Harrison's Reports (1951)

April 14, 1951 HARRISON’S REPORTS 59 “The First Legion” with Charles Boyer, Lyle Bettger and William Demarest ( United Artists, May 11; time, 86 min.) There is much that is novel and interesting in this drama, which deals with life in one of the Houses of the Jesuit Order, and with the conflicts, doubts and misunderstandings that occur among the Jesuit fathers when a fake miracle is put over on them. The novelty of the picture lies in the insight it gives to the picture-goer on the cloistered everyday lives of the Jesuits, such as the good-natured jibes they aim at each other, their petty jealousies and their individual problems. The main theme of the story, which has to do with the fake miracle that disrupts the lives of the priests, is rather heavy and talky, and even though the dialogue is intelligent its appeal may be limited insofar as the general run of audiences is concerned. The closing scenes, where a real miracle takes place, is dramatically weak. The direction and acting are very good, with outstanding performances turned in by Charles Boyer, as the priest who uncovers the miracle as a fake, and by Lyle Bettger, as an agnostic physician who perpetrates the hoax. William Demarest, as a local parish priest who enjoys poking fun at the Jesuit fathers, gives the proceedings a welcome light touch: — When H. B. Warner, a Jesuit father who had been paralysed for years suddenly begins to walk, and Bettger, who had been attending him, insists that he has no medical explanation for the recovery, the Jesuits hail the event as a miracle. Leo G. Carroll, the Father Rector, sees in the “miracle” a reason for the canonization of the founder of the order. Boyer, however, is not satisfied that it was a miracle, and he grows concerned when pilgrims flock to the seminary from all parts of the country seeking a “cure.” Bettger, questioned closely by Boyer, makes no effort to disprove the “miracle,” but when Barbara Rush, a hopelessly crippled girl with whom he was in love, believes in the “miracle” and seeks to be cured, Bettger admits to Boyer that he had pers petrated a hoax, and that Warner, unknowingly, had responded to medical treatment. Bound by Bettger to secrecy under the seal of the confessional, Boyer is unable to disclose the hoax. He is, therefore, compelled to refuse without explanation Carroll’s order to go to Rome to plead the cause of the miracle. This refusal so upsets Carroll that he dies of a heart attack. This tragedy induces Bettger to allow Boyer to reveal the hoax. Barbara, however, maintains that Warner’s recovery was a miracle and insists upon praying in the Jesuits’ chapel. A true miracle occurs when she suddenly stands up and walks away from her wheel chair. Having witnessed “a miracle of faith,” Bettger rids himself of his agnosticism and kneels to pray. It was produced and directed by Douglas Sirk, from a screen play by Emmet Lavery, based on his own play. Suitable for the family. “Smuggler’s Island” with Jeff Chandler, Evelyn Keyes and Philip Friend ( Univ.-lnt’l , May ; time, 75 min.) A pretty good Technicolor action melodrama. The story, which deals with the smuggling of gold from the island of Macao to Hong Kong, is far-fetched and hackneyed, but those who are more concerned with movement than with story values should find it to their taste, for its mixture of intrigue and murder unfolds at a swift and exciting pace. Jeff Chandler, as an adventurer, and Evelyn Keyes, as an adventuress, are competent enough in standard characterizations. There is considerable suspense in their encounters with Chinese pirates, and high excitement in the closing scenes, where the pirate ship is dynamited and Chandler’s small sloop, loaded with a cargo of fire-works, explodes. The colorful sea and island backgrounds, enhanced by the Technicolor photography, are a definite asset: — Although he could earn much money smuggling gold from Macao to Hong Kong, Chandler, who owned a small ship and diving gear, steers clear of such shady deals. Evelyn, a Manila importer, hires him to salvage a valuable case of drugs that had been lost in a plane crash off-shore. When Chand ler recovers the case, however, he finds that it contained $200,000 in gold bars. Furious at her deception, he determines to turn the gold over to the port authority, but he falls in love with her and changes his mind. Complications arise when Philip Friend, her husband, shows up in Macao. Friend offers to divorce Evelyn if Chandler will smuggle the gold to Hong Kong, where it would bring double the price. Chandler agrees. Marvin Miller, a Chinese pirate chief, learns about the gold and demands half of it lest he take it all. Respecting the pirate chief’s power. Chandler agrees to drop off the gold at the pirates’ hideaway. He then conceives a plan to doublecross the pirates by hiring another ship as a decoy. The pirate chief, learning of the deception, traps Chandler at sea. Chandler maneuvers his boat into a cove too shallow for the pirate chief to follow, then swims out to the pirate ship to tie a demolition charge to its keel. Seeing an opportunity to keep all the gold for himself. Friend knocks Evelyn unconscious, and sets off the charge before Chandler can swim free of the pirate ship. Evelyn, recovering consciousness, sets out in a dory and rescues Chandler, who had escaped death miraculously. Meanwhile Friend, in his haste to make a getaway, accidentally blows up Chandler’s ship, killing himself and sending the gold to the bottom. It was produced by Ted Richmond and directed by Edward Ludwig from a screen play by Leonard Lee, based on a story by Herbert Maroglis and Louis Morheim. Suitable for the action fans. “Half Angel” with Loretta Young, Joseph Cotten and Cecil Kellaway (20th Century -Fox, April; time, 77 min.) A pretty good romantic comedy, photographed in Technicolor. Aside from the fact that it tends to bewilder the spectator during the early reels because of a lack of clarity as to Loretta Young’s motivations, the story presents a novel comedy idea in that Loretta, unbeknownst to herself, “suffers” from a split personality. Normally, she is a quiet, prudish nurse, but at night, when she comes under the domination of her subconscious mind, she takes to sleep-walking and assumes the characterization of a seductive siren. The complications that result from her nightly adventures make for some broadly farcical situations that will provoke many chuckles and an occasional hearty laugh. As the story opens, it is established that Loretta thinks little of Joseph Cotten, a pompous lawyer-philanthropist, whose contributions supported the hospital in which she was employed. Her subconscious self, however, recognizes him as a childhood sweetheart and develops a yearning for him. Under the spell of her subconscious mind, Loretta goes to Cotten's home after midnight, and the bewildered chap, fascinated by her seductive charm and beauty, falls in love with her. But when he sees her in a shop on the fob lowing day and tries to embrace her, Loretta, remembering nothing of the previous night’s adventure, thinks he is crazy and denounces him. She goes to make love to him again that night, and on the following day, when he traces her to the hospital, she brings about his arrest for annoying her. Lest people begin to think of him as an idiot, Cotten hails Loretta to court, but his efforts to prove that she had been romancing with him fail. Meanwhile the affair had caused Loretta no end of embarrassment, and she informs her father to proceed immediately with plans for her marriage to John Ridgely, to whom she was engaged. But on the eve of her marriage Loretta again sleep-walks to Cotten. This time he rushes her to a justice of peace and marries her. She is horrified when she wakes in a motel in the morning and finds Cotten sleeping beside her. She dashes home for her wedding to Ridgely. Cotten pursues her, and arrives in time to prevent her from committing bigamy by proving that she is married to him. The shock of this disclosure rids Loretta of her emotional disturbance, and she happily accepts her status as Cotten’s wife. It was produced by Julian Blaustein and directed by Richard Sale from a screen play by Robert Riskin, based on a story by George Carleton Brown. Unobjectionable morally.