Motion Picture Reviews (1943)

MOTION PICTURE REVIEWS Thirteen SHORT SUBJECTS AT THE FRONT IN NORTH AFRICA O O O.W.I. These official combat pictures were photographed in Tunisia and Algeria in November and December, 1942, by Army and Navy cameramen for the Office of War Information. They show actual scenes of the invasion of North Africa and fighting between troops of the United Nations and the Axis, in air and in tank and artillery battles. No story in the same setting could give the same feeling of actuality that this report, filmed in Technicolor, conveys and with the fine commentary accompanying it, the film is an exceptionally informative one. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Good Yes ❖ BARNEY BEAR'S VICTORY GARDEN O M-G-M Cartoon — 1 reel. Pretty coloring and cleverly drawn animal pictures embellish this cartoon on home gardening, which is unfortunately so exaggerated that it is only fairly entertaining. Passable for all ages. ONE DAY IN RUSSIA O O March of Time — 20th Century-Fox. This is an heroic record of the actions in the many war fronts of Soviet Russia. It was filmed in 24 hours by some 160 different phtographers and is an authentic report of a truly typical war day in Russia. Time provides the sequence of events. In the early morning we see planes being prepared for morning raids, the workers on their way to factories and reconnaissance groups on the eastern front. A tank attack in the afternoon provides the main action, along with plane combats. As evening draws on we see preparations for the coming night, and factory workers training for guerrilla tactics. Despite the screen’s impartiality, this film brings home the true horrors of war. Scenes of death, en masse, tend to become routine, but such detailed shots as that of dying men receiving medical treatment and the close-up of the hospital chair holding a soldier’s dirty army coat that drips blood on the clean chair cannot be viewed without a strong emotional response. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Yes No PLAN FOR DESTRUCTION O O M-G-M 2-reel special. The theory of Geopolitik as developed by Haushoffer and applied by Hitler is the theme of this tremendously interesting short. The narrative by Lewis Stone recounts the enormous amount of information compiled by the Institute concerning the countries the Nazis planned to overrun from their central position in Europe. Their ambitions covered the world. It is a terrifying sidelight on the war and one which leaves the impression that only concerted, unrelenting effort can defeat so formidable an enemy. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Yes, an important pic No. too strong ture