realistic depiction of crook and slum life, selecting your pictorial display from scenes calculated to indicate the sympathetic quality of some of the incidents, especially those in which Miss Hawley and Harry Holden figure. Pioneer has prepared sepia hand colored photographs that should go well in your lobby display. Norman Kerry can hardly be counted upon to attract any great number of fans, so in mentioning the players I would give first prominence to Wanda Hawley in advance announcements and pictorial advertising. Your best chance for attracting patronage, however, is in playing up the title and in making folks think that you have a sensational underworld drama. Dayton Anniversary {Special wire to WW'S DAILY) Dayton, O. — Sunday was the first anniversary of the Dayton. Nazimova in "The Red Lantern" booked for anniversary week. First presentation in Ohio. Special Chinese and Japanese music furnished by concert orchestra. Chinese lobby effect de clared to be most beautiful ever produced in this territory. The film 1 ' mi d strong with steady draft ownig to an extra large advertising campaign. Fairbanks Licensed Operator 1313 Los Angeles. — "Doug" Fairbanks has been granted a license to operate a projection machine in his Beverly Hills home. He has a projection machine principally for the entertainment of his guests and the other day Doug realized that to operate his machine without a license is not according to Hoyle. His operator's license is 1313.