Harrison's Reports (1951)

136 HARRISON’S REPORTS August 25, 1951 tor. Such a relationship between a company's own salesman and an exhibitor is worth far more than what might be saved by the selling of film through a salesman acting in behalf of all the companies. Still another disadvantage to a combined selling system is that a salesman representing all the companies cannot possibly give each company's pictures the attention and selling effort that is now given by their own salesmen — efforts that result in a maximum number of possible bookings and preferred playing time for pictures of proven box-office value, which, if sold on fair and reasonable terms, usually result in the exhibitors’ willingness to book that company's pictures of lesser value. A distributor cannot hope for such special attention on the part of a salesman acting for all the distributors. As a matter of fact, a “joint” salesman, in an effort to please all the distributors, may use the hit pictures of one to sell the "lemons” of another. I can cite any number of other disadvantages that would prove detrimental to the individual distributor's interests. If the distributors are thinking of a combined selling and distribution plan, let us hope that they will abandon the idea. It won’t work, and can do neither them nor the industry as a whole any good. “Chain of Circumstance” with Richard Grayson and Margaret Field ( Columbia , August ; time, 68 min.) It may get by on the lower half of a double bill, but the story is contrived — it does not ring true to life. For instance, it is inconceivable that a person in a position of trust, as the hero of this story is, would accept valuable jewelry on consignment without ascertaining the contents of the envelope and marking down each piece on a record card, requiring the consigner to sign the card. There are numerous other episodes that have been contrived to suit the occasion and that would not have happened in real life. The bringing in of the baby was done for the purpose of touching the hearts of the people rather than because it was demanded by the trend of the story. In addition to the many defects, the story is unpleasant — it leaves one depressed. The direction is bad — the director allowed his players to yell in spots requiring quiet. The photography is clear: — When Margaret Field, his wife, loses her baby at childbirth, Richard Grayson, a jewelry salesman, brings her happiness by adopting an infant. Marta Mitrovich, a coworker at the jewelry concern, steals an antique diamond ring but is unable to pawn it unless she gives her name and address. She confides to Grayson that, if she had three hundred dollars, she could marry a chap named Joe, and Grayson, in a kindly spirit, offers to pawn the ring for her. Marta quits her job a few days later, just as Grayson discovers that the ring had been stolen from the firm. Hiding the truth from his employer, Grayson traces Marta to her rooming house and finds her dying of poison. His efforts to find the pawn ticket in her room are intercepted by Connie Gilchrist, the landlady, who accuses him of being a thief. Grayson confesses his dire predicament to his wife, who decides to go out and buy the ring herself. In doing so, she becomes involved with James Griffith, the lecherous son of the pawnbroker, who takes her to a saloon to consumate the deal. She procures the ring, but, when he attempt to embrace her, Grayson, waiting nearby, beats him up. The commotion brings the police and both Grayson and Margaret are arrested. The police link Grayson with Marta’s death and believe that he had stolen the ring. A representative of the adoption society steps in and takes away their child. Desperately trying to clear himself, Grayson, aided by Margaret, visits every pawnshop in the city and by the process of elimination eventually finds a pawnbroker who could prove that the ring had been offered to him by Marta. This development, together with a letter Marta had left to her boy-friend, who had been killed in an accident, stating that she intended to commit suicide, clears Grayson. It all ends with the adoption society returning the baby to Margaret and Grayson. Wallace MacDonald produced it, and Will Jason directed it, from a screenplay by David Lang, who wrote it with the cooperation of True Story Magazine. Mainly an adult picture. “The Highwayman” with Philip Friend, Wanda Hendrix, Charles Coburn and Victor Jory ( Allied Artists, August 12; time, 83 min.) Of the swashbuckling stories that have been produced in color lately, “The Highwayman” tops them all, chiefly because of the fine direction and acting, and of the sympathy with which the good characters are surrounded. The skilh iui direction makes the action clear and smooth, and since the picture-goers are in sympathy with the aims and efforts of the hero and his followers they follow their fate with intense interest, feeling deeply for their safety when their lives are in danger. Philip Friend does excellent work as the masked highwayman, a Lord who takes up the cause of the liberal forces. Wanda Hendrix, as the heroine, is beautiful and deserving of the passionate and loyal love of the hero. Dan O’Herlihy, too, wins the spectator’s sympathy because of the loyalty he shows to the hero who had saved his life. The role of a villianous Lord is not very good for Charles Coburn, that fine actor, but Victor Jory fills his villianous part to perfection. The picture has been photographed by the two-color Cinecolor process and, although it is not as fine as any of the three-color processes, it is very good, enhancing the beauty of the outdoor scenery. Set in pre-revolutionary England, the story has Jory and Coburn as leaders of a group who, to fatten their purses, encourage the shipment of free men to the colonies, there to become virtual slaves of the Crown. Posing as a Quaker, i riend, a nobleman himself but opposing the mercenary motives of the forces led by Coburn and Jory, fights them as a masked highwayman. He holds up stages carrying rich Lords, and uses the loot to help the poor. During one of his raids, he encounters Virginia Huston, Jory's wife, a childhood sweetheart who still loved him and who lived in terror of her husband. In the course of events, Friend falls in love with Wanda, daughter of an innkeeper, and he rescues O’Herlihy, who was about to be shot by the King’s forces. O’Herlihy becomes his constant companion. Jory makes several attempt to capture Friend but is always outwitted by him. Reprimanded by Coburn for his failure to capture Friend, Jory, fearing lest he fall from favor, induces Coburn to let him imprison all the Lords who had liberal inclinations. Jory tricks Cecil Kellaway into making his liberal sentiments known to him, then arrests Kellaway and tortures him to force him to reveal the names of other liberal Lords, but Kellaway prefers death to treachery. Friend attempts to rescue Kellaway but is too late — the tortures had caused his death. Jory invites the liberal Lords to a reception, planning to arrest those who would refuse the invitation. Friend, too, attends, and is warned by Virginia of the trap. Forewarned by Friend, who reveals himself to them for the first time as the masked highwayman, the liberal Lords fight their way out before Jory's guards can arrest them. They then join forces with Friend to defeat Coburn and Jory. After a fierce battle during which he kills Jory, Friend heads for the inn, unaware that guards, who had made Wanda their prisoner, were lying in wait for him. Wanda, to warn Friend of the danger, shoots and kills herself. Hearing the warning shot, Friend attempts to escape, but guards, lying in ambush, shoot and kill him. It is a Jack Dietz production, produced by Hal E. Chester and directed by Lesley Selander from a screenplay by Jan Jeffries, who based it on a story by Jack DeWitt and Renault Duncan, who took their cue from the poem by Alfred Noyes. Suitable for any class of picture-goers, children included.