Harrison's Reports (1937)

HARRISON'S REPORTS 3 "Lloyds of London" with Freddie Bartholomew (20//t Century-Fox, Jan: 29; 117 min.) It is an excellent production, but how much it will draw it is hard to tell just now. It is possible that its box office success will be no more than fairly good, for the story is not very glamorous and it is tar from being "The House of Rothschild." It might have had better luck had Freddie barthoiomew appeared all the way through the picture, iiut because the hero grows up, naturally this not possible. There is good action all the way through, and many of the situations appeal to the emotions of sympathy. The death of Admiral Nelson at the famous battle oi Trafalgar is one of such situations. Many of the situations hold one in pretty tense suspense. This is so particularly where the hero is shown rescuing the heroine from France and taking her safely to England. The story revolves around the early operations of Lloyds, the famous insurance company : Two friends part in their boyhood : the one is Jonathan Blake, and the other Horatio Nelson. Blake goes to London, is engaged by Lloyds, and in time becomes an important member of the firm ; Horatio eventually becomes the famous admiral Nelson. Blake in time becomes very wealthy. England and France are at war. Returning from Paris, Jonathan comes upon Lady Elizabeth, whom he smuggles out of France. Shortly afterward he finds out who she is. By this time he is madly in love with her. The French had been sinking so many British ships that Lloyds decides to discontinue insuring ships, unless the Government withdrew a part of the fighting ships from the battle fleet to protect the merchant ships. Blake is opposed to such an act, for he felt that every ship was needed by Admiral Nelson for the protection of England, and feared that any weakening of the fleet would prove disastrous. To induce Lloyds to continue insuring ships, he spreads the false rumor that Nelson had met the French fleet and had defeated it. Lord Stacy, Lady Elizabeth's husband, having become aware of Blake's deception, is about to expose him as a matter of revenge, but he refrains from doing so because he is told that back of Blake is Lady Elizabeth's money. In the meantime word is received that Nelson has actually met and defeated the French fleet at Trafalgar, but at the price of his life — Nelson had been killed in the battle. Blake hears of the victory as he is dying from a bullet sent into his body by jealous Lord Stacy. The story is by Curtis Kenyon ; the screen play by Ernest Pascal and Walter Ferris. Henry King directed it and Kenneth McGowan produced it. Sir Guy Standing, Madeleine Carroll, Tyrone Power, C. Aubrey Smith, Montague Love, Douglas Scott, J. M. Kerrigan, John Burton, Lumsden Hare and Holmes Herbert are some of the players in the cast. Good for the entire family. Class A. "Gold Diggers of 1937" with Dick Powell and Joan Blondell (1st Nat'l., Dec. 26; time, 100 min.) Regardless of its quality, this will probably do big business, for it is a lavishly produced musical farce, with popular players in its cast. The story is, however, unpleasant, for it deals mostly with the attempts of Osgood Perkins and Charles D. Brown to kill their partner, Victor Moore, so that they might collect the insurance; even though this is all treated in a farcical vein it is distasteful. The laughs are provoked by Moore, who outwits his partners by becoming stronger instead of weaker. There is nothing new in the way the backstage scenes have been handled. The producers have outdone themselves in lavishness in the closing musical scenes, which, ridiculously enough, are supposed to take place on the stage of a theatre. Dick Powell is a pleasing character ; he sings several popular numbers in his customary style. Miss Blondell, as his sweetheart, is given a much more subdued part than ordinarily ; and she plays it well. In the development of the plot, Powell, an insurance agent, is shocked when, with the help of Miss Blondell, he sells a million dollar policy to Moore, a theatrical producer, in which Moore names his two partners as beneficiaries. He had taken out the policy at the insistence of his partners, not knowing that they planned to bring about his death so that they might collect the insurance money and thus make good the money they had taken from the firm and had gambled away. Their plans arc to have Glenda Farrell pretend to love M<x)rc, to compel him to lead a hectic life. Instead, she falls in love with him, as he does with her. This makes him feel younger