Inside facts of stage and screen (June 28, 1930)

PAGE FOUR 1 INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 1930 Picture "Reviews ~ Previews ~ Shorts “SO THIS IS LONDON” FOX PICTURE (Reviewed at Carthay Circle) Once again Will Rogers and his (screen) wife, Irene Rich, voy- age across the big pond for pur- poses of international complica- tions and considerable laughter. Their vehicle is George M. Cohan’s stage hit, “So This Is London.” .Cohan’s breezy tale of the Amer- ican and English families, who eventually recognize each other as pretty good fellows, after start- ing off bitterly prejudiced, is an ideal setting for Rogers’ particular type of drawling humor. The screen treatment has altered the play’s slightly but the basis of the Cohan play is there and the combination of the playwright’s bright yarn with Rogers’ individual quips results in a film that is packed with laughs from start to finish. Rogers is supported by an ex- cellent cast and the film has_ been well mounted atmospherically. There are few potential film-goers who won’t derive considerable en- tertainment .from this film, which following “They Hod to See Paris,’ definitely sets Rogers as a first rank comedian of the talkers. EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: You can’t go wrong on booking this film, a neatly put together laugh-provoker. Following on the heels of Rogers’ first talker, itself a hit, this should be a money- getter for exhibs. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: Here is an example of how. to let a personality do his stuff while still building other phases of the film for swift-moving story interest, and interesting incidental business. Cohan’s play was ideal material for the talkers and it has been excellently transplanted to the screen. Screen play was done by Arthur Goodrich with adaptation and dialogue by Owen Davis, Sr., and despite the effect of impromptu work on Rogers’ part has appar- ently been well planned, particu- larly for timing on . laughs. John Blystone’s direction is in the same spirit with the final result an all around good job. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEWPOINT: Rogers’ drew fine support. Irene Rich was charm- ing as his wife. Frank Albertson handled the role of their son in a likeable manner, with Maureen O’Sullivan turning in nice work as the English girl. • Lumsden Hare and Mary Forbes played the English couple for full effect and minor supporting roles were all well handled by Bramwell Fletcher, Dorothy Christie, Martha Lee Sparks and Ellen Woodston. GIBBONS. ALIAS FRENCH GERTIE’ RADIO PICTURE (Reviewed at RKO Theatre) She was a piquant little maid, she was, with the cutest little Fr-r-ench accent, and she wormed her way into the confidence of her employers and then walked off with their jewels. Smooth as satin, she was, and had never been nipped, but one night her safe-rob- bing was interrupted by the ad- vent of a high-class burglar, whose only tools were his sensitive fingers. She got the drop on him and he was taken to stir, but not before they had fallen in love with each other. When he got out they mar- ried, they did, and she tried to make him go straight. He tried, but his heart wasn’t in it, it wasn’t, and when his venture into business met disaster at the hands of a con man, he decided to soothe his itch- ing fingers on a safe combination again. She framed him with a friendly dick, who was tired of sending people to jail, and between them they taught him a lesson, they did—they sure did, and no error. Crime don’t pay. There was a heavy opener crowd to see this, no doubt responding to the publicity attendant on the wed- ding of the two principals, Bebe Daniels and Ben Lyon, a few days previously. It turned out to be an interesting yarn, well told, and the customers liked it, even though Bebe failed to bust out into a theme song in any place. EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: A romantic appeal in this, the first appearance together of this now married couple while they were still sweethearts. Feminine hearts can be heard fluttering when he tells her he loves her, as they fig- ure that he was actually telling the truth, even though getting paid for it. It is highly moral and a good program booking. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: George Archainbaud did a nice job of directing, the casting director was on to his job, so was the cameraman and recording engineer. Wallace Smith’s adaptation of Bay- ard Veiller’s stage play, “The Chat- terbox,” was o. k., even though the closing scenes lacked a little con- viction. The production is one that Radio does not need to hide under a bushel. