Motion Picture News (Mar-Apr 1923)

March 31, 1923 1541 klThe Covered Wagon' ' — An Epic of Screen AFTER one of the most stupendous advertising campaigns in the history of the screen conducted by Paramount in behalf of its magnificent achievement, " The Covered Wagon" — a campaign suggesting a lavish expenditure of money inspired by the producers' belief that they had an exceptional treasure to give to the world and posterity — this gorgeous canvas was displayed on the silver sheet at the Criterion theatre, New York, last Friday night. Every line, every paragraph, every exploitation scheme which has been employed to advertise this rich and vital tapestry has been substantiated. Paramount has kept faith with the public. And the public, in durn — to voice the collective opinion of the lucky spectators — has tremendous faith in this stirring epic of a nation in the making — of a nation of hardy settlers who faced the setting sun in '48 with their courageous women, their children, their prairie schooners, their plows, their livestock and household goods — with a cry of "Westward Ho ! " What a romantic, glorious period in the making of America — history being recorded [with every mile of the long, arduous and dangerous journey over the Oregon Trail — when a good day's travel was considered fortunate if ten miles were covered ! John C. Flinn, the ambassador extraordinary of this eloquent photoplay, brought out admirably in a telegram campaign the marked contrasts of the present day with those of that far distant day when the pioneers headed for ithe West. He returned East over the very trail which marked the course of these dauntless and daring people — the Union Pacific. The vast prairie land is cultivated, towns and cities have risen from the plains and from the i slopes of the Rockies, railroads take the present-day travelers with quickness and despatch. Yet one may look out of the window while riding in comfort and safety and conjure up the stirring period of the Roaring Forties — when Indians lurked in ambush with death cries on their lips, when courageous scouts carried the mail via pony express, when the nearly extinct bison roamed the plains in countless thousands. It is a fancy which makes better Americans of us all. It compels us to pause and marvel over the making of a mighty nation. It stirs us with romance and adventure. We would ' like to be transported — to live over the vivid I adventures which featured the westward journey of the pioneers. John Flinn brought "The Covered Wagon" in on time, and, through one of the most violent storms which ever lashed New York with its pent-up fury, we plodded to the Criterion and found refuge, awaiting • eagerly the parting of the curtains, awaiting eagerly to be transported. An atmospheric prologue entitled " Songs of 1849 " was presented by Hugo Reisenfeld, with the Criterion Ensemble attired appropriately in the cos I tumes of the period. And the old songs, especially " Oh, Susanna ! " placed the spectators in a receptive frame of mind for the picture I which was to hold them in a tight embrace for eleven reels. The curtains parted and the pioneers lived j again — lived over their mighty struggle to found a kingdom in the West. The vital stimulus to American patriotism was inspired the moment that a foreword announced the picture dedicated to the memory of Theodore Roosevelt, an American who would have gloried in By Laurence Reid it had he been among those present on the eventful night. Although an Easterner by birth and education, his soul was of the West. And this patriotic fervor mounted the moment the perilous journey started westward from Westport Landing, now Kansas City, Mo. One caught the romantic and adventurous glamour of those stirring days; one caught the terrific suspense of these hardy pioneers as they faced the unknown country, mindful of the dangers, yet facing them with a tme, unbounded courage. The bugle sounded and the wagon train started over the Oregon Trail. There were happy people, vagabonds, adventurers and rough tillers of the soil — a motley throng, but with few exceptions they remained steadfast in their devotion to found an empire in the West. Here was no trifling adventure. One had but to follow the long, winding train of the covered wagons — a train which stretched as far as the eye could reach — to discover the immensity of the production. History was being re-enacted before our very eyes. The thought lingered that these people were carving an imperishable record of adventure. One felt proud of them; one saw them as red-blooded Americans — the stock from which we sprung. It was a gigantic task for James Cruze, the guiding genius of this epic, to bring out the spirit of Emerson Hough's vital story in such an eloquent manner that made the picture a living, throbbing heart-drama. He must have had a corps of assistants, because no single man could fashion the work and make it so vivid and human. There was confusion in handling