Home Movies (1943)

PAGE 390 HOME MOVIES FOR DECEMBER A "HIT" FOR HOME MOVIES A FIGHT TO THE DEATH REVIEWS... "ROADRUNNER BATTLES RATTLESNAKE" One of the most thrilling most exciting HOME MOVIES EVER FILMED. Marvel at the thrilling lunging, clawing and feinting battle that ends when the keen-eyed Roadrunner pierces the reptile's brain with his sharp bill . . . escaping the deadly fangs of the serpent and saving the life of his friend. also "DEMONS OF THE DEEP' See the many species of the sea, each adapted for its own protection and security. See the monstrous combat between the deadly moray eel and the multi-limbed octopus. PRICES: 16MM Sound (350 ft.) S17.50 16MM Silent (350 ft.) . 8.75 8 MM (180 ft.) 5.50 also 12 NEW 3-MINUTE MUSICAL PICTOREELS SINGING • DANCING • ORCHESTRAS Their Nightmare Delilah Flamenca You've Got Me Guessing In a Show of Our Own Doin' The Argentine Thrill From Brazil Sweaters and Sundaes Samoa — Shadrach Boys Hawaiian Dreams There I Go — Gertrude Niesen Male Order 16 MM SOUND ONLY — $6.75 Send for Free Catalogue listing and describing hundreds of other Pictoreel exclusives of musicals, sports, travel and nature series. ORDER BLANK PICTOREELS Radio City (RKO Bldg.) N. Y. Please send me the following: Name Address City State I enclose check . . or money order PICTOREELS RADIO CITY (RKO-Bldg.) New York of cAmateur film* B y S C H O E N WATCHING "Worst Aid" on the screen, one is reminded of the story of the old man who set out to market. As he journeyed down the road, he stopped to talk first to one neighbor and another, or to wander some path leading off the main road. Nightfall found the man far from home, and farther still from market which he had never reached. "Worst Aid" starts out well and suggests an interesting continuity. But midway in the reel, the producer evidently got lost and from there on it is difficult to tell what the story is all about. The picture opens with an old farmer driving his flivver along a country road. An attractive girl in a sun suit pedals by on her bicycle. The farmer turns to stare popeyed as the gal goes by. His car leaps the road and runs out of control into a field, throwing him out. Other motorists, observing the accident, stop and go to the farmer's rescue. One is a woman with a ludicrous first aid kit. She bandages the farmer's injured leg and then there is a cut to a scene showing the film's director and his assistant's calling time out for lunch! At this point the farmer gets up and hobbles away, encounters the girl with the bicycle, now picnicking with her boy friend, whom she calls to for help as the farmer appears. Boy friend chases farmer and evidently it was intended that it should appear, to the picture crew filming the comedy, that he wandered onto nearby train tracks and was run over. But he wasn't and the whole thing ends leaving the audience quite confused. Photography is fair with unsteady camera noticeable in many scenes. Composition and camera setups were not well chosen. Chief fault seems to be inadequate preparation of script — or per ir EVERY filmer of amateur movies, whether a subscriber or not, is invited to submit his films to the editors for review and helpful criticism. This free service applies to any type of picture whether it be your first movie or a pretentious photoplay effort. Aim of this service is to help you make better pictures. Reviewed films will be rated I, 2 and 3 stars. Those rating 2 or 3 stars will receive Free an animated leader indicative of its merit. Best film reviewed each month will receive a special certificate award as the Movie of the Month. All films are returned promptly by insured express together with merit leaders and special analysis report. haps failing to stick religiously to the script during production. "Worst Aid" was produced by Robert Ellison of the Petaluma (Calif.) Cinema Club. Filmed in 8mm. Kodachrome, the picture is 125 feet in length and was awarded a 2-Star Home Movies merit leader. Scenes In Yellowstone Park" suffers from many of the familiar mistakes of the beginning amateur: unsteady camera, too much panning; and unstudied editing. As the title indicates, the film, which runs 300 feet in 8mm. Kodachrome, consists of a series of scenic shots made in Yellowstone National Park, ostensibly on one of the filmer's vacation trips. Several times in the picture there are shots of bears ; also of persons fishing. Regardless of whether these scenes were shot at different locations or on different days, good cinematic technique demands that they be edited together in one sequence. In one fishing sequence, the cart is before the horse. The filmer shows a medium close shot of a trout being hauled in. After this are miscellaneous shots of the angler casting his line, etc. Properly cut, the sequence should begin with a medium long shot of the angler casting; then a closer shot of the angler, showing his expression as he gets a strike ; and then the closeup of the fish being landed. Many amateurs succeed in obtaining a wealth of interesting but unrelated shots when making movies during travels or on vacations. But a little imagination, plus a few post-filmed shots, should enable them to edit such footage into fairly plausible and interesting continuities. It isn't necessary, nor is it desirable that all scenes follow the • Continued on Page 42)