Harrison's Reports (1947)

July 12, 1947 HARRISON'S REPORTS 111 Hall from jail. Hall and the judge decide to bring the Vigilantes to town to restore law and order. Paula, overhearing the plan, informs Wilcox. The gang leader lays plans to skip town with Paula, but first tricks her into luring Hall and her grandfather to an ambush to be killed. Margaret, learning of the plan, prevails upon Paula to head off Wilcox. She rushes to the ambush to plead with Wilcox, only to be killed by a bullet intended for her grandfather. Wilcox re' turns to town to rifle the saloon safe. There he is trapped by Hall and the Vigilantes, who converge on the saloon and subdue the gang. The fadeout has Margaret and Hall in an embrace. Roy Chanslor wrote the screen play, Howard Welsch produced it, and Ray Taylor directed it. The cast includes Jack Lambert and others. Unobjectionable morally. ♦The Magic Bow" with Phyllis Calvert and Stewart Granger (Univ.-Int'l., no release date set; time, 105 mm.) From the musical point of view, this English-made romantic drama should certainly delight the lovers of classical music, for the dubbed in violin playing is the work of Yehudi Menuhin; his richness of tone is indeed enchanting. The story, however, which is supposedly based on the life of the great violinist, Nicolo Paganini, is so ordinary and artificial that even the hardiest of music-lovers may find their patience taxed by the absurdities of the plot. Considering the script's deficiencies, Stewart Granger, as the impetuous Paganini, and Phyllis Calvert, as the woman whose love for him is blighted, do fairly well. The action takes place in the 19th Century, and the costumes and settings of the period are superb. All in all the picture's saving grace is the music, of which there is plenty. It belongs in art theatres: — Paganini, an unknown but brilliant violinist living in Genoa, meets Jeanne de Vermond (Miss Calvert) , a French aristocrat, when she engages him to play outside the walls of a prison; her father was imprisoned and she wanted Paganini's music to drown out the sound as the old man filed through the prison bars. Her father escapes and the money Jeanne gives to Paganini enables him to go to Parma, where he wins a Stradivarius violin for playing a difficult piece. Jeanne, who lived in Parma,, invites Paganini to play at her home, but he walks out in a huff because of her guests' rudeness. Aided by Garmi (Cecil Parker) , his smooth-talking manager, Paganini soon wins fame as a concert violinist. He becomes reconciled with Jeanne and both fall deeply in love. Their romance, however, is shortlived when Jeanne's parents insist that she marry Paul de la Rochelle (Dennis Price) for social and political reasons. Jean bows to their wishes out of fear that Napoleon, who favored the match, would take his vengeance on Paganini. After a tour of Europe's capitals, during which he wins great fame, Paganini meets Jeanne in Paris, where Paul challenges him to a duel because of a fancied insult. Jeanne, fearing that Paganini would be killed, declares her love for Paul to stop the duel. Brokenhearted, Paganini loses all interest in his music. Parmi arranges for the Pope to invite Paganini to play at the Vatican in the hope that it would renew his interest. Jeanne and Paul attend the concert, during which Paul, realizing that Jeanne's heart was with Paganini, releases her from their engagement so that she could go to the arms of the man she loved. Roland Pcrtwee wrote the screen play from the novel by Manuel Kcmroff. R. J. Minney produced it, and Bernard Kncwles directed it. It is a Prestige Pictures release.. Unobjectionable morally. "Black Narcissus" with Deborah Kerr (Univ.-Int'l., no release date set; time, 100 min.) Unconventional is the word for this superbly produced British drama, photographed in Technicolor, which deals with a delicate subject — the susceptibility of nuns to temptation. It is an odd, grim story with moments of tenderness and loveliness, one that will probably have more of an appeal to the classes than to the masses. Its subject matter will, no doubt, stir up considerable discussion, but whether or not such comment will prove beneficial to the box-office is a big question, for the picture's depiction of a sex-starved nun who strays from the vows of her Order, and of a Mother Superior who takes more than a passing interest in masculine Englishman, may not be looked upon with favor by many Church groups, as well as by many individuals, whose belief in the sanctity of nunhood is very strong. A foreward will explain that the Sisters depicted belong to an Anglo-Catholic order, the vows of which differ from Roman Catholic orders. Briefly, the story opens with the dispatch of five nuns, headed by Deborah Kerr, as the Mother Superior, to a remote Himalayan village, where, at the invitation of an Indian ruler, they set up a school and hospital in an ancient, unused palace, which formerly housed the ruler's concubines. The high altitude, the incessant wind, and the many alterations needed in the palace make the Sisters' task difficult, and they are compelled to seek the aid of David Farrar, the ruler's British agent, a cynical, uncouth individual, who predicts that their mission will end in failure. The Sisters encounter many more difficulties and, after several months, their morale begins to break down. Farrar 's presence causes Deborah's thoughts to stray back to a broken girlhood romance, while another Sister, Kathleen Byron, falls desperately in love with him. To add to their troubles is the presence of Sabu, a young Indian prince, whose fabulous robes, priceless jewels, and expensive perfume cause the Sisters' thoughts to stray from the vows of their Order. Their difficulties increase when a child, treated in the dispensary, dies; the villagers blame the Sisters for the tragedy and refuse to come near the Convent. In despair at the turn of events, Deborah is horrified when Kathleen renounces her vows and goes to Farrar's bungalow. Spurned by Farrar, Kathleen blames her ill-luck on his admiration for Deborah. She returns to the Convent in a mad fury and comes upon Deborah ringing the bell in the chapel tower on the edge of a 6000-foot cliff. She pounces upon Deborah and, in the ensuing struggle, falls over the parapet to her death. Utterly depressed by the mission's failure, Deborah, accompanied by the remaining Sisters, returns to her Order in Calcutta. The direction is intelligent, the acting highly competent, and some of the situations have a strong dramatic appeal, but being a tragedy of love, jealousy and frustration it can hardly be considered a popular entertainment, the type that leaves one in a satisfied mood. The Technicolor photography is beautiful, and some of the scenes are, to say the least, breathtaking. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger wrote, directed and produced the screen play from the novel by Rumer Godden. The cast includes Flora Robson, Jenny Laird, Jean Simmons, May Hallatt and others. Adult entertainment.