the vast detail. This suggested an authenticity which no orderly routine could ever indicate. Some might say that it lacks dramatic foundation — that it is a surface story of a picturesque journey through which pulsates a romance. They will have missed its vital conception reasoning from such viewpoint, for these pioneers were involved in a mighty drama bounded by nature, the theme of which was a will to gain sanctuary and soil in far-off Oregon. One has but to catch the meaning of the perilous journey to appreciate that it has nothing to do with the technique of drama as it is ladled out by playwrights, past and present. So we hop aboard Ogle's wagon or sit astride Kci rigan's horse. We are carried away on a fascinating yet dangerous adventure. Craze's wonder shots are ever before us. The far reaches of the prairies stretch out in an endless pattern of acreage. The wagons stop for the night and music lightens the awful tensity. It is a graphic depiction of the colonization of America. Thrills it has in abundance and a stirring romance, and highly exciting incident enliven the westward march. The Platte River is reached, bringing with it the first obstacle. And the fording of the stream is one of the most inspiring scenes which ever embraced the imagination with its dramatic force and sweep. The soldier Banion, played with good romantic fervor by J. Warren Kerrigan, finds a way to overcome the barrier. The cattle and oxen are herded tog-ether and driven into the rushing river. The wagons are kept afloat by mammoth logs. This is the outstanding high light in a picture of many high lights. No barriers can stop these sons of the soil — not even the Indians who are bewildered over the eternal progress of the tar-flung train and jealous that the white man's plow will soon rob them of their land. The pioneers are ambushed by the red men in one of the biggest individual thrills ever recorded. Thousands of them in full war regalia encircle the train, but even with serious losses their plucky determination to carry on keeps them to their purpose. We catch the privations they suffer, the treachery of the bad men, the courage of the heroes, the menace of the vast reaches of snow — and watching these stirring scenes, time and environment are forgotten. The bison hunt is like an animated Remington — a scene charged with genuine adventure. All these dramatic episodes are deftly woven together by Jack Cunningham who adapted the story. And James Cruze has brought them forth so that they fairly leap across the screen — mounting, as they do, with a crescendo of action and suspense. The vast scenes which stretch out before the eye are gigantic in conception and execution. The plains are crossed, the mountains are reached and the more greedy of the pioneers toss aside their plows, pick up their shovels and head for Californy — for gold has been discovered. Never once does the spectator lose contact with this richly fascinating canvas. The imagination soars, the pulse quickens from the moment that the bugle sounded in Westport Landing until the young romancers embrace each other in Oregon. The picture is interpreted by a cast of players who have genuinely caught the spirit which guided the pioneers. Theirs was as much a labor of love and enthusiasm as that of Mr. Cruze and his cameramen. Exceptionally fine is the study of the scout by Ernest Torrence — a study the sheer understanding and feeling of which has never been surpassed on the screen. It is one of the finest expressions of character acting that has ever been portrayed. A marvel for pantomime, Torrence can play comedy as well as tragedy. His mobile countenance, his eloquent hands and shoulders work in perfect co-ordination to provide a human and outstanding characterization. The scene when he meets another scout, as picturesquely played by Tully Marshall, and they carry on a William Tell act, furnishes a rich and highly amusing scene which not only gives balance to the picture, but which is one of the conspicuous high lights present. They become so drunk that they are hardly able to walk. Yet when it comes to shootin' straight the deadly liquor has no effect. There are other cameo touches nearly as vital. These actors always seem real. There is nothing of the studio stamped upon their talents or personalities. Lois Wilson is a charming heroine. J. Warren Kerrigan is gallant enough for the heroic role — a role which comes the closest to theatric dimensions. Alan Hale is properly villainous. A well-balanced cast that seemingly step from the days of '48. " The Covered Wagon " is a magnificent achievement — monumental in conception, sweeping in its power to stimulate patriotism and heighten the imagination. It is a work which is accurate, which carries superb coloring and vital action, which is a living, throbbing page from history. It is Paramount'? biggest and best document, which ranks with " The Birth of a Nation " in its epochal record of America in the making.