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEWPOINT: Bebe certainly handles a French dialect like no- body’s business, and gets away with the whole job nicely. Ben Lyon has a good mike voice, and his personality improves on ac- quaintance. Robert Emmett O’Con- nor is so often a picture dick that we take him as a matter of course. John Ince and Daisy Elmore were perfect castings as the con couple. Betty Pierce was o. k. as a broken- down crookess, but the makeup on that curled lip was a little too obvious. YEATES. ‘IN OLD MADRID’ M-G-M PICTURE (Reviewed at Loew’s State) “In Old Madrid” is a suitable romantic vehicle for Ramon No- varro, affording the star oppor- tunity to do some singing with almost reasonable provocation, some smooth situation comedy and a bit of heroics, all worked into a yarn that combines several very familiar story ideas with a Span- ish night club thrown in for good measure. Novarro plays a wild youngster of a wealthy family, who, after a particularly rowdy episode in the night club, is banished to a pro- vincial college to round out his education near the home of a very old friend of dad’s. Ramon meets the charming daughter, who, however, doesnt approve of him (publicly). The usual complications, solutions, hero - worshiping brother of the girl, jealous suitor, arrival of the night-club lady, of dad, more hu- morous complications, then seri- ous ones, a duel between Ramon and the brother, with Ramon he- roically firing in the air, and a happy ending, have been worked out in the script into a diverting film of good program rating with no pretense at the “higher art.” EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: Novarro in a form-fitting role in an amusing romantic affair of no particular weight but ideal for warm weather. Nicely mounted and produced. A good booking but nothing remarkable. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: An excellent example of good craftsmanship along formula lines. Built for program release and fill- ing the niche nicely. Looks and is expensive but is pretty standard- ized as to treatment and produc- tion. Smoothly directed by Rob- ert Z. Leonard. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEW- POINT : Lottice Howell, screen newcomer, reveals a vivid person- ality and a nice, recording voice as the night club vamp. Dorothy Jordan characterized the petulant, undecided heroine most effectively and other out- standing performances were re- corded by Beryl Mercer, Claude King and William V. Mong. SHOW GIRL IN HOLLY- WOOD’ FIRST NATIONAL PICTURE (Reviewed at W. B. Hollywood) “Show Girl in Hollywood” is one of the most entertaining of the “see Hollywood from the in- side” films. It’s packed with in- teresting backgrounds from Bab- ylon-by-the-Pacific woven around a story that has more substance than most of this type. Of course, Dixie Dugan, played by Alice White, wins her way to stardom and all the troubles be- tween her and her boy friend, Jack Mulhall, are finally straight- ened out right at a typical Holly- wood opening night for Dixie’s picture. Considerable liberty has been taken with J. P. McEvoys maga- zine story to line it up with movie standards and also eliminates cer- tain realistic elements including the changing of the fading star’s suicide and the substitution of an entirely new ending. But as it stands, it’s a snappy programmer, with a flash techni- color finale depicting the Holly- wood premiere and some lavish production work on the “picture within a picture” for the windup. The wow gag of the film is where the “only guy on the lot who is sure of his job” goes about scraping names from doors coinci- dent with the arrival of a brief note fro mthe studio boss inform- ing the ex’d one that he is “just a memory so far as this company is concerned.’ This gag, used used twice in the picture, has been sweetly put over from the first scratching of the razor blade to the fadeout of the walking yes- men. Characters throughout have been handled with less hoke and sweet- sticky formula than on other “in- side Hollywood” films. EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: Alice White may have slipped some, but you can jump on this as a nice summer bet with action, laughs and the chance to cash in on interest in talker technique as well as the Dixie Dugan vogue. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: This one has an interesting and logical plot with sufficient 'mild satire to make it amusing and was an excellent vehicle for Miss White. She does better than in re- cent efforts as a Broadway show girl who falls into pictures and the ngoes temperamental only to learn her lesson from the scratch- ing razor blade and a near-trag- edy. ; Much smarter treatment of the latter item, the almost suicide of the passe film star, would have been to have boy-friend Mulhall and the ex-star, played by Blanche Sweet, frame the gag on the girl to bring her to earth. It would have added a fillip of originality to an elementally hoke situation. The boys also missed several great chances for kidding the film crit- ics in laying out this script. Mer- vyn LeRoy directed and did a good businesslike job of it. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEW- POINT : Miss White’s perform- ance was satisfactory. Jack Mul- hall did well with the role of Dix- ie’s boy friend, but the acting hon- ors were grabbed by John Mil- jan as an egotistical director and Ford Sterling as the studio boss. Blanche Sweet played the passe star with heavy emphasis on the sorrow angle. Balance of the cast was limited to bits. GIBBONS. THE BORDER LEGION’ PARAMOUNT PICTURE (Reviewered Paramount Theatre) A melodramatic Zane Grey yarn, filmed with the expected beautiful backgrounds of the outdoor talk- ers, plenty of nice exterior se- quences, and a sufficient modicum of story interest and suspense. There have been a number of changes made in the Grey story for film purposes, but the main body is there, the plot and motivation be- ing carried out on typically Zane Grey lines. The picture lacks the sweeping vitality of “The Virginian,” but has been handled so as to provide a satisfactory entertainment for sum- mer bookings. EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: With the current trend for outdoor and western films, this should prove worth booking. It has all the fa- miliar exploitation points of such films, with Jack Holt, Richard Ar- len and Eugene Pallette heading a competent cast. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: The adaptors, Percy Heath and Edward Paramore, Jr., have treated Grey’s story to a compactly out- lined script that builds to its cli- max satisfactorily. Otto Brower has directed competently and the photography by Mack Stengler brought out some very effective ex- terior sequences. The film has sev- eral instances of notably effective treatment and cutting, particularly in handling the raid of the Border Legion on the western town. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEWPOINT: Jack Holt domi- nates this film by making his char- acterization of the bandit leader more human than theatrical. Rich- ard Arlen is again a likable lead- ing man, avoiding heroics in his playing of the lad who was forced in with the “legion.” Fay Wray appeared more sure of her role than in previous films, and played a stock type of character very nicely. Gene Pallette played down the comedy in this film, and though getting a number of laughs, turned in a good bit of character work. Sid Saylor contributed to the comedy relief. Stanley Fields was effective as the menace and E. H. Calvert and Ethan Allen handled minor charac- ter parts satisfactorily. Outstanding element in playing of this western was the handling of all characterizations as real people rather than as the hokey, overly- theatrical conceptions of cowpunch- ers, miners and bandits. With this style producers have the oppor- tunity to do many of the melo- dramas over again, calculated for the entertainment of maturer au- diences. GIBBONS. “BACK PAY” FIRST NATIONAL PICTURE (Reviewed at WB. Downtown) “Back Pay” is a screen play with little pay-off either for audi- ence or exhibs. It should have been tossed in the wastebasket be- fore it went into production, there- by effecting a savings in time and money. Like nearly all weak films it has the germ of a good idea but one mores uitable for novelistic treat- ment. A story by Fannie Hurst, it is an episodic tale, with many time lapses, yet a theme that de- mands skillful handling of deli- cate nuances of feeling. Jumping about as the script does, the novel- ist’s idea emerges as a heavy- handed and uncompelling tale. It is also handicapped that the star, Corinne Griffith, plays a dis- tinctly unsympathetic part, and does not interpret it very satis- factorily. EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: Scarcely a satisfactory booking, lacking in any appeal to young- sters and only to be appreciated by those with enough maturity and experience to fill in from their own imagination the emotional subtleties that the production fails to get over. PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: It was poor policy to put Corinne Griffith in this type of story. It may have read well but it doesn’t movie well. Direction by William A. Seiter seemed uncertain, indi- cating that this director is at his best dealing with lighter comedy themes. CASTING DIRECTORS’ VIEWPOINT: Corinne Griffith and Grant Withers gave wooden- ish performances and the superior acting of the film was done in minor roles. Montague Love, play- ing a profiteering “sugar-daddy,” handled the part with more feel- ing and naturalness. Balance of the cast included Hallam Cooley, Vivian Oakland, William Bailey, Virginia Sale, Dee Loretta, James Marcus, Louise Carver and Louise Bevers. GIBBONS.