Harrison's Reports (1950)

April 22, 1950 HARRISON'S REPORTS 63 "Operation Haylift" with Bill Williams, Ann Rutherford and Tom Brown (Lippert, April 28; time, 73 min.) This picture should prove a "natural" for small towns, despite its defects. One of the defects is the fact that it takes almost onchalf hour before the main action is reached. Consequently, the action impresses one as being dull. There was a chance for preparation work in that part of the action, by planting forebodings as to the coming freeze. There should also have been shown, before the Operation Haylift was undertaken, scenes of suffering cattle as well as of people. The impact on one's emotions, then, would have been powerful. In view of the fact that the freeze a year ago this winter, as well as the Government's action in send' ing planes with hay, medical supplies and food to relieve the farmers, made the front pages of every newspaper in the country, the exhibitor who will book the picture has a chance to do effective exploitation. Bill Berke's direction is good, considering the limitations of the script. The actual shots of the Army planes' operations have been blended skillfully with the new scenes. There is considerable human interest contributed by Tommy Ivo, a fine little actor. Raymond Hatton, too, is sympathetic as the old farmer: — Bill Williams, an Ely, Nevada, rancher, Ann Rutherford, his wife, and Tommy Ivo, their ten-year-old son, welcome back Tom Brown, Bill's brother, from service with the air force. Bill wanted Tom to return to ranching, and planned to buy additional acreage for them to operate. To make sure that Tom will remain as his partner, Bill sends for Jane Nigh, Tom's girl-friend, whom Tom marries. Just before starting on his honeymoon, Tom meets Richard Travis, an Air Force buddy, and his old love for the service is re awakened. He gives up ranching to re-enlist, leaving Bill angry at being left in the lurch. A terrific blizzard engulfs the Rocky Mountain area, isolating cattle on the range away from any feed. As the cattle and sheep begin freezing, Joe Sawyer, head of the livestock association, appeals to the Government for aid. Within twenty-four hours giant C-82's (Flying Boxcars) arrive in Ely and load up with hay, which they drop in the center of the blizzard-bound herds. Among the pilots is Tom, but Bill, still antagonistic, refuses to ask for help. Bill's son, noticing his father's stubbornness, tries to go for aid himself and is injured in the attempt. Bill brings the boy back home and, now repentent, saddles a horse and goes to the center of activities for aid. His ranch poses a problem to the aviators because it is located in difficult terrain, but Tom offers to attempt a flight. Bill joins him in the effort, and together they drop the hay within a few feet of the cattle, saving them. Now reunited with Tom, Bill becomes a staunch friend of the Air Force. Joe Sawyer produced it and wrote the original screen play in collaboration with Dean Reisner. Good for the family. "Captive Girl" with Johnny Weissmuller and Buster Crabbe (Columbia, no rel. date set; time, 74 min.) Fair. It is on the same order as the last three pictures of the "Jungle Jim" series, only that this time much better care has been given to the selection of the animal stock shots, and the photography shows considerable improvement. There are several exciting situations, particularly in the closing scenes, where hundreds of monkeys and other animals shriek wildly as they help Weissmuller and his party attack and eventually exterminate the villains. Weissmuller, who is keeping his weight down, is as good as he was in the other pictures. The picture should prove a "natural" for children. Johnny Weissmuller is requested by Nelson Leigh, a jungle missionary, and Rick Vallin, young chieftain of the Village of Bonkonjis, to track down Anita Lhoest, a leopard woman, who, with a panther for a pet, had been attacking the tribe's witchmen but was leaving the villagers unmolested. She was particularly bitter against John Dehner, the chief medicine man. Leigh informs Johnny that, years previously, a married couple, archaeologists, had disappeared along with their little daughter during an expedition in search o( the Laguon ol the Dead. He expresses his suspicion that Dehner had killed the archaeologists, and that their daughter had escaped and had become the leopard woman. Searching for Anita, Johnny and Vallin come upon evidence proving conclusively that Dehner had