Motion Picture Review Digest (Jan-Dec 1936)

MOTION PICTURE REVIEW DIGEST 101 "Alfred Hitchcock . . . has failed in this instance to sustain cumulative interest in a complicated plot interspersed with repellent touches." — Christian Science Monitor pl3 Jl 11 '36 "There is no reason why the English should not eventually lead the world in the motion picture manufacturing business. . . They are still frequently amateurish in the technique of the cinema. . . The train wreck is an instance of English technical childishness — the whole train is evidently from Woolworth's. Not for children." Don Herold Life p26 Ag '36 " 'Secret Agent' is in the nature of a keen disappointment. At no point during its hamstrung and confused progress does it rise above pot-boiler status. Peter Lorre manages an amusing performance on the Grand Guignol side, but John Gielgud, probably England's most famous actor today, turns in a dime a dozen job. When you've played Shakespeare all season it must be difficult to summon any enthusiasm for the poor stuff that these Maugham stories provide." — New Theatre pl2 Jl '36 "With a formula set of incidents Alfred Hitchcock has managed to evolve a cheatingcheaters show that is genuinely exciting. . . The story builds to a train-wreck finale that is stirring in itself. But one waits expectantly for the nerve-shattering second explosion that doesn't occur. Instead, there is a faint echo of the conventional kiss as boy gets girl . . . and the audience gets the air and disappointment. . . I found the picture well worth while, despite its lymphatic ending." Herb Sterne -\ Script pll Jl 25 '36 " 'Secret Agent' was not the best of Hitchcock." Allistair Cooke H Sight & Sound p26 Summer '36 "We expect great things of Alfred Hitchcock. He, like Frank Capra, has a way of making a picture his own. . . In 'Secret Agent' he went a little too far in the application of his rules. His effects are conscious. They impede the narrative until little is left but dialogue. His characters are so completely objective that they lack conviction. 'Secret Agent' is cold and lifeless compared to either of the earlier films — ['The Man Who Knew Too Much* and 'The Thirty-Nine Steps.']" 1 Stage p9 Jl '36 Trade Paper Reviews "Comparable to the finest American-made films, especially as regards cast, photography and production values, this spy drama is certain to satisfy average audiences everywhere." H Box Office p27 Jl 4 '36 of the mediocrities Italy has been exporting to its little picture house, the Cine-Roma, during the last few months. . . The piece is disappointing, reminding one, perhaps subconsciously of how sensitive and absorbing that other, German, story ['Maedchen in Uniform'] was." Marguerite Tazelaar H NY Herald Tribune pl2 Ag 20 '36 "[It] is a mystery melodrama that might have come from Hollywood instead of Rome. The actors are young and handsome, the pace stepped up far faster than most continental product, and the comedy relief always more important than sentiment. For all that, [it] stands comparison only with California's minor films. The picture's chief lack lies in the plot itself, with the handling of suspense and climax." Eileen Creelman H NY Sun Ag 18 '36 "A happy combination of mystery and humor, which moves fast and holds the interest right up to the unexpected denouement in the last reel, has arrived from Italy. . . The scenes in and around the school and its grounds are delightful. Technically the whole film is excellent." H. T. S. + NY Times p9 Ag 17 '36 Trade Paper Reviews "Very enjoyable and fast-moving combination of murder mystery and comedy, with a surprise finish, well acted and directed." + Film Daily pl6 Ag 18 '36 "A finely executed production from Italian studios, this picture will be good entertainment for audiences who understand the language. A fast tempo creates exciting atmosphere and carries the story forward rapidly without a dull sequence." -f Motion Pict Daily pl2 Ag 20 '36 "[It is] a fairly good murder mystery. . . Direction is pretty even and the performances satisfactory. A virtue of the work of the cast members is the restraint shown. [There is] much less over-acting to be found in this foreign -made than in most of them." -\ Variety pl7 Ag 19 '36 SEVEN BRAVE MEN. Amkino 91min Je 14 '36 Players: X. Bogolybov. T. Makarova. I. No voseltzev Director: S. Gerasimov See issue of June 29, 1936 for other reviews of this film IL SERPENTE A SONAGLI. Nuovo Mondo 70min Ag 16 '36 Players: Nino Besozzi. Andreina Pagnani. Lilla Brignone. Vanna Pegna Director: Raffaello Materazzo Italian dialogue film, with English sub-titles, made in Rome and known also as The Serpent's Fang and The Rattlesnake. "The plot tells how a teacher, crabbed and tormented by her ill-adjustment to her profession and fear that her secret love affair will be discovered by the head matron, is mysteriously poisoned. Clews point to various pupils, for she is generally hated, as well as to others. A good-looking police inspector takes charge of the case, and, in an adroit fashion, solves it, finally." (N Y Herald Tribune) Newspaper and Magazine Reviews "While the new and inappropriately called 'Serpent's Fang' is not the brilliant picture it might have been, it is a long step ahead Newspaper and Magazine Reviews "It boasts good performances and a pervading wholesomeness that is a relief from the sultry air of the usual Hollywood product, but in the main it is too confused and tentative, both in direction and purpose, to reach the high level set by the Soviet film masters." | New Theatre p29 Jl '36 Trade Paper Reviews "Arctic expedition drama with some thrilling action of the elemental variety helped by good photography and appropriate acting." + Film Daily pl2 Je 18 '36 "Lenfilm failed to cash in on a swell opportunity in America by allowing this adventure film to run about 30 minutes overboard. Judicious cutting, added to the fact that it's a foreign import, might have put 'