Modern Screen (Dec 1949 - Nov 1950)

Beyond the Forest: Be+te Davis, married to small-town doctor Joseph Cotten, hankers after gay living, and takes up with a rich city man. to have a baby, when rich lover reappears. "It's you I really want," he mutters. "Fly with me — " Now there's the question of the baby. In order to keep David from finding out, Bette coolly murders a man, visits an abortionist, and rolls herself off a cliff. She doesn't die on any of these accounts, but justice catches up with her, never you fear. The best performance of the picture is given by Dona Drake, as an Indian servant in loseph and Bette's house. She's sensational. Bette seemed a trifle hammy — like one of those imitations of Bette, in fact — and David Brian and Joseph Cotten appeared to be embarrassed by the proceedings. Not without reason. THE RECKLESS MOMENT Cast: James Mason. Joan Bennett, Geraldine Brooks. Henry O'Neill. Columbia Joan Bennett's husband is in Germany, building a bridge. Joan Bennett's daughter ( Geraldine Brooks) is a problem. She loves an unsavory gambler (Shepperd Strudwick). With no husband to take care of such nasty matters, Joan herself goes to see the unsavory gambler. He offers to stay away from daughter— for a sum of money. He's so pleased with this idea he makes the mistake of repeating it to daughter, later that night, when he meets her by the boat house. in her back yard. Daughter's shocked, offended, furious. She whops gambler over the head with her flashlight, and goes on home. Little does she dream he's going to walk out, fall off the dock, and decease himself by running a motOTboat anchor through his throat. Poor Joan finds the body in the morning, is afraid daughter killed the man, takes the corpse out in the boat and dumps it across the bay. When the police find the body, they call it murder. Now James Mason shows up. The dead man had borrowed some money from Mason and his racketeer partner, Nagle, on a group of letters written to him by Joan's daughter. Mason and Nagle want their g money. Joccn says it's blackmail, Mason says The Reckless Moment: James Mason, a blackmailer gone soft, has just killed his partner to protect their intended victim, Joan Bennett. he knows. But she doesn't want her child mixed up in a murder, does she? And the police might like to get those letters. While Joan's trying to raise the money, Mason's falling in love with her. In the end, there's a big blow-up between him and Nagle, he kills Nagle, and is himself fatally injured while disposing of Nagle's body. He manages to get daughter's letters back for Joan, before he dies, and also to tell police he killed the anchor-in-the-neck man, thus gallantly clearing up the matter. Mason's very appealing as the black sheep with the gentle manners and the soft heart. He raises the picture to a level it couldn't possibly have attiiied without him. CHAIN LIGHTNING Cast: Humphrey Bogart. Eleanor Parker, Raymond Massey. Richard Whorf. Warners During the war, Humphrey Bogart's a bomber pilot, Richard Whorf is a plane designer, Eleanor Parker's a Red Cross girl. Bogart and Parker fall in love, but nothing comes of it. Years later (postwar) they all meet again, at a party given by Raymond Massey, a flashy operator who's planning to make a pile of money by manufacturing a new jet plane for the Air Forces. Eleanor's currently working as Massey's secretary, Whorf is working as Massey's right arm. Naturally Bogart ends up working as Massey's test pilot. He's glad to have the job, he's been bumming around since the war without finding his proper niche; he's glad to see Eleanor, he's always loved her, he was just never sure he was the right type for a nice kid to get mixed up with. Bogart tests the new jet successfully, but Whorf begs him to wait another 60 days before telling Massey the plane's ready to fly. Whorf's perfecting a safety device — he calls it a "pod" — which ejects the pilot from the cockpit and brings him down with automatically released parachutes. Bogart isn't one to worry about safety, though, and when Massey offers him $25,000 to make an over-the-Pole flight, Nome to Washington, he accepts. Massey figures the publicity will bring Navy orders for the jet. Whorf and Eleanor disapprove heartily; they don't think it's ethical to sell planes before the life-saving pod is ready. Bogart makes the flight anyhow, and makes it successfully, but Whorf, who's off somewhere testing the pod, is killed. Eleanor's mad at Bogart now. Thinks he let Whorf down. So against everybody's wishes, advice and orders, Bogart himself tests the pod, vindicates old Whorf (the pod works dandy) and gets the girl. THE BIG WHEEL Cast: Mickey Rooney. Thomas Mitchell. Michaef O'Shea.' Mary Hatcher, Spring Byington United Artists A story about that grisly sport, auto racing. Somebody gets burned to death every 20 minutes, but it's all yours if you can take it. Mickey Rooney's father is the first victim, and him we don't see killed, we just hear about it. Father was known as "Cannonball," and he was quite a famous racer. Mickey's determined to go and do likewise, so Mom can come out of the kitchen. Mom (Spring Byington) is understandably hysterical about his choice of professions; auto racing took her husband, she has no illusions about its sparing her son. Old beau Thomas Mitchell, ex-racer, and present owner of racing cars, tries to calm her nerves and explain things. Racers have to race, is the gist of the explanation. Spring marries Mitchell (now she won't be alone in the world, after Mickey gets his ) and Mickey races his fat little head off until the day he's blackballed. He's been acting terrible, anyhow — drinking, kissing women, staying out late — and then he tries to help a pal whose car is out of commission, he only succeeds in burning his pal to death, and nobody believes it's an accident. They think Mickey was trying to win the r~ce by "driving over" the other man, and they call him "Killer." The only person who believes in him is young Mary Hatcher. Her faith is vindicated, so don't you worry. The dialogue in The Big Wheel is tough, fresh, and curiously realistic. The acting is also high-level, especially Spring Byington 's, Richard Lane's (he's the track owner) and Michael O'Shea's (he's a racer). There's humor, too. Mary steals a super-charger out of father Richard Lane's car. O'Shea looks at Lane, and shakes his head. "I warned ya not to have them kind of children," he says dourly. PHOTO CREDITS Below are page by page credits for photographs appearing in this issue. 6 T. Lt. Bob Beerman. T. Rt. Bert Parry. Bor. Lt. Warner Bros., Bot. Rt. 20th Century-Fox — 7 Lt. Stork Club. Rt. Acme — 8 T. Wide World, Bot. 20th Centurv-Fox — 10 20th Century-Fox — 12 Bob Beerman — 14 Acme — 20 Acme — 22 Bob Beerman — 24 Lt. MGM. Rt. Paramount — 27 M. S. Staff — 28 T. Wide World. Bof. Bob Beerman— 29 Bob Beerman — 30 MGM — 31 T. M. S. Staff, Bot. Bob Beerman — 32 T. M. S. Staff. Bor. Bart Parry — 33 T. & Bor. Lt. Bert Parry, T. & Bot. Rt. Bob Beerman — 34-36 Bob Beerman — 37 Bob Beerman — 38-40 Bert Parry — 41 M. S. Staff — 42. 43 Bert Parrv — 46. 47 Nelson Morris — 48 MGM — 49 Bert Parrv — 50 T. Bob Beerman, Bot. Bert Parrv — 51 Bert Six — 52, 53 Bob Bserman — 54 T. Wide World. Bot. Bob Beerman— 55 Bob Beerman. Abbreviations: Bot.. Bottom: Cen.. Center: Lt., Left: Rt.. Ripht: T.. Top.