and healthier. Ashamed of what she had done, she confesses. Her dis closure of the state of his company's affairs causes him to collapse. He is taken to the hospital. Powell, who had left his insurance job to become Moore's general manager, calls together the members of the cast and urges them to help him put on the show and thus save Moore's life. Each one borrows money from a friend which they turn over to Powell. He puts on the show and it is a hit. Moore regains his health and marries Miss Farrell. And Powell is finally wealthy enough to marry Miss Blondell. The plot was adapted from the stage play "Sweet Mystery of Life" by Richard Maibaum, Michael Wallach and George Haight. Warren Duff wrote the screen play. Lloyd Bacon directed it and Hal B. Wallis produced it. In the cast are Rosalind Marquis, Irene Ware, and others. Not particularly suitable for children. Adult entertainment. Class B. "Four Days Wonder" with Jeanne Dante, Martha Sleeper and Alan Mowbray (Universal, Jan. 3; time, 60 min.) Universal, in adapting this from the A. A. Milne melodrama, turned it into a farce with poor results. It is haphazard, ridiculous, and even tiresome, for no one does anything that makes any sense. It is a pity that Jeanne Dante, Universal's new fourteen year old star, should have been put in this as her first introduction to the motion picturegoing public; it is hard to judge her talents. Alan Mowbray, as an egotistical writer of detective stories, provokes most of the laughter by his mannerisms and is responsible for what little entertaining quality the picture possesses. The most amusing scene is that in which Miss Dante shoots red ink at Allan, who thinks that he had been shot, and that the ink was blood. The adolescent love affair may appeal to children. Harvey Thew and Michael Uris wrote the screen play. Sidney Salkow directed it, and Robert Presnell produced it. In the cast are Charles Williams, Murray Kinnell, Spencer Charters, and others. Morally suitable for all. Class A. "After the Thin Man" with William Powell and Myrna Loy (MGM, Dec. 25; time, 111 min.) Very good ! It is a sequel to "The Thin Man," with Myrna Loy and William Powell continuing where they left off in the other. Of course, the novelty of the treatment and the style have been worn thin by the many imitations that followed "The Thin Man" ; nevertheless this can stand on its own merits as a good murder mystery melodrama, as well as a sophisticated type of comedy that this team is noted for. There is a little too much padding in the beginning, but once it gets into the story one's attention is held to the very end. The murderer's identity is not divulged until the end; it will come as a surprise to most spectators. The plot is worked out logically : — The moment Powell and Miss Loy return from New York to their home in California they are confronted with family troubles. Elissa Landi, Miss Loy's cousin, pleads with Powell to help her find her husband (Allan Marshall), who had been missing. He finds him in a Chinese cafe, intoxicated, and learns that he had been having an affair with Dorothy McNulty, singer at the cafe. James Stewart, Miss Landi's former sweetheart, gives Marshall $25,000 in bonds to go away and leave Miss Landi alone. Marshall accepts this and goes to his home to get his clothes. Miss Landi follows him out of the house with a gun. Suddenly she hears a shot and is shocked to find Marshall dead. Other people had followed Marshall — Stewart, who had gone to see that he carried out his promise ; Joseph Calleia. owner of the cafe who had been planning with Miss McNulty to blackmail Marshall ; Calleia's partner, and Miss McNulty. Stewart takes Miss Landi's gun, tells her not to speak to any one, and then throws the gun into the river. Miss Landi is held for the murder on suspicion. Three other people are murdered in the course of the investigation. Powell finally solves the case by proving that Stewart had committed all the murders out of revenge ; he had been so enraged when Miss Landi threw him down to marry Marshall that he had determined to get even ; he had really become insane. The case finished. Powell and Miss Loy leave for New York again with Miss Landi as their guest. Powell is overjoyed when his wife tells him she is going to have a baby. Dashiell Hammett wrote the story, and Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett the screen play; W. S. Van Dyke directed it. and Hunt Stromberg produced it. In the cast are Jessie Ralph, Teddy Hart, Sam Levene, and others. Not for children. Good for adults. Class B.