Harrison's Reports (1929)

202 HARRISON’S REPORTS “Hunting Tigers in India” {Talking Picture Epics, Inc.; Dec. 9; time, 86 rnin.) Theatres that have been in the habit of running pictures of this sort or of general educational nature should find the running of this picture profitable. Although it is not as good as some of the pictures of this kind that have been released in the last two or three years, it is, nevertheless, interesting from the point of view of picture-goers that cater to such theatres. The title does not describe the picture correctly, because tiger hunting, although the main undertaking of the e.xpcdition, is only a part of the picture. Hunting of "Rogue” elephants is another part, of deer another, and of rhinoceri still another. It is explained by talk that "Rogues” are elephants that arc turned out by the elephant tribe as unruly. These become worse while living their lives in lonesomeness and the government of India condemns them to death, offering a prize to whoever will kill them. The tiger hunt is only mildly interesting because, on account of the nature of the work, only shots of the tigers standing still or running away could be taken. The hunt of rhinoceri, too, is in a way interesting. One of the worse defects in the picture is Captain George M. Dyott’s talk, which was put in afterwards. He lectures while the film is shown. The Captain uses too much tautology, and often he explains what is obvious. He also uses frequently rhetorical inversion permissible only under extreme emotional stress. This makes his lecture sound artificial, and, inasmuch as this sort of pictures appeal mostly to cultured picture-goers, the talk will hurt the picture rather than help it. It is the opinion of this paper that a silent version will give better satisfaction than the synchronized version. (Time, 86 minutes.) “Darkened Rooms” (100% T-F&DN) {Param., Noz’. 23 ; time 74 min.; 7io silent version) first class program picture. There is human interest, a little comedy, and the spectator’s interest is held fairly tight all the way through. It is the story of a boardwalk photographer at a beach resort, who, unable to make a good living at his profession, decides to take up spiritualistic work to enable him to fleece wealthy persons. The heroine comes to have her picture taken to send to a vaudeville agency with the hope of obtaining an engagement as a chorus girl. She faints and the hero, realizing that she had fainted from hunger, offers her a meal. He then makes her a proposition to become his employee at a good salary. When she learns that she was to be liis confederate in a dishonest money-making scheme, she balks at first but she eventually gives in, not only because she feels grateful to him for having given her food and shelter but also because .she had come to love him. They carry his fleecing scheme partly through, but she revolts and refuses to go through with it, telling him that she will leave him. At first the hero does not take her threat seriously but she docs leave him. He decides to go through with it alone. The heroine, in order to save him from a ])<>ssible trouble with the authorities, engages a friend of hers, an actor, to act as a ghost at a given time. Wliile the hero is giving a spiritualistic sitting to a young wealthy woman, who hoped to communicate with her fiance, killed when his aeroplane was sma.'hed, the heroine’s friend appears as a ghost and warns the young woman not to believe what the hero had said to her. The hero is frightened, because he thought that he saw the real spirit of the dead aviator and gives up his dishonest schemes. The heroine comes back to him. The}' devote their time to their work and prosper. The story is by Philip Gibbs. Louis Gasnier directed it. Evelyn Brent is the heroine, and Neil Hamilton, the hero. W'allace McDonald, Doris Hill, Gale Henry and others are in the cast. The sound reproduction is good. (Silent values, good.) “Dance Hall” (100% T-F&D) {Radio Piet., Dec. 21 ; synchr. time, 66 min.) Not big but pleasing. The spectator's interest is held fairly tense throughout, there is fairly abundant human interest, and some laughs are provoked. The human interest is awakened mostly by Arthur Lake ; he loves the heroine, and yet he conceals from her the fact that the man she loved was unfaithful to her. He would rather have her misunderstand his motives, — and she is shown misunderstanding them— than make her unhappy by informing her about her fiance. The love Arthur Lake, as the hero, shows for his mother, too, helps make him a friend to the spectators. Joe Cawihorn conics forward with another fine performance : again