Motion Picture Herald (Nov-Dec 1944)

I latter, a doctor, is emotionally swept away by his patient's lovely fragility although he knows some things, but not all, of her cruelties and ascribes them to her illness. Relations between the artist and his model are friendly and professional, nothing niore, until the neurotic who is, or thinks she is, in love with the artist begins to undermine the happy establishment. She uses slow, but deadly, drippings of poisoned words. Her method has her work on the child, who spies on her father and interprets perfectly innocent by-play as something sinister, if beyond her childish comprehension. The poison is filtered through servants, who eventually quit, then to the wife and the aunt. The model, crushed, leaves and the wife finally goes as well. Through one device and another and always working tlirough lies, her exaggerated illness and her persecution complex, Anne Baxter, as Evelyn Heath, eventually clears the household. At that point, when need for pretense is over, she declares her love and, in what she thinks is her moment of triumph, overplays her hand. Ralph Bellamy sees the game for what it is worth. His senses return in a rush, and reunion with Ruth Warrick, his wife, follows quickly. Thwarted, Miss Baxter then seeks a second choice — the brother she had eliminated from the scene as part of her campaign of conquest. Her end, clearly indicated as suicide in the sea, comes about through her terrifying phobia against birds. Aline MacMahon, the aunt, plays on it and, morally, becomes the cause of girl's death. In a difficult and exacting role. Miss Baxter easily outdistances any role she has heretofore attempted. But performances of all principals are of a high order — Bellamy as the husband, Miss Warrick as wife. Miss MacMahon, Marie McDonald as Miriam, the model; Jerome Cowan as Hackett; Percy Kilbride as ttie butler ; Margaret Hamilton as the maid ; Connie Laird as the child ; Scott McKay as the doctor. Direction by John Brahm is deft, firm and most effective. The impact is heightened by the background music of Werner Janssen and his symphony orchestra. One interesting thing is the luihurried procession of events among charming people in a charming country house on the Maine coast and how much good comedy proves the natural corollary of drama with power. Lighter moments are always pleasant, and never dragged in. Here, because they never are, they become a logical part of whole. Previewed at the Village theatre, Westwood, Calif. Reviewer's Rating : Excellent. — Red Kann. Release date, December 8, 1944. Running time, 122 min. PCA No. 10323. General audience classification. Evelyn Heath Anne Baxter Ralph Bellamy, Ruth Warrick, Aline MacMahon, Marie McDonald, Jerome Cowan, Percy Kilbride, Margaret Hamilton, Connie Laird, Scott McKay. Experiment Perilous RKO Radio — Psychological Melodrama With the names of Hedy Lamarr, Paul Lukas, George Brent and Albert Dekker to magnetize his marquee, the showman playing this film would appear to have little more to do about selling it than sit back and wait for the customers to come trooping in. But if he wants to attract more customers than the names alone will impel to attendance, he can disclose dramatically that the film is another in the current and generally popular cycle of psychological melodramas, going on, if he chooses, to mention the notable others of that type recently or currently in exhibition. Until more of these have gone the rounds, there is inadequate basis for prediction as to national audience reaction. This one is a filming of a book by Margaret Carpenter, via a script by Warren Duff, who also produced the picture, for executive producer Robert Fellows, with Jacques Tourneur directing. The book was a best-seller and the film is a reasonably faithful transcript. Brent's is the role which the camera follows, that of a doctor drawn by chance into the lives of a man (Lukas) and his wife (Miss Lamarr) who live in wealth, but unhappily, because of circumstances which the doctor's investigations gradually reveal. The circumstances are the aftermath of incidents in the infancy of the husband which have disordered his mind, but the picture ends — as if in concession to the action addicts who may have found the tracing of the psychological background a strain on their intellects — in a flurry of violent 2214 disaster and death which precedes the romantic pairing of the doctor and the then widow. Some aspects of the story, inclusive of a scene in which the father voices doubts that his son is his own, and the requirement of mature knowledge for complete comprehension of the causes and effects dealt with, argue for exhibition to adults only. Previewed at the Pantages theatre, Hollywood, luhere an audience drawn by "The Princess and the Pirate" reacted unevenly to the previewed production. Reviewer's Rating: Good. — W. R. W. Release date, Block 2. Running time, 91 min. PCA No. 10310. Adult audience classification. Allida Hedy Lamarr Dr. Bailey George Brent Nick Paul Lukas Albert Dekker, Carl Esmond, Olive Blakeney, George N. Neise, Margaret Wycherly, Stephanie Bachler, Mary Servoss, Julia Dean, William Post, Jr., Billy Ward. Sunday Dinner for a Soldier 20th Cent.'Fox — Comedy and Sentiment While the title might represent this as a war story, the setting and incident are far removed from battle and only one character appears in uniform. It is instead a sentimental tale of a family dogged by poverty but enriched by affection and light-heartedness. As the soldier, who happens along about mid-way in the film to carry it forward to a happy climax, John Hodiak has the most impressive role and handles it with easy charm, but sterling performances by Anne Baxter, Charles Winninger and Anne Revere support the story throughout. The setting is principally a ramshackle houseboat from which a trail of loose-planked walks lead precariously to the Florida shore. Three lively children, their older sister and their grandfather rush confidently back and forth at top speed on a variety of missions. Their desire to provide dinner for a soldier from a nearby camp, in