Motion Picture Reviews (1938)

Four MOTION PICTURE REVIEWS a gratifying one. In giving credit, Dudley must not he overlooked. He is a most delightful little dog whose personality is definitely important. To adults who wish something out of the oridnarv, we recommend “The Beachcomber.” Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 1 2 Too mature No © THE COWBOY AND THE LADY O O Gary Cooper, Merel Oberon, Patsy Kelly, Walter Brennan, Fuzzy Knight, Mabel Todd, Harry Davenport. Original story by Leo McCarey and Frank R. Adams. Screen play by S. N. Behrman and Sonya Levien. Direction by H. C. Potter. Samuel Goldwyn Productions-United Artists. Children are sometimes wise beyond their years. A ten-year-old's comment on “The Cowboy and The Lady” was, “It just goes on and on.” For many adults this will be a reaction compatible with their own taste, for somehow, in spite of lavish and artistic backgrounds and a popular and competent cast, it misses the spark which is the test of good theatre. The story is naive and obvious. When the bored little rich girl, whose ambitious father has kept her away from all normal associations, falls in love with the first attractive young man she meets, it is a foregone conclusion that cowhand or prince, it will make no difference to her. Their romance meets the usual apparently insurmountable obstacles but ends satisfactorily for all concerned without sophistication or dubious ethics. It is a mildly entertaining and unexciting program film with pleasant comedy and pictorial settings. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 1 2 Yes Little to interest © DARK RAPTURE O O Armand Denis Production-Universal. Direction by Armand Denis. Photography by LeRoy Phelps. Filmed and recorded on the Armand Denis-Roosevelt Expedition to the Belgian Congo. “Dark Rapture” is one of the finest travel pictures ever produced. From the beginning when the undertaking is sanctioned by the well-loved King Albert of Belgium to the last scenes in the Congo it is a fascinating account of a journey in the interest of science. There are no studio-made combats between fierce beasts; the elephant hunt is genuine, showing dangers encountered by the natives as well as their patience in training the captured animals. The film deals chiefly with the tribes of deepest Africa, strange people with elongated heads, friendly little pigmies who build high bridges with amazing ingenuity, and a statuesque race of giant blacks who live in a beautiful fertile land, ruled over by a king in elaborate regalia. The photography is of a high order and the musical score, based on native music, enriches the production. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Excellent Too exciting for some © DRAMATIC SCHOOL O O Luise Rainer, Paulette Goddard, Alan Marshall, Lana Turner, Genevieve Tobin, Anthony Allan, Henry Stephenson, Gale Sondergaard, Melville Cooper, Erik Rhodes, Virginia Grey, Ann Rutherford, Rand Brooks, Hans Conried. Screen play by Ernest Vajda and Mary C. McCall, Jr. From the Hungarian play, "School of Drama," by Hans Szekely and Zoltan Egyed. Produced by Mervyn LeRoy. Direction by Robert B. Sinclair. M.-G.-M. It will be interesting for Luise Rainer’s fans to see her in a film which gives her such varied opportunities as “Dramatic School.” At first she is a sort of wistful Cinderella working at night in a gas-meter factory and attending dramatic school by day, harassed by bosses and teachers, and consoling herself with elaborate flights of fancy which her schoolmates impolitely call lies. Then comes an interlude in which she wears glamorous gowns, furs, and corsages supplied by an undemanding Prince Charming to whom she is engaged. Most dramatic is the sequence showing a play within a play when, as Joan of Arc she attests the reality of her visions and pleads with her judges for leniency. As a whole the film is an amusing portrayal of the types of pupils and teachers at the dramatic school. The cast, including two Academy award winners and a number of newcomers, is exceptionally good. The dialogue is spontaneous and the situations are entertaining. Adolescents, 12 to 16 Children, 8 to 12 Probably enjoyable No interest EVERYBODY'S BABY (The Jones Family) Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane, Spring Byington, Russell Gleason, Ken Howell, George Ernest, June Carlson, Florence Roberts, Billy Mahan, Reginald Denny, Robert Allen, Claire Du Brey, Marvin Stephens. From the original story by Hilda Stone and Betty Reinhardt. Screen play by Karen De Wolf, Robert Chapin, Frances Hyland and Albert Ray. Direction by Malcolm St. Clair. Twentieth Century-Fox. Dr. Pillcoff, a physician in ill repute with the medical society, has become a lecturer on modern psychology as applied to raising children. The young mothers of the Jones’ circle have accepted him as their guide and prophet to the distress of their husbands and