Harrison's Reports (1932)

March 12. 1932 HARRISON’S REPORTS 43 “Pleasure” (First Div., Feb. 20; running time, 52 min.) A mediocre program picture. The story is ordinary, the photography at times blurred and occasionally the sound is so poor that it is difficult to understand what is being said. There is little human interest and not much sympathy felt for any of the characters, for most of them are shown as being weak: — The hero, an author, does not get along with his wife. She loves pleasure and he seeks quiet, and so she goes out with other men. The hero’s brother, an artist, is doing a portrait of the heroine. He is always in need of money and obtains it from the hero. In need of money again, he goes to the hero’s home, the hero, in the meantime, having gone to his studio. There the hero meets the heroine. She does not know who he is. They become good friends and eventually fall in love with each other. He does not tell her he is married. The artist is in love with her, too, and proposes. At first she rejects him but when she learns that the hero is married, she accepts. It finally is cleared up when the hero’s wife goes to Paris for a divorce. The artist releases the heroine from her promise and she and the hero are united. The plot was adapted from a story by John Varley. It was directed by Otto Brower. In the cast are Conway Tearle, Carmel Myers, Frances Dade, Paul Page, Roscoe Karns, Lina Basquette, and others. Not suitable for children or for Sunday showing. “Impatient Maiden” with Lew Ayres and Mae Clarke (Universal, March i ; running tune, 80 min.) Fair. The story is thin, but it has much comedy. During the comedy situations it is most enjoyable, but when it becomes “serious” it is dull. The audience at the Mayfair Theatre, where I reviewed it, laughed at the serious situations, especially the one in which the hero, a doctor, is supposed to be operating on the heroine, for it lacks conviction. Most of the comedy is supplied by the heroine’s girl friend. She is especially funny in one scene where she is tied in a straight-jacket, invented by her boy friend ; everybody thinks she is one of the maniacs : — The heroine, a stenographer, lives with her girl friend in an apartment in the tenements. A neighbor attempts to commit suicide, and an ambulance is called for. The hero is the attending doctor and his friend is his assistant. They become acquainted with the two girls, in whose apartment the woman had been brought. The heroine sees the hero after that and they fall in love. He tells her he is not in a position to marry and she tells him that is all right for she does not believe in marriage. They drift apart and the heroine accepts the proposal of her employer to move into a fashionable apartment at the rental she had been paying for the cheap one. Her girl friend is forced to move away from her because of the objections of her boy friend. The hero pays the heroine a visit and when he finds her employer in the apartment accuses her of being indecent. The heroine is forced to leave the apartment and quit her job when she refuses his attentions. She goes back to her old apartment and is taken ill. An ambulance is called for and the hero is the attending doctor. He rushes her to the hospital and operates on her. She recovers and they are reconciled. The plot was adapted from the novel by Donald Henderson Clarke. In the cast are Una Merkel, John Halliday, Andy Devine, and others. Not suitable for children or for Sunday showing. (Not a substitution.) “The Blonde Captive” (IVm. M. Pisor, rel. arrangements not made; time, SQ. m.) An interesting travelogue revolving around an expedition headed by D. Paul C. Withington into the wilds of Northern Australia. The purpose of this expedition was to find natives resembling the Neanderthal man of the stone age. Lowell Thomas lectures all during the running of the film, explaining all the strange sights. First are shown the members of the expedition arriving at the port of Sydney, Australia. From there they travel on to less civilized parts. They stop off at one of the islands which is filled with huge turtles. This particular part of the picture is very interesting. A huge mother turtle is shown laying eggs ; there is also shown a group of new born turtles; and then a heart, which had been removed from a turtle, still beating. The beating of the detached heart is a strange sight. But the expedition is not yet satisfied. Since they had not found their type of Neanderthal man, they travel on, until they reach an Isolated spot. Here they find the type of man they had come after. He resembles in every way the old Neanderthal man. But they meet with the strangest sight of all; they notice a blonde boy playing with a group of native children. Interested, they follow one of the bushmen, who seems to be living apart from the tribe. Arriving at his “home,” they discover that his wife is a white woman. She tells them her story. She had been shipwrecked with her husband. He had drowned and she had been rescued by the tribe, eventually becoming the wife of one of the tribesmen. When they offered to take her with them, she refused to go because she preferred to live her life out with the tribe. There are other interesting sights, such as, the coming of manhood to a young boy — he has to go through the torture of having two of his front teeth broken out. The members of the expedition start for home, happy at the discoveries they made. While there is nothing harmful in the picture, it may not interest children. It is suitable for Sunday showing. “The Heart of New York” (Warner Bros., March 28; running time, 72 min.) A fairly entertaining comedy. It has human interest for it deals with the trials and tribulations of a poor East side Jewish family. Most of the comedy consists of the bickering between the family and their relatives, but this does not get on .one’s nerves because it is generally, funny. One feels sympathy for the father of the family, who is constantly being nagged by his wife and her brother. One of the humorous situations is where the mother tries to get a husband for her daughter with the aid of two matchmakers : — The father of a poor East side Jewish family is too lazy to work. He would rather work on his invention, a dishwashing machine. He is nagged by his wife, who accuses him of being a heartless father since he did not provide for his children. But eventually his machine turns out to be a success and he becomes wealthy. He buys the old house the family lived in, and plans to throw it down and build a beautiful one in its place. His family objects for they want to move to a fashionable neighborhood. They leave him and take up an apartment in a better neighborhood. He builds the house and does much charitable work. The man who had financed his invention tries to swindle him out of all his belongings. But he is prevented from doing this by the father’s lawyer, who is also the daughter’s fiance. The family is finally reconciled, content to live in the house their father built. The plot was based on the stage play “Mendel, Inc.,” by David Freedman. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy. In the cast are George Sidney, Joe Smith, Charles Dale, Anna Appel, Ruth Hall, Aline MacMahon and others. Suitable for children and for Sunday showing. Substitution Facts : On the contract 355 is listed as “Honeymoon Hotel,” by Steuart M. Emery, and since “Heart of New York,” has been adapted from a play by David Freedman, it is a story substitution, and you are not obligated to accept it. Note : There is an advertisement for the “Cunard Line” in the picture. “Galloping Thru” with Tom Tyler (First Div., Feb. 15; running time, 57 min.) A fair western. The story is not particularly novel, but there is enough human interest and action to hold the spectator’s interest. There is much suspense towards the end when the hero and villain meet to shoot it out. The hero wins the spectator’s sympathy because of his upright character and loyalty to his friend : — The hero, who had been away from home for some time, arrives in town just in time to see his father killed by some men who were attempting to rob him. He gives ebase to them but is unsuccessful in rounding them up. Instead they shoot him. His pal takes him to his home and there the heroine, a friend of the pal, nurses him back to health. They fall in love with each other but the hero does not tell her of his love because he knows that his pal, too, loves her. He suspects the heroine’s brother of being one of the gang of crooks. The brother tries to poison the pal’s mind against the hero and this nearly costs the hero his life. Eventually he clears everything up with his pal. the gang of crooks are killed, and the hero and the heroine are united. The plot was adapted from a story by Wellyn Totman. It was directed by Lloyd Nosier. In tbe cast are Betty Mack. A1 Bridge, Stanley Blystone, G. D. Woods. John Elliot and Si Jenks. The talk is clear. Suitable for children and for Sunday showing where an exhibitor uses westerns for such a purpose.