Motion Picture Daily (Jul-Sep 1941)

6 Motion Picture Daily Tuesday, July 8, 194 37 New Films Now Shooting; 44 Last Week Hollywood, July 7. — The production community took a breather this week, dropping from last week's mark of 44 pictures shooting to a total of 37 before the camera. Thirteen were finished, six started, with 43 in preparation for the camera and 87 in the editing stage. M-G-M continued to head the list with eight pictures on its stages. The tally by studios : Columbia Finished: "Roaring Frontiers." In Work : "You Belong to Me," "Three Girls About Town," "You'll Never Get Rich." Goldwyn (RKO) In Work : "The Little Foxes." M-G-M Finished : "Smilin' Through," "Ringside Maisie," "Life Begins for Andy Hardy." In Work : "When Ladies Meet," "Married Bachelor," "The Chocolate Soldier," "Whistling in the Dark," "Honky Tonk," untitled Garbo picture. Started: "New York Story," "Female of the Species." Monogram Finished: "Dynamite Canyon." In Work : "Bowery Blitzkrieg." Producers Releasing Finished: "Frontier Fury." In Work : "Reg'lar Fellers." Paramount In Work : "Glamour Boy," "Flying Blind," "Reap the Wild Wind," "Bahama Passage," "Sullivan's Travels." Started: "The Remarkable Andrew." Walter Wanger (U. A.) In Work: "Sundown." RKO In Work : "Obliging Young Lady," "Weekend for Three," "Unexpected Uncle." Republic Finished : "Rags to Riches." In Work : "Ice-capades." Hal Roach (U .A.) Finished: "Thanks a Million." 20th Century-Fox Finished: "We Go Fast," "Men at Large," "Riders of the Purple Sage." In Work : "How Green Was My Valley," "Yank in the R.A.F.," "Weekend in Havana." Universal Finished : "The Americanos," "Bombay Clipper." In Work : "Helzapoppin," "Almost an Angel," "This Woman is Mine." Started: "Ride 'Em Cowboy," "Bad Lands of Dakota." Warners In Work : "One Foot in Heaven," "New Orleans Blues," "The Maltese Falcon." Started : "They died with Their Boots On." Feature Reviews "The Stars Look Down" {M-G-M -Grafton) Hollywood, July 7 THIS British film, first shown to the London press in the early part of January, 1940, and now set for distribution in this country by M-G-M, is a "critics' picture." It is a distinguished use of the screen medium and has a certain "Shakespearean" quality. But it is the type of film whose box-office appeal is limited. The players, though some give extremely fine performances, are not known on this side of the Atlantic. The picture has no happy ending, in the accepted sense. The subject is a tragedy; the treatment is stark and realistic and grim. Furthermore the hour and a half length seems excessive. The story is that of a young coal miner who resolves to better the lot of his fellow workers and prevent their exploitation. He never quite succeeds. Though he wins a scholarship, he leaves the university before getting his degree in order to marry a girl who becomes faithless. The mine disaster, about which he warned, happens and his father, brother and many others are killed. But the film ends on a note of hope for a better world for all men. Though the plot is not new, the telling is extremely effective. The producer, I. Goldsmith ; the director, Carol Reed, in addition to the chief players, all deserve credit for a fine production. The cast was headed by Michael Redgrave, Margaret Lockwood, Emlyn Williams, Nancy Price and Edward Rigby. The film was based on the novel by A. J. Cronin and was filmed with a high degree of technical excellence at St. Margaret's Studios, Twickenham, Middlesex, England. Running time, 97 minutes. "G"* M. Q., Jr. No Jury for Crescent as Trial Opens "Son of Davy Crockett" (Columbia) Hollywood, July 7 'Hp HIS is another of those surprise packages that pop up every now *■ and again in the flow of low-budget product, to confuse and confound the producers of the high-budget pictures. It is no claimant for extravagant exploitation expenditure, but it's quite a satisfying second course for those customers who don't happen to care for the main dish on the menu. Bill Elliott, who's been personifying the sons of American pioneers for some while now, is seen in this outing as the son of the hero of the Alamo. The scene of his operations is a strip of land which, due to a surveyor's error, is not a part of the United States although surrounded by them on all sides. A plebiscite is required as preliminary to admission to the Union and President Grant commissions Elliott, unofficially, to protect the residents, in their