The Exhibitor (1964)

5174 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR June 10, 1964 MGM Gold For The Caesars Melodrama 86M. MGM (Italian-made) (Dubbed in English) (Technicolor) Estimate: Another action-packed Italianmade spectacle. Cast: Jeffrey Hunter, Mylene Demon geot, Ron Randall, Massimo Girotti, Giulio Bosetti, Ettore Manni, Georges Lycon, Furio Meniconi. Produced by Joseph Fryd; di¬ rected by Andre de Toth. Story: In a Roman colony in northern Spain in 93 A.D., gold is found in the valley of the Sil, controlled by Celts. Massimo Gi¬ rotti, Pro Consul, has among his slaves My¬ lene Demongeot, who has become his favorite, and architect Jeffrey Hunter, who is promised his freedom if he successfully mines the gold. Hunter’s enemy is Centurion Ron Randall, who considers Hunter too independent and over-bearing. Girotti becomes incensed when he learns Demongeot and Hunter have fallen in love. He breaks his truce with Celt chieftian Georges Lycon, which permitted his slaves to mine the gold. As the Celts pre¬ pare to attack, Hunter opens the sluice gates of the dam he had engineered to allow the mining, and the Celts are drowned in the rising water from the falls. Hunter and Gi¬ rotti battle to the death atop a sluice gate. X-Ray: This Italian-made Romans vs Celts spectacle unwinds like an old fashioned, ac¬ tion-packed western, with the actors, of course, in ancient costumes. It is okay so far as such things go and will do for die pro¬ gram in the action spots. This was adopted from a novel by Florence A. Steward. Ad Lines: “Slave And Master In A Duel To The Death For A Pleasure-Mad Pagan Beauty”; “A Fearless Slave Who Held A King’s Ransom In His Hands— And Rome’s Wickedest Woman In His Arms.” Honeymoon Hotel MGM (Panavision) (Metrocolor) Comedy 89M. Estimate: Names will assist tepid farce. Cast: Robert Goulet, Nancy Kwan, Robert Morse, Jill St. John, Keenan Wynn, Anne Helm, Elsa Lanchester. Produced by Pandro S. Berman; directed by Henry Levin. Story: Bachelor room-mates Robert Goulet and Robert Morse are to be split up by Morse’s marriage to Anne Helm. Goulet, a notorious wolf, is opposed to marriage violent¬ ly. When Morse and Helm battle at the altar, the wedding is called off. Rather than waste Morse’s honeymoon tickets to a tropical isle, Goulet accompanies the distraught bride¬ groom. They check in at the hotel. Unknown to them, it is for honeymooners only. This results in many complications, but Goulet soon has his romantic sights on social director Nancy Kwan. The confusion is compounded by the arrival of Goulet’s boss, Keenan Wynn, with Goulet’s old flame, vacant-minded but beautiful Jill St. John. Wynn’s wife arrives, and the three men spend considerable time shuffling St. John back and forth in an ef¬ fort to save Wynn’s reputation. Helm also shows up, having decided to give Morse another chance. All ends happily as Goulet and Kwan find true love and Morse happily takes over as the bachelor wolf. Helm is left holding the bag. X-Ray: Some extremely talented young performers are involved in this romantic farce. Robert Goulet and Robert Morse make their screen debut after fabulous success on Broad¬ way. Nancy Kwan and Jill St. John provide plenty of feminine allure, Unfortunately, the film promises a lot more fun than it delivers. Situations are trite and forced, and these talented people are at the mercy of a mediocre story that has considerable trouble getting off the ground. They all work hard, but only the undemanding will be impressed. Goulet, pri¬ marily noted for his singing, does warble a title song over the credits, but that’s all. The picture could stand his kind of music. Morse shows promise of being a delightful film clown, but he doesn’t have a great deal to work with here. Kwan brightens things up with an uninhibited dance number, and sets and surroundings are suitably plush. Play up the names and the sexy fun and hope for the best. Screenplay by R. S. Allen and Harvey Bullock. Tip on Bidding: Fair program rates. Ad Lines: “Two Bachelors Rim Wild In A Honeymoon Hotel”; “The Wildest Romantic Mixup Ever To Explode The Screen With Laughter.” PARAMOUNT Ring Of Treason Melodrama 89M. Paramount (English-made) Estimate: Well-made spy thriller. Cast: Bernard Lee, William Sylvester, Margaret Tyzack, David Kossoff, Nancy Nevinson, TTiorley Walters, Gillian Lewis, Brian Nissen, Newton Blick, Philip Latham, Howard Pays. Produced by Leslie Gilliat; directed by Robert Ronson. Story: Bernard Lee is a hard-drinking exNavy man with a weakness for women, who is attached to the British embassy in War¬ saw. His drunken mishaps bring about a transfer to a Naval base in England, dealing with secret underwater experiments. The Russians blackmail him into getting informa¬ tion for them once he is established. He makes friends with spinster Margaret Tyzack, who is in charge of the safe where important records are kept, and persuades her that it’s all right to pass on records to agent William