Motion Picture Herald (Mar-Apr 1947)

SHOWMEN'S REVIEWS ADVANCE SYNOPSES COMPANY CHART THE RELEASE CHART This department deals with new product from the point of view of the exhibitor who is to purvey it to his own public. The Devil Thumbs a Ride RKO Radio — Melodrama The devil referred to in the title of Herman Schlom's latest production is none other than Lawrence Tierney, and satanic he certainly is in the role of murderer, forger and holdup man. Ted North, representing in this case the forces of good, gives a sensitive performance which lends sharp contrast to Tierney's portrayal of the sardonic killer. Felix Feist, who directed from his own screenplay based on a novel by Robert C. DuSoe, has employed much ingenuity to keep the audience at seat's edge. The picture is thrillpacked, hard-hitting melodrama from start to finish, with never a dull moment and never a pause for breath. In the opening sequences, Tierney holds up and kills a theatre manager. Then he thumbs a ride north with a gentle, home-loving silk salesman, who knows little peace thereafter. When the pair stop for gas, they pick up two more hitch-hikers : personable young ladies played by Nan Leslie and Betty Lawford. At the gas station, Tierney makes a fatal mistake : he insults the young attendant. The latter subsequently hears a police broadcast describing Tierney and, on a hunch, notifies the authorities. From there on it's a breath-taking chase, with many a perilous moment for Tierney's companions when they learn his identity. In the supporting cast, Harry Shannon as the police captain and Glenn Vernon as the station attendant are particularly outstanding. Seen at the studio. Reviewer's Rating : Good. — Thalia Bell. Release date, February 20, 1947. Running time, 63 min. PCA No. 11953. General audience classification. Steve Lawrence Tierney Jimmy Ted North Nan Leslie, Betty Lawford. Andrew Tombes, Harry Shannon, Glenn Vernon, Marian Carr, William Gould, Josephine Whittell Carnegie Hall UA-Federal — Concert Producers Boris Morros and William Le Baron moved their Federal Films Productions cameras onto the stage of New York City's most hallowed musical showcase, Carnegie Hall, to film this most bountiful of classical music programs. Practically every top name in the music field — symphony conductors, singers, violinists — appears in this film as a soloist. It's a vast, brilliantly-recorded picture sure to receive immediate applause from any music lover. But more than this, it will please even the non-musical who don't know a clarinet from a crescendo, providing the exhibitor cares to do a little missionary work among his customers. It will_ please these people because, while the music is strictly long-haired, with a couple of exceptions, the more familiar, more showy selections are used. The exceptions are Vaughn Monroe and his orchestra, and Harry James and his horn. The concert stars appearing comprise a who's who of the musical world : the conductors, Walter Damrosch, Bruno Walter, Artur Rodzinski, Fritz Reiner and Leopold Stokowski ; the singers, Lily Pons, Rise . Stevens, Jan Peerce and Ezio Pinza ; the cellist, Gregor Piatigorsky ; the pianist, Artur Rubinstein ; the violinist, Jascha Heifetz. All these, plus the New York Philharmonic and the Philharmonic Quintette. Binding these stars and their offerings together is an all too typical framework of a story of a mother who wants her son to grow up to be a pianist good enough to play at Car -a negie Hall. The boy is a pianist, all right, but he prefers to play with Vaughn Monroe's orchestra. This situation makes for passion and pathos, but the film is resolved happily by having the pianist-son appear at Carnegie as the composer-conductor-pianist of a modern horn concerto with Harry James as soloist. The Hollywood cast enacting this sandwiched story comprises Marsha Hunt, the mother ; William Prince, the son ; Frank McHugh, the Carnegie Hall porter and doorman ; and Martha O'Driscoll, a popular singer who provides the love interest. For the theatre patron who spends his Sunday afternoons listening to symphony broadcasts, this film will prove a delight. The music includes the "Leonora Overture," a selection from Beethoven's "Fifth," the "Bell Song" from Lakme," the "Seguidilla" from "Carmen," a Chopin Polonaise, a Tschaikowsky violin concerto, selections from "Die Meistersinger," and an aria from "Don Giovanni." Edgar G. Ulmer directed. Karl Kamb wrote the screenplay from an original story by Seena Owen. Seen at the home office projection room. Reviewer's Rating : Good — Ray Lanning. Release date, not set. Running time, 134 min. PCA No. 12197. General audience classification. Nora Ryan Marsha Hunt Tony Salerno William Prince Donovan Frank McHugh Ruth Haines Martha O'Driscoll Walter Damrosch, Bruno Walter, Lily Pons, Gregor Piatigorsky, Rise Stevens, Artur Rodzinski, Artur Rubinstein, Jan Peerce, Ezio Pinza, Vaughn Monroe Jascha Heifetz, Fritz Reiner, Leopold Stokowski, Harry James Beat the Band RKO Radio — Comedy with Music Swing addicts will give ready reception to the music of Gene Krupa and his band, as well as to the singing of Frances Langford, whose rendering of such songs as "I'm in Love" and "I've Got My Fingers Crossed" is definitely in the groove. Based on a Broadway musical, adapted to the screen by Lawrence Kimple and Arthur Ross, the story doesn't make too much sense, a fact which does detract from the picture's essential entertainment value. It concerns a band leader, home from the wars, who finds his partner has invested his savings in a racehorse, rather than using the funds to keep the band together, so the veteran has to start all over from scratch. With the help of Miss Langford, Krupa, and a number of fortuitous circumstances, he makes good and ends up with a contract to play in a smart New York hotel. Phillip Terry handles the male lead with authority, and the cast, Ralph Edwards, in particular, gives him staunch support. Michel Wraike produced under the executive supervision of Sid Rogell. Resultant production values are more than satisfactory. John Auer's direction is spirited and deft. Previewed at the studio. Reviewer's Rating : Good.—T. B. Release date, February 19, 1947. Running time, 67 min. PCA No. 11796. General audience classification. Ann Frances Langford Eddie Ralph Edwards Willow June Clayworth Damon Phillip Terry Mabel Paige, Andrew Tombes, Donald MacBride. Mira McKinney, Harry Harvey, Grady Sutton, Gene Krupa and band The Private Affairs of Bel Ami UA-Loew-Lewin — Story of Scoundrel Guy de Maupassant's novel, "Bel Ami", furnished Albert Lewin the basis for what he calls "The Private Affairs of Bel Ami". The affairs are very much present and not always so private in this intellectual-level, Oscar Wildish undertaking adapted and directed by Lewin under the producing wing of David M. Loew. For thoroughly sophisticated audiences, this film will prove a treat. For those not so saturated, its appeal is in serious doubt. The talented and intelligent craftsman which Lewin is unquestionably is imprinted on "Bel Ami" from beginning to end. Here he is dealing with Paris of the '80s and the rise of the cynic, played by George Sanders, in the world of journalism and politics. Sanders has native talent to help him on his way, but what helps him most is a ruthless disregard for the women in his life whether married, unmarried or widowed. Sanders takes them on in full swing, gearing that stride to this expressed theory : "Marriage and love are two entirely different subjects". And, also, to this summed-up opinion of womanhood at large: "Women strike me as being incredibly stupid. They can be caught by a smile, a look, a compliment — anything that touches their vanity. It is impossible not to despise them." Despising six as he may, or coining an epigram (smart crack) as could have been the case, certainly he employs them as steps up the ladder of his ambitions. There is Marie Wilson, who hangs around the cafes and the Folies Bergere. He carries on with Angela Lansbury, ditches her to marry Ann Dvorak. While married to her, he persuades Katherine Emerv, wife of his MOTION PICTURE HERALD, MARCH I, 1947 3501