Harrison's Reports (1946)

50 HARRISON'S REPORTS March 30, 1946 "So Goes My Love" with Myrna Loy and Don Ameche (Universal, April 19; time, 87 min.) Set in the 1870's and dealing with the early domestic life of Hiram Maxim, the inventor, this comedydrama is a charming, sentimental picture, with human appeal, loveable characterizations, and delightful comedy; it should direct an appeal mainly to family audiences in small-town and neighborhood theatres. Sophisticated audiences may find it tiresome because of its slow-paced action and its quiet type of humor, but that is in keeping with the mood of the story, which requires just such a tempo. Except for a highly dramatic sequence towards the finish, the emphasis is on the comedy, but in several instances the situations are so contrived and long-drawn out, and the comedy so forced, that they are rendered ineffective. On the whole, however, one is kept chuckling throughout: — Myrna Loy, a spirited country girl, goes to New York to join her aunt and uncle, frankly admitting that she was out to find herself a wealthy husband and to make marriage her career. She falls in love with Don Ameche, a struggling young inventor, but because he was poor she accepts the marriage proposal of Richard Gaines, a stuffy but wealthy young man. At the last moment, however, she becomes dismayed at Gaines' stuffiness and asks Ameche to marry her, even though she knew that it meant a hand-to-mouth existence. Their first year of marriage is marked by hardships, but Myrna steadfastedly encourages Ameche in his work and he soon finds his inventions clicking. They are blessed with a son, and as time passes Ameche becomes more and more famous and accumulates wealth. Their child (Bobby Driscoll) grows into a mischievous child, and his pranks constantly complicate Myrna's life. She attempts to interest Ameche in the community life about him, but he prefers eccentricity to solid respectability. Selfishly unaware of the distress he was causing Myrna, Ameche continues blithely aloof from the outside world until his son inadvertantly causes an accident that injures Myrna severely and jeopardizes her life and the life of her unborn second baby. He goes through much agony until she gets safely over the crisis, and in gratefulness for her recovery he changes his way of life to please her. Bruce Manning and James Clifden wrote the screen play based upon "A Genius in the Family" by Hiram Percy Maxim. Jack H. Skirball produced it, and Frank Ryan directed it. The cast includes Rhys Williams, Molly Lamont, Sarah Padden and others. Unobjectionable morally. "Mysterious Intruder" with Richard Dix (Columbia, April 1 1 ; time, 62 min.) For those who enjoy murder melodramas, this latest "Whistler" picture should give satisfaction. This time Richard Dix is shown as an unscrupulous private detective, who becomes involved in a series of kidnappings and murders when he attempts to steal a fortune from a missing heiress. The story itself is not new, but by virtue of the plot's novel though illogical twists, the good direction, and the competent performances, one's interest is held all the way through. Moreover, it is swift-moving, exciting, and suspensive. It is not, however, a pleasant entertain ment. Dix's role is so unsympathetic that his at' tempted reformation at the finish, where he pays for his sins, has little effect on the spectator. Several of the situations offer tense melodramatic thrills: — Paul Burns, a kindly old music store owner, engages Dix to find Pamela Blake, a girl he hadn't seen in seven years. He informs Dix that the girl's mother had died recently, leaving her certain items that would net her a fortune. Plotting to obtain the fortune for himself, Dix arranges with Helen Mowery to impersonate Pamela and sends her to Burns to claim the valuables. Unaware that Mike Mazurki, a thief, was hiding in the store and listening to his words, Burns tells Helen that the secret treasure consisted of two recordings made by Jenny Lind, which were valued at $200,000. Mazurki steals a box from the cellar in the mistaken belief that it contained the recordings, then murders the old man and kidnaps Helen, but he releases her when he learns that she was an impostor. Aided by Helen, Dix locates Mazurki's hideout, but the police arrive at the same time. He escapes while Mazurki is shot down in a gun battle. Detectives Barton MacLane and Charles Lane learn of Dix's connection with the case but are unable to elicit from him information as to why Burns wanted to find Pamela. Long suspicious of Dix's operations, they locate Pamela and arrange with her to visit Dix to learn about her inheritance. Dix, planning to cheat the girl, informs her of the recordings and makes her his prisoner. She manages to escape and contacts the police. Meanwhile Helen had been murdered by Regis Toomey, her hotel manager, who had learned from her the secret of the recordings and planned to obtain them for himself. Dix, wrongfully suspected of the murder, is compelled to go into hiding. To clear himself, he decides to visit the cellar of the music store to find the recordings and turn them over to Pamela. There, he discovers Toomey with the records in his possession; he kills him in a gun battle. The police, attracted by the shots, raid the cellar and, suspecting Dix of foul play, shoot him down. Eric Taylor wrote the screen play, Rudolph C. Flothow produced it, and William Castle directed it. The cast includes Nina Vale and others. Adult entertainment. "Gay Blades" with Allan Lane and Jean Rogers (Republic, Jan. 25; time, 67 min.) A fair program entertainment. It mixes comedy and drama with romance and ice-hockey and manages to be fairly entertaining in each respect, in spite of the fact that the story is not particularly engrossing. Most of the comedy is provoked by the efforts of Jean Rogers, a Hollywood talent scout, to maneuver Allan Lane, an ice-hockey hero, into signing a movie contract. While never hilarious, the plot developments are consistently amusing. The closing scenes, where Lane abandons his screen career to help his teammates win the hockey championship, are fairly exciting. The performances are engaging: — In order to find a male lead who fitted the requirements of Paul Harvey, her employer, head of Mammoth Studios, Jean embarks on a nationwide search. In New York she meets Lane, a husky fellow, and sets out on a campaign to sign him to a contract. Lane, whose interests lied in ice-hockey and archi