Harrison's Reports (1949)

66 HARRISON'S REPORTS April 23, 1949 "The Secret Garden" with Margaret O'Brien, Dean Stockwell and Herbert Marshall (MGM, no rel. date set; time, 93 min.) This is an odd psychological mixture of drama and comedy, set against the background of a forbidding English mansion at the turn of the century. There are a number of good individual scenes, and the weird atmosphere created is highly effective. Despite its many good touches, however, the picture is handi' capped by a story that is too involved and too hazy in its psychological overtones, and by too much convex sation, slowing up the action. Moreover, much of the talk is difficult to understand because of the thick Yorkshire accents employed by several of the char' acters. Being an odd picture, its reception by the pub' lie is difficult to predict. Consequently, the exhibitors would do well to watch its box-office performance in the early runs. In all probability it will go over well with children because of the amusing animal and bird scenes, as well as the tantrums of Margaret O'Brien and Dean Stockwell. The scenes of the "secret garden" have been photographed in Technicolor, enhancing the beauty of the flowers : — After the death of her parents in India, Margaret O'Brien goes to England to live with Herbert Marshall, her wealthy uncle, slightly deformed. Marshall refuses to see her, and Margaret, being a willful child, does not get along with his austere servants, who try to suppress her. She becomes friendly with Brian Roper, a neighborhood boy, with whom she invades a garden that Marshall had locked ten years previously, following the death of his wife who had bees killed accidentally by a falling branch from a tree. Investi' gating the source of sudden screams, Margaret comes upon Dean Stockwell, Marshall's morbid bedridden son, who believed he would die. Margaret scoffs at his fears and opposes his tantrums with tantrums of her own, eventually succeeding in making him behave normally. Margaret and Brian secretly restore the garden to its former beauty, and Dean comes to love it. Meanwhile George Zucco, a doctor, examines Dean. He informs Marshall that there was no reason for the child to be bedridden and blames Marshall for having subconsciously planted in the boy's mind the belief that he was a cripple. Influenced by the talk Zucco had given him, Marshall decides to sell the estate and take Dean to Italy. He finds Dean in the garden with Margaret, and the boy, forgetting that he is supposed to be crippled, walks towards him to plead that he retain the estate and garden. Moved by the sight, Marshall embraces the boy, while Margaret and Brian beam joyfully at his transformation. It was produced by Clarence Brown and directed by Fred M. Wilcox from a screen play by Robert Ardrey, based on Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel. The cast includes Gladys Cooper, Elsa Lanchester and others. Good for the entire family. "Make Believe Ballroom" with Ruth Warrick, Virginia Welles and Jerome Courtland (Columbia, no rel. date set; time, 77 rain.) A passable program comedy with music, the sort that will appeal chiefly to those who enjoy "jive" music. Others will probably find it dull, for the story is extremely thin and only mildly amusing, although it serves well enough as a means to introduce the musi' cal sequences. It should, however, attract the juveniles, for spotted throughout the proceedings in dif ferent musical numbers are such well known personalities as Al Jarvis, Frankie Laine, King Cole Trio, Toni Harper, Jack Smith, Kay Starr, The Sportsmen, Charlie Barnet, Jimmy Dorsey, Jan Garber, Pee Wee Hunt, Gene Krupa and Ray McKinley. The direction and performances are satisfactory: — Ruth Warrick, fast-talking press agent for Al Jarvis and his disc jockey radio show, is warned that she must do a better publicity job or seek employment elsewhere. While visiting a drive-in restaurant and noticing the great interest of the youthful car hops in "jive" music radio programs, Ruth conceives a publicity idea to help Jarvis: a Musical Mystery Contest, with a $5,000 prize to the person who, during the contest, can the most times correctly identify the performer of a musical number from the broadcast of a recording. Two of the car hops, Virginia Welles and Jerome Courtland, run neck-and-neck in the contest. They fall in love, and Courtland confides to her that he hoped to open a streamlined drive-in of his own if he won the prize money. On the eve of the deciding contest, with Courtland and Virginia tied for first place, Louis Jean Heydt, the sound engineer on the program, offers to reveal to Courtland the name of the mystery performer for a consideration. Courtland beats him up. In revenge, Heydt tells the newspapers that Courtland had tried to bribe him, causing him to be disqualified. But Virginia, believing in Courtland's innocence, obtains the aid of Ruth and Jarvis and cleverly tricks Heydt into confessing his guilt. Courtland is reinstated as a contestant and, in the finals, he and Virginia mutually identify the mystery performers. They share the prize money and together purchase the drive-in of Courtland's dreams. Albert Duffy wrote the story and collaborated on the screen play with Karen DeWolf, based on the radio programs of Al Jarvis and Martin Block. It was produced by Ted Richmond and directed by Joseph Santley. Suitable for the family. "Shamrock Hill" with Peggy Ryan (Eagle-Lion, May 1; time, 71 mm.) A light but pleasing comedy. It is part fantasy and part reality, with some dancing and singing. The fantasy part deals with leprechauns and elves, which exist in the imagination of the heroine, a young IrishAmerican girl, and of her young friends. To her and to them, the elves are real; only that nobody else sees them. Peggy Ryan is delightful as the heroine; she handles the part in a light and airy manner, and her songs and dances are pleasing. The different members of her family, particularly Tim Ryan, as her uncle, a frustrated singer, contribute considerable comedy. The photography is clear:— Peggy passes her time on Shamrock Hill, owned by the city, where she relates fairy stories of old Ireland to a group of children. John Litel, a wealthy industrialist, wants the property for a television station and takes Peggy to court for trespassing on city land. But his own lawyer, Rick Vallin, sympathetic towards Peggy, proves that she had not violated the law and gains a dismissal of the case. At home, Peggy discusses the case with James Burke, her father, an optimistic but unsuccessful inventor; Tim Ryan, her frustrated uncle; Mary Gordon, her grandmother, a would be artist; Lanny Simpson, her young brother; and Ray McDonald, her boy-friend. Trudy Marshall, Litel's daughter and Vallin's girl-friend, suspects that Vallin had fallen in love with Peggy; she breaks with him