Harrison's Reports (1951)

44 \ HARRISON’S REPORTS March 17, 1951 or sell out, then he faced the certain loss of all worthwhile product and the imposition of an utterly unwarranted clearance. “Today every theatre owner is protected by law in his right to operate, prosper and expand to the full extent of his capacity and ability, provided only that he does not undertake to use against others the tactics which the distributors and circuits are now forbidden to use against him. He can buy his pictures selectively and he, not the distributor, is master of the operating policies of his theatre. He buys in a market that is daily growing more open and competitive and more pictures (especially more good pictures) are being released than in many years past; and so long as the national economy remains sound and the exhibitors remain alert these conditions will remain and improve. “Such is the new order toward which Allied has striven for so many years, an order in which every exhibitor may assert, ‘I am the master of my fate.' But by lack of vigilance these hard-earned rights may be lost even before their benefits can come into full bloom. One daily reads of seemingly enticing plans put forward by different segments of the industry which, if put into operation without proper safeguards, might quickly lead to a return of old abuses. Sales representatives of some of the companies in their anxiety to meet and surpass their own quotas are hedging on the non-forcing rule and unless the exhibitors are alert and organized they may find that they are again under the yoke of compulsory block-booking. “One thing the Government has not done and cannot very well do is to regulate film prices. Discrimination in favor of the affiliated and segregated circuits, yes; but film prices generally, no. Recent experiences show that when film rentals decline due either to losses in the foreign market or decreased grosses at home, there is a tendency by the distributors to make up their losses at the expense of the American exhibitors. Competition among distributors has not yet manifested itself to a point where they vie for business by offering better terms. Each still demands all that the traffic will bear and with each reverse in their own fortunes their demands on the exhibitors become more severe. I do not suggest that there is a price agreement among them in the usual sense; merely that there is a common purpose implicit in their sales policies to maintain their own profits in time of common disaster at the expense of the exhibitors. “No summary of chores to be performed would be complete which omitted television and its offsprings, Phonevision and Skiatron. So far as television as now practiced is concerned, there is little we can do about it. It must stand or fall on its own merits and there are encouraging reports that it is already beginning to pall. The article in The Wall Street Journal for February 14, headed 'Movie Upturn,’ is the best reading theatre men have had for many months. In this nation-wide survey the reasons for the current upsurge most often cited are 'A few more top-notch pictures; TV's novelty wearing off; more people with jobs; bigger paychecks.’ So far as Phonevision and Skiatron are concerned there is still a question whether the motion picture producers will stand for the demoralization of their present market in order to build up a rival medium. Also whether the Government will retreat from its position that the airways belong to the people and that they shall not be charged for the commercial exploitation thereof. Of course, all this speculation hinges on the success of current experiments, which is doubtful. ( Concluded next wee\) “Sword of Monte Cristo” with George Montgomery and Paula Corday (20th Century-Fox, March; time, 80 min.) A good melodrama of adventure, romance and intrigue, set in the year 1858, when Louis Napoleon usurped his powers as president of the French Republic and declared himself Emperor. The action is fast and exciting, with plenty of swordplay, and there are situations that hold one in tense suspense because the lives of the sympathetic characters are placed in jeopardy. A definite asset is the new and excellent Supercinecolor photography, which employs three colors. Some scenes are more beautiful than those that have been shot in any other color process. It is softer to the eye, and the red color does not either overlap or “smudge" the other colors. George Montgomery is dashing as the hero, as is Paula Corday as the attractive noblewoman who doubles secretly as a masked cavalier: — Montgomery, a captain in the Emperor’s Dragoons, Berry Kroeger, a cabinet minister, and William Conrad, Kroeger’s military aide, are dispatched to search for a group who had rebelled against Napoleon (David Bond) after he had declared himself Emperor. The Emperor warns Kroeger against using violence and insists that the conspirators be brought before him unharmed. Paula, niece of Robert Warwick, a wealthy marquis, secretly leads the rebel group as a masked cavalier and inspires them to fight for the reestablishment of the Republic. She is almost caught by Montgomery in a clash with his Dragoons, but manages to escape. To finance the revolution, Paula offers the rebels a fabulous fortune she had inherited from the Count of Monte Cristo, whose sword, with symbols that could be deciphered only by Warwick, revealed the treasure's hiding place. In the course of events, Kroeger, learning of the treasure, confiscates the sword and tortures Warwick in an unsuccessful attempt to make him decipher the symbols. Paula regains the sword and manages to escape the pursuing Montgomery. But he soon learns her identity and, calling on her, takes possession of the sword in the Emperor’s name. But when Kroeger takes the sword from him, Montgomery realizes that he planned to keep the treasure for himself so as to gain greater political power. Montgomery’s attempt to inform the Emperor fails when Kroeger imprisons him and his Dragoons. Paula, however, escapes from the chateau and rides to Paris to tell the Emperor of Kroeger’s treachery. When the Emperor arrives, Kroeger places him under arrest and, by threatening to kill him, forces Warwick to reveal the location of the treasure. Matters take a turn when Paula, Montgomery and his Dragoons are released from prison by Paula’s maid. An exciting fight follows, culminating in the defeat of Kroeger and his Lancers, the rescue of Warwick and the Emperor, and the restoration of civil liberties to the people as Montgomery and Paula embrace. It was produced by Edward L. Alperson and directed by Maurice Geraghty, who wrote the screen play, based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas. Good for the entire family. “The Long Dark Hall” with Lilli Palmer and Rex Harrison (Eagle Lion Classics, April 10; time, 88 min.) Despite the good performances of Lilli Palmer and Rex Harrison, whose names should be of some help at the boxoffice, this British-made melodrama is only moderately interesting. Its story about an errant married man who, though innocent, is convicted on circumstantial evidence of murdering a chorus girl, is too slow-moving for the general run of audiences. Moreover, it is long drawn out and lacking in strong dramatic values. Still another weakness is the trick ending by which the convicted man is saved at the last minute by Parliament’s banning of capital punishment. Worked into the proceedings, to the disadvantage of the whole, is the seemingly unnecessary narration of two writers who appear intermittently and discuss the story as a basis for a play they are writing. There is considerable human interest in the loyalty displayed by Lilli Palmer as the wife of the accused man. The courtroom scenes, to which a good part of the footage is devoted, are interesting: — Harrison, a married man with two children, gets himself into trouble when he visits the room of Patricia Wayne, his chorus girl-friend, shortly after she had been murdered by Anthony Dawson, a maniacal moralist. Picked up by the police who follow vital clues, Harrison denies knowing the girl to spare the feelings of Lilli, his wife, but he later admits knowing her and, despite his protests of innocence, is charged with the murder. A web of circumstantial evidence is drawn tightly around Harrison at the trial, ending in his conviction. Meanwhile Dawson, who had attended the trial, cultivates Lilli’s friendship by sympathizing with her plight. But the friendship soon comes to an end when he becomes over-friendly and she threatens to call the police. Shortly after the hour set for Harrison’s execution, the police receive an anonymous letter from Dawson, boasting that he had committed the murder and that he had hoodwinked them at every turn. Dawson did not know, however, that Harrison had been saved from the gallows by the government’s decision to suspend all death penalties. He is eventually apprehended by the police, and Harrison, released, returns to his forgiving wife. It was produced by Peter Cusick and directed by Anthony Bushell from a screen play by Nunnally Johnson. Adult fare.