spite of the many calls on Grandfeathers' small pension check, provokes a series of incidents at once humorous and pathetic, but usually avoiding the pitfalls of a "Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch." Several subplots are offered to engage the interest. A determined widow from town is more than slightly interested in Grandfeathers and a young man is eager to marry the sister and furnish support for the family. But the main theme of the invitation which was never received, the fried chicken which threatened to be Mary's pet hen and the accidental appearance of a soldier at the last moment, carries most of the burden. Hodiak is a waist-gunner, just walking along the shore, who is embraced by the expectant family and who adopts them in turn at the close of a full and exciting day. Most of the family troubles are solved, although Grandfeathers seems destined not to escape the designs of the widow. The screenplay is a charming but occasionally rambling extension, by Wanda Tuchock and Melvin Levy, of Martha Cheavens' short story. Lloyd Bacon's direction is sensitive and Walter Morosco's production well conceived. Seen in the home office projection room. Reviewer's Rating: Good. — E. A. Cunningham. Release date, December, 1944. Running time, 86 min. PCA No. 10208. General audience classification. Tessa Anne Baxter Eric Moore John Hodiak Grandfeathers Charles Winninger Anne Revere, Connie Marshall, Chill Wills, Robert Bailey, Bobby Driscoll, Jane Darwell, Billy Cunnings, Marietta Canty. Farewell, My Lovely RKO Radio — Detective Story Exciting moments crammed with thrills and chills are to be found in "Farewell, My Lovely." It is a cleverly developed melodrama in which Dick Powell, a private detective, surmounts many obstacles in solving a complex case involving murders and the theft of a priceless jade necklace. Throughout the plot the element of crime detection is developed and emphasized. From tracing the clews connected with one murder Powell, portraying Phillip Marlowe, a hardboiled detective, discovers the motives and the killer. Before solving the case the hero is beaten, almost strangled, and miraculously escapes death on numerous occasions. Because of his close con nection with the case Powell is suspected by the police, and some of the criminals believe that he has possession of the jade necklace. At the conclusion the ability and courage of the detective are manifest, and he wins the approval of Anne Shirley. Miss Shirley's stepmother, played by Claire Trevor, is found responsible for two murders. The part of the stepmother calls for considerable dramatic effort which Miss Trevor supplies. ; Otto Kruger and Mike Mazurki, characterized as crooks, give good performances. \ The screenplay was written by John Paxton and'^ based on a novel by Raymond Chandler. Adrian Scott produced and Edward Dmytryk directed this swift moving melodrama which is effective in plot and presentation. | Seen in the home office projection room. Re-, vieiver's Rating : Good. — W. R. W. ' Release date, Block 2. Running time, 95 min. PCA No. 10158. General audience classification. Marlowe Dick Powell Mrs. Grayle Claire Trevor Ann Anne Shirley Otto Kruger, Mike Mazurki, Miles Mander, Douglas Walton, Don Douglas, Ralf Harolde, Esther Howard. Meet Miss Bobby Socks Columbia — Voice Worship Our vast numbers of bobby socks contemporaries who worship at the shrine of a "Voice" will find a candid reflection of themselves in this Columbia musical comedy. To bring everything up to date, Muriel Roy Bolton's screenplay has Bob Crosby, war veteran, back in civilian life looking for a spot in radio. Louise Erickson, a smitten. 15-year-old fan, is determined to advance his career. With friends, she floods a broadcast station with letters, organizes a coast-to-coast fan club, launches a hilarious publicity campaign. A fat contract for the crooner is the .result. Although the story is essentially static, the enormous teen-age exuberance with which the film isij sparked creates the illusion of action. After Crosby rockets to fame, a hitch develops j between him and his fans, serving as a basis for some dramatic moments. But the hitch is ironed out in the end. The picture virtually throbs with songs, among them "I'm Not Afraid of Love," and "Come Witli Me, My Honey," rendered by Crosby. There are also numbers by a Chinese trio, the Kim Loo Sisters, and Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five. Glenn Tryon directed, with stress on jive, and Ted| Richmond produced. Seen at the Fox theatre in Brooklyn, where cj; weekday matinee audience greeted it with chuckles., Reviewer's Rating : Fair. — Mandel Heebstman. Release date, October 12, 1944. Running time, 68 min.j PCA No. 10230. General audience classification. Don Collins Bob Crosby^, Helen Tyler Lynn Merriclr Susan Tyler Louise Ericksons Robert White, Howard Freeman, Mary Currier, Pat Par-j rish, Sally Bliss, John Hamilton, Douglas Wood, Pierre Watkin. Nevada RKO Radio — New Cowboy Series In the first of a series designed to travel the! familiar Western road, RKO Radio presentsii Robert Mitchum as a new cowboy-hero. He handles the assignment skilfully, assisted by Guinn; Williams and Richard Martin. Unfortunately, Mitchum's material is not up toi par. There's too much plot for the length of thei picture, and consequently action is sacrificed toi. explanatory scenes. Too much dialogue slows up.' the story even further, and the heroine's deathbed speech is particularly unconvincing. The screenplay by Norman Houston, based on a Zane Grey novel, concerns the discovery of the famous Comstock lode, and the attempts of an unscrupulous landowner to obtain the rich prize as his own. He commits murder to attain his ends. Mitchum, wrongfully accused of the crime, come^^ close to hanging. The error is exposed in time to,; save the cowboy's life, but the girl he loves is' killed. Craig Reynolds gives a good performance as the villain. Emmett Lynn's portrayal of Comstock adds needed comedy. Anne Jeffreys and Nancy Gater handle the two feminine roles with charm and con-. PRODUCT DIGEST SECTION, DECEMBER 9. 194^;