Harrison's Reports (1949)

February 5, 1949 HARRISON'S REPORTS 23 "I Shot Jesse James" with Preston Foster, Barbara Britton and John Ireland (Screen Guild, Feb. 24; time, 81 min.) Very Good! It is an outlaw melodrama, one that holds the spectator in tense suspense throughout, due to the excellent direction and acting. There is considerable action in the beginning, where the Jesse James gang is shown holding up a bank and then trying to escape. But after that the spectator's interest is held tense, not so much by the shooting, but by the suspensive plot developments. John Ireland, as the man who shot Jesse James, does a fine piece of acting, and Preston Foster, as his rival for Barbara Britton's love, is very good. Miss Britton is a nice-looking actress and handles her role with skill. The story is logical and the ending is in accordance with the spectator's wishes. The catchy title should draw the picture-patrons who enjoy fast action. The photography is a bit dark, but not to the point of being disturbing: — Bob Ford (John Ireland), a member of Jesse James band of outlaws, is wounded during an unsuccessful bank holdup and is taken to St. Joseph, Mo., where James (Reed Hadley) lived under an assumed name with his wife and three children. When Bob learns that Cynthia Waters (Barbara Britton), his childhood sweetheart, now an actress, was appear' ing in a show in town, he goes to see her, arriving just as John Kelley (Preston Foster) a mining prospector and one of her admirers, leaves her dressing room. Cynthia promises to marry Bob provided he gives up his outlaw career. When the governor of Missouri offers amnesty and a $10,000 reward to any outlaw betraying James, Bob, seeing an opportunity to marry Cynthia and lead a law-abiding life, shoots James in the back. Bob gets the amnesty, but the reward is cut to $500. Cynthia expresses horror at his act despite his explanation that he had done it for her. Needing money, Bob joins Barbara's show with an act showing how he killed James, but the act flops. Believing that Kelley planned to take Cynthia away from him, Bob vows to shoot him. Cynthia, horrified, persuades Kelley to leave town. When a silver strike is reported in Colorado, Bob goes there and promises Cynthia that he will send for her. He befriends an aged sourdough who makes him a partner to his claim. They strike it rich, and Bob sends for Cynthia. Meanwhile Kelley, who, too, had come to Colorado, is made sheriff of the town. When Cynthia arrives, Kelley proposes to her and gives her courage to tell Bob that she no longer loved him. Bob, infuriated, sets out to kill Kelley. They meet face to face, and Kelley, as sheriff, orders him to drop his gun. Bob starts shooting. Kelley, returning the fire, kills him. Carl K. Hittleman produced it for Robert L. Lippert, and Samuel Fuller directed it from his own screen play, suggested by an article in American Weekly by Homer Croy. It is an adult picture, but children and women should enjoy it. "The Woman in the Hall" with Ursula Jeans and Jean Simmons (Eagle-Lion, no rel. date set; time, 93 min.) This British-made melodrama can boast of good performances and lavish values, but these are wasted on a story that is distasteful and not particularly interesting. Revolving around an unprincipled woman who supports herself and her daughters by mulcting soft-hearted philanthropists with fake tales of hardship, the story not only lacks appeal but none of the characters win any sympathy. Two romances have been worked into the plot but neither one means much to the story. Those who will see it will find the abrupt ending disappointing, for it leaves the fate of the characters to the spectator's imagination : — Faced with the problem of bringing up two small daughters on a small income, Ursula Jeans decides on a career of "begging." She visits the homes of wealthy society people, accompanied by one of the daughters, and mulcts them with pathetic talcs of want. When the girls (Jean Simmons and Jill Raymond) grow up, Jill's reaction to her early life is a deep-rooted sense of honesty, but Jean, the younger sister, is left with a warped notion of honesty that causes her to steal money in order to give to her friends presents they could not afford, at no time using the the stolen money for herself. Meanwhile their mother continues her "begging" career and, through deception, captivates Cecil Parker, a baronet, who proposes marriage to her. Jean is arrested for forging a check, and her mother, fearful lest it affect her approaching marriage, does not inform Parker of Jean's existence and refuses to go to her aid. By the time Jean is brought to trial, her mother marries Parker. But she soon becomes bored with society life, and Parker, learning of Jean and recognizing his wife's true character, turns her out of the house. He feels pity for Jean, however, and determines to help her. At the trial, Jean's mother makes an unexpected appearance and attempts to extricate the girl from her difficulties, while at the same time concealing her own guilt. But Parker frustrates her attempt to use Jean for her own ends, and persuades the court to commit Jean to his care. Ursula, realizing the game is up, takes the witness stand to accept responsibility for Jean's mistakes. It is a J. Arthur Rank presentation, produced by Ian Dalrymple and directed by Jack Lee from a screen play by Mr. Dalrymple, G. B. Stern and Mr. Lee, based on Mr. Stern's novel. Adult fare. "Unknown Island" with Virginia Grey, Philip Reed and Barton MacLane (Film Classics, October; time, 75 min.) The value of "Unknown Island" lies, not so much in what it shows, but in what it promises. It is an exploitation picture and, even though it is not sensational, most people will be amused by it. A few adults may be bored. Children, however, should enjoy it immensely, even though they may find it frightening on occasion, for to them the fights between the prehistoric monsters will be terrifying. The picture is a sort of "The Lost World," produced by First National in the silent days, with this difference — "Unknown Island" has been produced in natural colors, by the Cinecolor process. The color is pretty good. The story is, of course, fantastic — the product of the imagination, with some sex twists, but if the picture is exploited well it should do good business at the box-office. Considering the subject matter, the direction and acting are not bad : — Blown off his course while flying over the Pacific for the Navy, Philip Reed sees a hidden island inhabited by prehistoric monsters. After the war, he persuades Virginia Grey, his wealthy sweetheart, to finance an expedition to the island so that he might take photographs and bring them both fame. They go to Singapore and persuade Barton MacLane to charter his tramp steamer to them. MacLane engages Dick Wessell and Dan White as his aides, and shanghais Richard Denning, a drunken derelict, who claimed to have once been shipwrecked on the island. They manage to reach the island and, shortly after they land, one of the native crew members is torn apart by a giant tyrannosaurus, standing eighteen feet high. Other harrowing encounters with different prehistoric monsters result in the death of a second crew member, and each time Reed concerns himself only with picture-taking while the others attempt rescues. Reed's preoccupation with his camera causes Virginia to think less of him and more of Denning; both men quarrel over her. Frightened by their encounters with dinosaurs, a giant sloth, and a herd of tyrannosaurus, the native crew mutinies, killing Wessell. The crew members head back for the ship but drown when their row boat crashes on the rocks. Denning starts to build a raft. MacLane, delirious with jungle fever, follows Virginia, whom he coveted, when she wanders away from the camp, but Denning rescues her before MacLane can harm her. MacLane tries to follow them, but he is attacked by a monster and killed. The remaining members of the party almost lose their lives when confronted suddenly by a giant sloth, but they manage to escape to the ship when a tyrannosaurus engages the sloth in mortal combat. Once aboard, Virginia breaks her engagement to Reed and declares her love for Denning as they sail for Singapore. It was produced by Albert J. Cohen and directed by Jack Bcrnhard from a screen play by Robert T. Shannon and Jack Harvey, based on Mr. Shannon's story. Suitable for the family trade.