killed her parents by throwing them into the Lagoon. Johnny and Vallin head for the Lagoon, where they discover a gang of adventurers, headed by Buster Crabbe, diving for a fortune in gold that had been thrown into the Lagoon by Dehner along with the archaeologists. They eventually catch up with Anita, saving her life when she is caught in a bog, and convince her that they are her friends. All three are waylaid and captured by Dehner and his witchmen. Johnny escapes, but Vallin and Anita are dragged to the Lagoon to be drowned. Aided by the villagers, Johnny saves the captives, and in the ensuing fight Vallin kills Dehner, while Crabbe, in league with the witchmen, dies at the bottom of the lagoon. With Vallin's village now free of fear, Johnny makes arrangements to send Anita back to civilization. It was produced by Sam Katzman and directed by William Berke from a screen play by Carroll Young, based on the newspaper feature, "Jungle Jim." Harmless for the family trade. "Sunset Boulevard" with Gloria Swanson, William Holden and Erich Von Stroheim (Paramount, August; time, 110 min.) "Sunset Boulevard" shapes up as a tragic but out-of-theordinary adult drama, revolving around an aging silent screen queen, her dreams of a comeback, and her affair with a young but penniless Hollywood screen writer. The actionminded fans, particularly in small towns, may find the picture too slow and repetitious, but others should find it fascinating because of the unusual story treatment, the Hollywood and studio backgrounds, and the behind-thescenes insight on the making of movies. The acting is very good, but outstanding is the exceedingly fine performance of Gloria Swanson, who is as glamorous as ever. As the onetime screen star who lives in luxurious egocentric seclusion, she makes the most of the histrionic opportunities of her femme fatale role. The story has several dramatic highlights, notably at the finish where Miss Swanson, hopelessly insane after having murdered her young lover, descends a staircase while the newsreel cameras grind, believing that she is once again playing a scene in a great dramatic role. Another highly dramatic sequence is where she visits Cecil B. DeMille at the Paramount studios in the mistaken belief that he wanted to star her in his next picture. DeMille, learning that one of his aides merely wanted to rent her expensive foreign car as a prop, withholds the truth from her. As an actor, Mr. DeMille is most impressive. William Holden, as the writer who becomes Miss Swanson's kept darling, and Erich Von Stroheim, as her faithful butler and former husband who caters to her illusions of grandeur, are very effective. Because many film-goers, particularly the older ones, will want to see Miss Swanson's return to the screen, the picture, which Paramount plans to back up with an extensive exploitation campaign, may turn out to be an exceptional box-office grosser. Told in one long flashback, the story has Holden, a disillusioned and broke screen writer, meeting Miss Swanson when he drives into the garage of her mansion while fleeing from two finance company men seeking to repossess his car. Miss Swanson, an egomaniac, mistakes him for the man she had called to bury her dead pet chimpanzee. When she learns that he is a writer, she shows him a script of "Salome," written by herself, and he, with his depleted finances in mind, suggests that she have a professional writer whip the story into shape. She hires him on the spot and insists that he live at her home. She pampers him and buys him expensive clothes, and before long he Decomes her lover. A meeting with Cecil B. DeMille leaves her with the mistaken notion that he will produce her story with her in the lead, and she immediately goes on a rigid diet-and-bcauty treatment schedule to prepare for her return to the screen. Holden, tiring of her idiosyncracies, slips out nights to meet Nancy Olson, a reader at the Paramount studio, with whom he falls in love. Miss Swanson, learning of their meetings, informs Nancy of his mode of living. This leads to a split between him and Nancy, and Holden, disgusted, decides to leave Miss Swanson, despite her pleas that he remain. Emotionally distraught, she shoots him dead as he leaves the house. The police arrive and find her hopelessly insane. It was produced by Charles Brackett and directed by Billy Wilder I nun a screen play written by D. M. M.irshnian, Jr., in collaboration with Messrs Wilder and Brackett. Strictly adult fare.