Harrison's Reports (1950)

2 "Montana" with Errol Flynn, Alexis Smith and S. Z. Sakall (Warner Bros., no rel. date set; time, 76 min.) A fair Western melodrama. There is nothing extraordinary about it, but the Technicolor photog' raphy and the marquee value of the stars1 names are undeniable box-office assets. The story, which is another variation of the sheepherders-versus-cattlemen theme, offers little that is novel and is rather slow in spots because of the romantic by-play, but on the whole it offers enough action and excitement to satisfy the not-too-critical Western addicts. Errol Flynn, as the courageous sheepman who bucks the cattle ranchers, and Alexis Smith, as the headstrong heroine who opposes him but eventually falls for his charms, measure up to the demands of their stock characterizations. S. Z. Sakall supplies a fair quota of comedy as an itinerant peddler. The action takes place in 1879: — Flynn, a sheepman seeking new pasturage for his flocks, comes to Montana in defiance of the cattle barons, who were determined to keep the territory free from sheep. To scare him off, the cattlemen raid his camp and shoot up the sheep. Flynn, masquerading as a partner of Sakall, goes into town to learn what he can about the cattlemen. He discovers that they were headed by Alexis Smith, owner of a large ranch, and by Douglas Kennedy, her fiance, who, too, was a large ranch owner. Flynn cultivates Alexis' friendship, wins her love, and eventually persuades her to lease some of her own land to him for "farming,'" keeping the fact that he was a sheepman secret. But Alexis discovers his identity before he can move his flocks, and lashes him across the face with her whip for deceiving her. Unable to move the sheep onto the land he had leased from Alexis, Flynn enlists the help of the territory's small ranchers by proving to them that the big cattlemen planned to crowd them out. A disastrous clash is set off when Kennedy and his men start a cattle stampede to block the oncoming sheep. Kennedy, thrown from his saddle, is trampled to death by the cattle. Forced to move the sheep through town, Flynn finds his way blocked by Alexis, who threatens to shoot him down unless he turns back. She fires point blank at him when he refuses. The wound, however, proves superficial, and they wind up in each other's arms. It was produced by William Jacobs and directed by Ray Enright from a screen play by James R. Webb, Borden Chase and Charles O'Neal, based on a story by Ernest Haycox. Suitable for the family. "The Great Rupert" with Jimmy Durante, Terry Moore and Tom Drake (Eagte'Lion, no rel. date set; time, 86 min.) Very good family entertainment. The story, which has a squirrel showering money down upon an impoverished vaudevillian family headed by Jimmy Durante, is completely implausible, but clever handling has turned it into a charming comedy, rich in human interest and sentiment, and filled with many hilarious situations. It should receive considerable word-ofmouth advertising. Durante makes the most of the mirth-provoking gags and situations, giving the proceedings a decided lift by his inimitable brand of humor. The youngsters in particular should get a great kick out of the squirrel, a puppet, which George Pal, the producer, has ingeniously animated. Worked into the story is a pleasant romance between Terry Moore and Tom Drake. Considerable laughter is provoked by Frank Orth, as Durante's bank-hating landlord : — Unable to pay his rent, Jimmy Conlin, owner of Rupert, a trained squirrel, is evicted from his dingy quarters, a converted garage adjoining the home of Frank Orth, his stingy landlord. Without funds to even feed Rupert, Conlin sets the squirrel free in the park, but the animal makes its way back to the converted garage, where it holes up in the walls between Orth's home and the garage. Shortly thereafter the quarters are rented by Jimmy Durante, an unemployed acrobat who did an act with Queenie Smith, his wife, and Terry Moore, their daughter. Terry falls in love with Tom Drake, Orth's son. In the course of events, Orth receives a $1,500 dividend check from a gold mine he had invested in years previously, and is informed that a similar amount would be sent to him each week. Orth, having no faith in banks, drills a hole in a baseboard in his home and hides the money in the walls, adjoining the squirrel's nest. The squirrel tosses the money out into Durante's quarters, just as his wife prays for financial assistance. The process is repeated every time Orth gets another check, and Durante, unaware of the squirrel's existence, believes that his wife's prayers are being answered. Flush with money and being naturally bighearted, Durante helps finance small business people and before long the whole community thrives. Complications develop when Federal tax agents and the FBI visit Durante to investigate the source of his wealth. He tells them the truth, but he is unable to prove it because, by this time, Orth's dividends had been stopped. But when the squirrel takes a lighted cigarette into his hole and starts a fire, the truth comes out when Orth starts wailing about his money going up in flames. Fortunately, the investments made by Durante prove profitable, enabling him to rebuild the house and to return the money to Orth. The screen play was written by Laszlo Vadnay, based on a story by Ted Allen. Irving Pichel directed it. Fine for the entire family. "The Blonde Bandit" with Gerald Mohr, Dorothy Patrick and Robert Rockwell (Republic, Dec. 22; time, 60 min.) A fairly good program melodrama, with enough action, intrigue and excitement to fulfill the requirements of a supporting feature. The story has spots of implausibility, but on the whole it holds one's interest throughout because of the dilemma faced by the heroine who, framed for a robbery, turns stool pigeon against a gambling racketeer to win leniency from the district attorney, only to fall in love with the man she had agreed to spy on. The closing scenes, where the heroine foils the attempt of two crooked detectives to kill the racketeer, are exciting. Although the players mean little at the box-office, their individual performances are competent: — Stranded without funds in a big city after narrowly escaping marriage to a bigamist, Dorothy Patrick sells her diamond ring to Alex Frazer, a jeweler. Frazer, seeking to collect insurance money, robs his own store and frames Dorothy for the crime. Gerald Mohr, head of a gambling syndicate, to which Frazer owed a considerable sum, suspects that the jeweler had framed the girl and puts up a bond for her release. Robert Rockwell, the district attorney, who had been trying unsuccessfully to trap Mohr, promises Dorothy leniency when her case comes up if she would cultivate Mohr's friendship and obtain evidence needed to prosecute him. Eager to get out