Harrison's Reports (1930)

August 30, 1930 139 HARRISON’S REPORTS “The Squealer” — with Jack Holt {ColumOia, ^ncj. 25 ; time, 66 minutes) A well produced racketeer story, with some heart interest and more suspense. The only bad feature about it is the fact that the hero is the racketeer, who has to have people killed for violating the unwritten law of the racket. For instance, at the opening a man is shown pleading with the hero to spare his life for having “squealed,” but the hero is inflexible. Later on, this man is shown shot down in cold blood by gangsters, who carried out the hero’s orders. The most important part of the picture is where the heroine, wife of the hero, is compelled to give her husband’s whereabouts to the police so as to save his life ; rival gangsters had learned where he was and had set out to find him and to murder him, and as the heroine had no way of communicating with him she calls up the police and tells them where he was, believing that only an arrest could save his life. In the development of the plot the hero is shown as having been sentenced to the penitentiary for seven years. He has one of his men carry out an investigation to find out who it was that gave his address to the police and is shocked to learn that it was his wife. He conceives as the motive her love for a friend of the family ; he thought that she wanted him out of the way so as to marry this man. The hero effects his escape and goes to his home to have the other man killed. His wife, accompanied by the other man, returns from the theatre and he is about to shoot the other man when he overhears them discussing him. From their talk he learns the true motives that had prompted her to give his address to the police. Putting on the overcoat and the hat of his friend, tlie hero goes out of the house quietly. His men, who were waylaying the other man at his orders, thinking that the hero was the other man, shoot and kill him. Thus the hero sacrifices his life so that his wife, whom he loved, might be happy. In the cast is also David Lee, who takes the part of the hero’s son. He is as charming as ever. The plot is by Mark Linder. Harry Joe Brown directed it. Dorothy Revier is the heroine, and Matt Moore Holt’s friend. Zasu Pitts is again the maid. The talk is clear. ( Silent values, good for those that like this sort of story.) “Old English” — with George Arliss (Warner Bros.; no rcl. date set yet; 86 min.) The best acting George Arliss has done in pictures, talking or silent. But it is the sort of picture that will appeal to about twenty per cent, of the picture-goers — to those who look for art in pictures. Those of the rank and file will, no doubt, be bored with it. There is hardly any plot ; it is ninety per cent, characterization, the doings of a man about eighty, who, although he had to be helped to get up from his chair, has a mind that thinks faster than the mind of a man of twenty. He is the President of an English maritime concern, which had not paid any dividends to the investors. In order to help his grand-children financially, he agrees to buy some ships provided the owner will pay him a ten per cent commission. The seller at first objects to it but when he realizes that the sale would not go through otherwise he agrees. At the stockholders’ meeting, called for the purpose of obtaining authority for the purchase of the ships, some of the shareholders object to the deal, but his rhetorical ability, and his fast thinking brains, effect the ratification. One of the shareholders, a lawyer, is angry at him because the old man refused to grant him special favors, and, having obtained enough evidence regarding the commission paid to him. he threatens to expose him unless he “came through.” The old man orders him out of his house. But he realize that, by so doing, he had “cooked his goose,” as he put it, and orders a big dinner, with wine and rum, even though this was against the doctor’s orders. At the end of the meal he goes to sleep but does not awake again. The plot was taken from John Galsworthy’s play. Alfred E. Green directed it. In the cast are, Leon Janney, Doris Lloyd, Ivan Simpson and others. The talk is fairly clear. Note : I fear that this picture will, “die” in the small towns. “The Storm” (Unwersal, August 18; running time, 76 min.) “The Storm” was produced several years ago in silent form, by the same company, with House Peters m the leading part. And it drew good crowds, because it was produed well. The present version is even better than the old version, not only because the art has progressed much more, but also because sound has been added to it. The theme is not overplcasant, as it deals with the friendship of two men. shattered because of a woman, but it is so virile a melodrama that those who will see it will, no doubt, enjoy it, just as those who saw the silent version enjoyed it. The direction and acting is of the highest order, the outdoor shots, some of which were taken during the summer and some during the winter, are very beautiful. There is human interest in the scenes where the heroine helps her father, who had been arrested by mounted police, escape. The ride down the rapids is thrilling. So is the snow avalanche in the closing scenes, where one of the friends reaches the other just in time to save his life: — 'the heroine’s father, shot and mortally wounded in an effort to escape from the police, asks the hero before his death to take care of the heroine. The hero and his closest friend had gone up to the woods with the intention of spending the entire winter there. They decide to keep the heroine with them in order to watch over her. Winter sets in and they are snow-bound in the cabin. The two men fall in love with the heroine. The hero wants to marry her, but his friend, who is fascinated with her, wants to take her away to London, to make a lady of her. They become bitter enemies when each finds out that the other loves the girl. The hero wants his friend to keep away from the girl or else he will kill him. One night he discovers his friend entering the girl’s room. A terrific fight ensues and the hero is about to kill his friend when the heroine begs him to desist. Thinking that she loved the other man the hero leaves the cabin, although a storm is raging. The heroine pleads with his friend to rescue him because she told him it is the hero she loves. He does this for her and when the storm has subsided he leaves them. The plot has been taken from the stage play of the same name by Langdon McCormick. It was directed by William Wyler. In the cast are Lupe Velez, Paul Cavanagh, William Boyd, Alphonz Ethier and Ernie S. Adams. The talk is clear. (Silent values, excellent.) “Romance” — with Greta Garbo (M-G-M., July 26; running time, 75 min.) The excellent direction, which gives it beauty throughout, coupled with magnificient performances by Greta Garbo and Lewis Stone, as well as with the charming costumes and settings, make this an interesting picture. One feels much sympathy for the heroine, an opera singer, who falls in love with the hero, a clergyman, but because of her past life feels duty bound not to marry him. There is fine restraint and dignity and also human appeal in the scene in which the hero, who had come to preach to the heroine, succumbs to her heauty and makes love to her instead. Although loving him a great deal, she resists him and sends him away for his own sake : — The hero, a bishop, whose grandson was in love with an actress, and who had come to him for advice, recalls the days when he was young and tells his grandson the story of his experiences with the heroine. A mere clergyman at that time, while a guest at the home of one of his friends, he meets the heroine, a famous opera singer, and they fall in love with each other. He wants to marry her but she feels that because of her past life it would be an injustice to him to do so. She also realizes the prejudice felt by the people of his class against opera singers. The hero, however, refuses to listen to reason and the heroine in despair tells him of her past life and also that she had been the mistress of the man at whose home she had met him. The hero is so disillusioned that he permits the heroine to leave him without a word of comfort to her. The night before she is to leave for Europe the hero calls on her and tells her that he wants to pray for her. He is so much in love with her, however, that he makes love to her instead and not until she pleads with him to leave her does he realize how noble she is, and so they part. At the conclusion of the story, the bishop tells his grandson to marry the girl he loves, regardless of any parental objections, because romance is the one worth-while thing in life. The plot was adapted from the play of the same name by Edward Sheldon. It was directed by Clarence Brown. Others in the cast are Gavin Gordon, Elliott Nugent, Florence Lake, Clara Blandick and Henry Armetta. The talk is clear. Note : This play was put into pictures once before, in silent form ; it was produced by D. W. Griffith, and released through United Artists. The silent version was more dramatic. “Abraham Lincoln,” United Artists; An excellent production. Review next week.