he takes the part of a foreigner, who stumbles now December 21, 1929 and then when he attempts to express himself in English well. Olive Borden is sympathetic as the heroine. Her acting when she discovers that the man she loved was unfaithful to her is tensely dramatic. The picture has been produced well. 1 he sound reproduction is up to the Radio Pictures standard ; all the words are understood without any effort. The action unfplds mostly in a dance hall, where the heroine is a hostess, and where the hero went and danced, winning prizes as an amateur. He loves the heroine but she considers him only a child. She meets a famous aviator and falls in love with him. But he proves false to her. She eventually realizes that the hero loved her and tells him that she, too, loved him. '1 he story was written by Vina Delmar ; although it is not big, it is human. Melville Brown directed it. Margaret Seddon. Ralph Emerson, Helen Kaiser, Lee Moran, and 'lorn (J Brien are in the cast. (Mr. Moran provokes some comedy.) (Silent values, good. Silent leng^th not yet determined.) “The Marriage Playground” (100% T-F&D) {Param., Dec. 21 ; syn. time, 73 min.; sil. 6,610 //.) Only fairly good. There is some comedy, caused by the pranks of little children. There is some human interest, too, caused by the good acting and the sympathetic part of Miss Mary Brian. The story unfolds in Europe ,mostly at Lido, the famous Italian summer resort, and deals with seven children of parents who married and divorced and remarried, leaving them to shift for themselves. They are compelled to endure the hardships that are brought to them by the quarrels of their parents. The young heroine (Mary Brian), one of the children, becomes the head of the "family” ; they all swear on the bible that they will always be together and that they will not let anybody separate them. The heroine accidently meets the hero, a young American, and when she learns that he knew her father she is overjoyed. In time she falls in love with him but she is heart-broken because he considers her a mere child. Soon, however, he realizes that she is a woman and not a child, and when he learns that she, too, is in love with him, he marries her. They thus give the children a permanent home. The story is by Efdith Wharton, Lothar Mendez directed it. Frederic March is the hero, Lilyan Tashman, the heroine’s mother, Huntley Gordon, her father. William .Austin. Seena Owen. Philippe de Lacy, Anita Louise, Jocelyn Lee. Maude Turner Gordon, Joan Standing and others are in the cast. The sound reproduction is good. ( Silent values, fair. Time for the silent version, from 76 to 94 minutes.) It should appeal mostly to cultured picture-goers. “The Battle of Paris” (100% T-F&D) ( Param., A'ot’. 30 ; time 70 min.; sil. not yet determined) (iertrude Lawrence is a fine actress ; she has poise and works like a veteran screen actress. In the songs, in particuiar, she is at home. But although she works hard to put "J hc Battle of Paris” over, she does not succeed so well, because the story material is somewhat weak. For one thing, she is shown doing things that the heroine in drama should not do, not at least without justification. At the opening she is shown as the confederate of a happy-looking pick-pocket. The author attempted to retain sym^thy for her by showing that she does not like to do pick-pocketing but that she does so out of gratitude for her associate, who had helped her when she was in need. But she is deprived of sympathy just the same. The love affair between her, as the lieroine. and Walter Petrie, as the hero, is fairly interesting. The [)art that shows the heroine "borrowing” a dress for the purpose of arousing the jealousy of the hero, who was at the calc in company of another woman, is another thing that works against her, even tliough she is shown putting the dress back. Charles Ruggles is the happy-go-luck> pickpocket. He provokes considerable comedy. The story deals with the confederate of a Paris pickpocket (heroine), who accidentally meets a wealthy young man (hero). In time they fall in love wHth each other. War is declared and the hero enlists. The heroine hears that the hero is in Paris on leave but is heartbroken when he fails to call on her. She is informed that he is at a cafe with another woman and. in order to arouse his jealousy, she steals a dress from a store and goes to the cafe as a princess. She ignores the hero. The heroine is abducted by apaches and the hero rushes to her rescue. They become reconciled after the rescue. The story is by Gene Markey. Robert Florey directed it. Tlie sound is pretty good. (Silent values, fair.)