voting, against the killers in hire of an outlaw who has set himself up as king of the strip. It takes quite a piece of planning, fighting and shooting to get the job attended to, but the chore is discharged in proper fashion. All this makes a tight little story, plausible and with no loopholes, outcome of which is never too certain for purposes of suspense. Others in the cast are Iris Meredith, Dub Taylor, Kenneth MacDonald, Richard Fiske, Eddy Waller and Don Curtis. Produced by Leon Barsha and directed by Lambert Hillyer, the film is tip-top in its class. Running time, 59 minutes. "G"* Roscoe Williams "Hurry, Charlie, Hurry" (RKO) 'HpHE attempt to stretch what is basically two-reel comedy material into *■ feature length is not often successful, and this picture is an example of that type of misjudgment. It is straight comedy all the way, with Leon Errol the only name of any consequence in the cast. Compounded of the routine type of comedy situation, with more than a fair portion of straight slapstick thrown in, the story has Errol in his usual predicament through an effort to fool his wife. This time it has to do with a fishing trip, to Washington, Okla., which his wife thinks is Washington, D. C. Errol's concern is the marriage of his daughter, Mildred Coles, to the boy she loves, Kenneth Howell, over the serious objection of the girl's mother. Errol gets into and out of one tight spot after another, quite in the expected fashion. In the title frame, Errol himself appears before a signboard with the film's title and expresses his bewilderment, declaring it has no connection with the story. The audience will be no less bewildered. Howard Benedict produced and Charles E. Roberts directed. Running time, 65 minutes. "G."* Charles S. Aaronson *"G" denotes general classification. (Continued from page 1) ever, Allen A. Dobey of the Govern ment staff told the court that th> Government could present its case ii "two or three weeks, maybe 10 day. In such event, it is believed the may be terminated in a month. Eighteen lawyers representing al parties, including six from New York are present at the trial. Judge Davies refused for the present to compel three Crescent officials to furnish records subpoenaed by the Government, but denied to Columbia the privilege of withholding its records from Government attorneys until called for as testimony. Judge Davies reserved decision or the motion to quash the Governmenl subpoenas on Tony Sudekum, Crescent president; R. E. Baulch, secretary-treasurer, and Kermit C. Stengel official of two affiliated companies, tel submit data concerning inter-office ! communications and transactions cov I ering the years 1934 to 1940 inclusive. 1 The court called attention to the state1 ment by Dobey during argument that the Government could "make out our ! case with the first witness." In insisting on compliance with the subpoenas, however, Dobey said the Government is "interested in making out the strongest case possible to obtain the maximum amount of relief." Others Complied Dobey announced that the "Big 5," who were dismissed from the Crescent suit when the New York case decree 1 was entered, and two defendants, United Artists and Universal, had complied with Government subpoenas to produce records, but that Columbia had not done so, although counsel said the records had been brought to Nashville. After some argument, the court ruled that Columbia's records be maintained on file for inspection by the Government. Robert L. Wright of Government counsel said the first prosecution wit-; nesses, to be called probably tomorrow, will be from Russellville, Ky., and Jefferson City, Tenn., where Crescent had not operated before Aug. 11, 1939. Charges 'Dictation' Wright discussed Crescent affiliated companies, including Rockwood Amusements, Inc., which, he said, is wholly owned by Stengel, a son-in-law of Sudekum, and explained charts and maps dealing, among other things, with Crescent theatre acquisitions and locations of its theatres in 1934 and in 1939, when the suit was filed. "Crescent virtually dictates to the distributor who he will sell to in the1 area in which Crescent operates," Wright charged. Opening statements for the defense are to be made by Louis Frohlich, Columbia counsel ; Edward C. Raftery, of Universal counsel ; William Waller. Nashville, of Crescent counsel, and W. H. Mitchell of Florence, Ala., for Louis Rosenbaum of Muscle Shoals Theatres, Inc.