Motion Picture Reviews (1933)

Six Motion Picture Reviews hates are shown to dissolve before urgent human need. It is well worth seeing. Adolescents, T2 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Interesting Probably too exciting and involved LUCKY DEVILS » » Bill Boyd, Dorothy Wilson, Roscoe Ates. Direction by Ralph Ince. R.K.O. This is a hair-raising thriller depicting the risks which unknown studio stunt men must take without applause or recognition. But it seems that the “Lucky Devils” who commit matrimony lose their nerve and great disaster results. It is not a particularly polished or smooth production, but it is presented against an apparently authentic Hollywood background and may be fun for those who like to see behind the scenes. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Passable Too exciting MADAME BUTTERFLY » » Sylvia Sidney, Cary Grant, Charles Ruggles. Directed by Marion Gering. ParamountPublix. To those who remember “Madame Butterfly” as the ineffably lovely book by J. L. Long, or as Belasco’s glamorous play, or even more poignantly as Puccini’s opera of throbbing heartbreak, this film version may be a disappointment. It is charming, but ordinary. Sylvia Sidney is wistfully appealing and Cary Grant well cast, but one never forgets, in spite of authentic settings, that the cast are Occidentals masquerading as Orientals, and in view of the present situations on the Pacific it seems a questionable moment to have filmed this story of the trusting Japanese maiden betrayed by the American naval officer. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Possible Uninteresting V MAN AGAINST WOMAN » » Jack Holt, Lillian Miles. Directed by Cummings. Columbia. A brave policeman falls in love with a cabaret singer, but she loves a gangster! A typical melodrama of the underworld which is scarcely worth the price of admission. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 No No THE MATCH KING » » Warren William, Lili Damita, Glena Farrell. Direction by Harry Bretherton. From novel by Einar Thorvaldson. First National. “The Match King,” suggested by the life of Ivan Kreuger, tells the story of the phenominal rise to power and the tragic culmination of the career of an unscrupulous man who cunningly contrived to gain a hold on international finance. It has real interest at this time, is cast with fidelity to type, and creates an atmosphere of intelligent realism by its direction. It is different, and leaves the impression of the futility of expecting a great business “empire,” or happiness, to endure ' unless based on honorable principles. Adolescents, 1 2 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Interest depends on Too mature to interest maturity THE MUMMY » » Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners. Direction by Karl Freund. From the story by Nina Wilcox Putnam and Richard Schayer. Universal. Karl Freund, the director of this weird picture, is a well-known German photographer, and it is not surprising that his first production should be notable for its unusual camera work. However, its entertainment value is questionable. Though it is smoothly directed, has a unique setting in the excavations of archeologists in Egypt, though Boris Karloff’s personification of a resurrected mummy is strikingly well done, we suspect that the story is too fantastic and too involved to be universally appealing. A mummy, however well acted, is not a popular type of hero, and it is difficult to be en rapport with the reincarnation of a lady who died 3700 years ago. Scrolls, spells, incantations and an exhibition of embalming as practiced by ancient Egyptians on a live subject no doubt furnish an escape from modern realities but some audiences may prefer their present troubles. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 No No NO MAN OF HER OWN » » Clark Cable, Carole Lombard. Direction by Wesley Ruggles. Paramount-Publix. As the professional gambler of the story, Mr. Gable chooses between the pleasures of easy luxury and the benefits of a clear conscience. The dramatic possibilities of the play are lost in an effort to display intimately the pulchritude of the stars. Some clever dialogue is ruined by over-emphasis, and the character portrayal is neither artful nor