Motion Picture Reviews (1934)

Motion Picturb Reviews Seven THE LINE UP » * William Cargan, Marion Nixon, Paul Hurst, John Miljan. Direction by Howard Higgins. Columbia. Another crook and detective story — trite in telling — in which a detective and a girl, innocent tool of a fur-stealing gang, bring the lawbreakers to justice. Negative in value. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 No No ■w LOOKING FOR TROUBLE » » Spencer Tracy, Jack Oakie, Constance Cummings. Direction by Schenk. Twentieth Century. A generous mixture of comedy, romance, and melodrama which is fast moving, funny and exciting. Two telephone “trouble fixers” have various experiences repairing the lines and finally locate wire tapping which involves the innocent sweetheart of one. Safe robbing, fire, murder, are all combined, and the Long Beach earthquake provides a thrilling climax. The dialogue is at times rather coarse but it is funny, and the action is thrilling. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Yes No •v THE LOST PATROL » » Victor McGlagen, Boris Karloff, Reginald Denny, Wallace Ford. From the story “Patrol” by Philip MacDonald. Direction by John Ford. R-K-O. A tragic incident in the Mesopotamian Campaign of the World War is presented in this film. It is the story of ten men surrounded by hostile Arabs and without possibility of escape. Their ranks are gradually depleted until one man is left to be rescued by a scouting party. The patrol is made up of men representative of various types, and while they await rescue their personalities and life stories are revealed. The whole is an extraordinarily sincere piece of work without a discordant note. The desert scenes form a fascinating ever-changing background of light and shadow, and no less beautiful is the musical accompaniment which sets the emotional tempo throughout. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Very interesting Too mature •w NO MORE WOMEN » » Edmund Lowe, Victor McLaglen, Sally Blane, Minna Gombel. Based upon “Underseas” by John Mikale Strong. Direction by Albert Rogell. Paramount. Two deep sea divers on rival salvage ships are belligerent competitors. When a girl inherits one of the ships, they unite efforts, but competition is transferred to their hopes of winning the girl. The motion picture team of McLaglen and Lowe connotes a certain type of rough and burly, often vulgar humor. In this picture they continue true to form. Crowded with incident, as it is, some of it is bound to be funny, but the crude sailor types, the very poor English, the euphemisms in lieu of swearing and the stress which is placed on sex as the all absorbing leisure time interest, detract from the entertainment value. Its only touch of originality is its scenes of diving and undersea photography. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 No No ■v NINTH CUEST » * Donald Cook, Genevieve Tobin, Nella Walker. Direction by Roy William Neill. Columbia. Eight people convene for the evening at the invitation of a man who secretly wishes to exterminate them all. Because each of the eight clearly represents some form of vice the plot might be considered allegorical illustrating how man may become the victim of his own weaknesses. This theme, however, is not fully developed but becomes obscured by gruesome details of the murder or suicide of each of the guests. The picture is unwholesome in the extreme and unmoral in that it is preoccupied with the evil motives of the characters. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Absolutely not Horrible ONCE TO EVERY WOMAN » » Fay Wray, Ralph Bellamy, Walter Connolly. From original story by A. J. Cronin. Direction by Lambert Hillyer. Columbia. Hats off to the director of this picture! He has done a beautiful piece of work and deserves full credit. The main plot is not remarkable (it is the love story of a charming and capable head nurse in a hospital and a brilliant young surgeon), but there is an intensely dramatic minor plot revolving about the performance of a difficult operation. Action takes place within the hospital where there is ample material from which to supply human interest, and the atmosphere is perfectly conveyed to the screen. The scene in the operating room may be too strong for some people. The characters are finely drawn, the incidents well chosen, the motivation sound and the whole nicely restrained. The finished product is one of the best rounded, smoothest pictures we have reviewed. Another and no less noteworthy