Harrison's Reports (1945)

8 HARRISON'S REPORTS January 13, 1945 French films in American theatres regardless of whether or not the American public understands the French language. Or, perhaps, the representative of the French Government had in mind dubbing the French pictures in English. In other words, the French Government feels that the American public should regress in progress and go back to the horse-and-buggy days. For that is what would happen if the American exhibitors should exhibit, in regular theatres, foreign pictures dubbed in English. Even little Switzerland, with a population of four million, which cannot support film production at home, wants us to import as many Swiss films as the number of American films we are exporting to Switzerland. In the case of Argentina, there was a time when we were depriving the American producers of raw stock in order for us to help the Argentinean producers, but now that has stopped. There is only one way by which this matter can be settled without any fight; after the war, Great Britain, France, Spain and other nations throughout the world will need our help to rebuild their countries from the ravages of this war. The American Government, then, should point out to all the nations that are placing restrictions on the American films that we shall lend our greater aid to such nations as do not place restrictions on American commerce. LET US SPARE THE PUBLIC'S FEELINGS Because this a tough, dirty war, it is understandable and desirable that war melodramas should be grim so that they can reflect to the civilians at home the fact that we are in a do-or-dic fight that calls for the greatest of sacrifices for each one of us. In other words, there is no room for "sissy" stuff in war pictures. Battle scenes that depict the injuring and killing of fighting men add a realistic touch to war pictures and give them the desired dramatic and inspirational effect. It is the type of action audiences expect to see in such pictures, and consequently, they find these scenes acceptable, though brutal. There is, however, another sort of realism that war pictures can do without. I refer to scenes that go into minute detail in their depiction of fighting men suffering in mind and in body. These scenes, though highly dramatic, cannot be classed as entertainment, for they serve only to add to the mental stress that most movie-goers are undergoing in these troublesome days. The state of mind of today's motion picture audience, which, for the greatest part, is made up of parents, wives, sweethearts, and relatives of the men in the armed forces, is not such as to permit them to gaze stoically at scenes depicting the suffering of a fighting man. To most picture-goers today, the fighting hero they see on the screen is representative of their own loved ones. Consequently, when they see that hero undergoing excruciating mental or physical pain, his sufferings serve only to torture further their over-troubled minds, for they cannot help but think that their loved ones, too, may suffer a similar fate. That the public is in no mood to accept scenes depicting a fighting man's sufferings has apparently been recognized by MGM, and it is to its credit that it has done something about the condition. In "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo," a fine war melodrama based on the factual account of Captain Ted Lawson's experiences as a participant in the Doolittle raid on Tokyo, over-emphasis was placed on the scenes dealing with the amputation of one of Lawson's legs. So realistic were the scenes depicting his mental and physical suffering, and the operation in which his leg was amputated, that, I am sure, many persons left the theatre with grief-laden hearts, saddened by the thought that a similar experience might befall their loved ones on the fighting fronts. In these times in particular, the loss of limbs, operation scenes, and other incidents that depict in detail the suffering of a fighting man should be kept out of war pictures because of the adverse effect they have on the public's morale. In the case of "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo," however, the producers had no choice in the matter since such scenes were a part of the factual account. Where the producers did err, however, was in the over-emphasis given to these scenes. MGM, having realized this error, and being considerate of the public's feelings, has wisely eliminated certain scenes so that the part of the picture dealing with the loss of Captain Lawson's leg has been toned down considerably. The mounting casualties suffered by the Allies in past month has caused considerable concern to those with loved ones in the services, and the undue depiction of a serviceman's suffering causes them no end of distress. This state of public mind places a greater responsibility than ever on those who select story material for war pictures; their judgment will determine whether or not the picture-goer is to obtain relaxation, which, after all, is what he seeks when he attends the movies. Sending people out of a theatre in an unhappy frame of mind helps neither their morale nor the theatre attendance. CONCLUSIVE VICTORY! Like a drowning man seeking to save himself as he goes down for the third time, the Crescent Amusement Company, in a final effort to upset the Government's sweeping victory in its anti-trust suit against it, filed a petition with the U. S. Supreme Court on Friday, January 5, asking for a rehearing of its appeal, which the Court decided last month in favor of the Government. On Monday, January 8, the Court, without any formal opinion, rejected the petition for a rehearing, thus bringing the case to a definite close. The Government's victory is now conclusive. It marks a milestone in the independent exhibitor's fight for the preservation of his right of free competition. THE MARCH OF DIMES Once again the industry looks to the nation's exhibitors to raise funds that will help those who have been stricken with infantile paralysis. A goal of $5,000,000 has been set. As we go to press, the motion picture committee in charge of the drive reports that 10,000 theatres have already sent in their pledges for the collection campaign, which takes place during the week of January 25-31. Harrison's Reports urges those who have not yet sent in their pledge to do so at once; no cause is more worthy of support.