Sylvester. He in turn passes them on to book dealer David Kossoff and his wife, who live in the suburbs and who radio the material on to Moscow. The CID stum¬ bles onto Lee accidentally because of his free spending, and start trailing him and Tyzack until they lead them to the others. Most of ring is rounded up, convicted, and sentenced to long prison terms. X-Ray: How a spy ring in England is broken makes for absorbing film fare for the most part, with the cast, locale, and production settings making the whole thing appear natural and realistic. The matter-offactness of the tale also aids in building sus¬ pense and interest. The cast is fine, and the direction is good. The screenplay is by Frank Launder and Peter Barnes, and it should be appreciated by those who go for intrigue, spying, and such, practically all of which is based on fact. It should do well as part of the show. AlD Lines: “A Spy Shocker That Shook England”; “Secrets For Sale Until The Police Step In And Crack A Spy Ring.” Robinson Crusoe On Mars Science Fiction Drama 110M. Paramount (Technicolor) (Techniscope) Estimate: Good science fiction entry. Cast: Paul Mantee, Vic Lundin, Adam West, Mona, the wooly monkey. Produced by Aubrey Schenck; directed by Byron Kaskin; execu¬ tive producer, Edwin F. Zabel. Story: A U. S. space ship circles Mars to test that planet’s gravity. Aboard in separate cabins are Adam West and Paul Mantee, along with Mona, a monkey. To avoid colliding with a meteor, they veer off course and are caught in the gravity of Mars. The two men abandon ship, with Mantee taking the monkey. Mantee is able to salvage a few items, and survival seems a matter of days with limited oxygen and supplies, and a few pieces of equipment. He and the monkey find a cave, and he notices that a yellow rock gives off oxygen, which he is able to use as a fuel as well. The monkey locates a spring of water. He also finds some pods underground which serve as food. He searches the rocky surface until he locates the capsule contain¬ ing his companion. West is dead. The weeks pass, after which he spots some activity in the distance. He sees some human-appearing prisoners mining rock in a quarry that is patrolled by mysterious space ships. One of the prisoners escapes, and the rocket ships try to destroy him with mysterious beams. Mantee saves him. They get to know each other as the ships try again and again to destroy escapee Vic Lundin. Mantee learns that periodically, the slaves are brought to Mars to mine needed minerals, and are con¬ trolled by bands of metal around their wrists. They come from a distant star, and Lundin uses orange pills to help him breathe the thin atmosphere. The ships return and de¬ stroy the cave. Their whereabouts are known until Mantee can get the wrist bands off of Lundin. They head for a distant * ice cap. Another space craft appears, but this time Mantee’s broadcasting brings an answer in English. They are on their way to being saved. X-Ray: These days, who knows how much of the story is fact and how much fiction as the U. S. stands on the verge of space conquest,, Anyhow, the film is realistically presented, and the story is interesting and well done. The attention to detail and back¬ ground enhances the production, satisfying to a great extent the topical and natural curiosity of audiences. The acting is good, and direction and special effects are fine. It is one of the best of the so-called science fiction entries, in keeping with the latest available information. A bit of extra exploita¬ tion and promotion can cause quite a stir at the boxoffice. The screenplay is by lb Mel¬ chior and John C. Higgins, based on “Robin¬ son Crusoe,” by Daniel Defoe. Ad Lines: “Climb Aboard For The First Trip To Mars And Unlimited Excitement And Adventure”; “Next Stop — Mars . . . Delve Into Its Mysteries As Spacemen Battle To Survive On The Stop In Space.” Stage To Thunder Rock Western 82M. Paramount (Techniscope) (Technicolor) Estimate: Fair western. Cast: Barry Sullivan, Marilyn Maxwell, Scott Brady, Lon Chaney, John Agar, Wanda Hendrix, Anne Seymour, Allan Jones, Ralph Taeger, Laurel Goodwin, Robert Strauss, Robert Lowery, Argentina Brunetti, Rex Bell, Jr., Suzanne Cipito, Wayne Peters, Keenan Wynn. Produced by A. C. Lyles; directed by William F. Claxton. Story: Sheriff Barry Sullivan catches up with a pair of brothers who robbed the bank in his town, kills one, and though wounded, captures the other, Ralph Taeger. What com¬ plicates this is that years ago, orphaned Sul¬ livan was raised by Taeger’s father, Keenan Wynn, who will now go after Sullivan. Taeger tries to get away, and in the resultant fight, their horses run away. They are forced to walk to a stage way station operated by dispirited Lon Chaney and his harping wife, Anne Seymour, who are about to lose their land because of the lack of a few dollars. Seymour is hopeful that when their school teacher daughter, Marilyn Maxwell, arrives, she can lend them the needed money. Sey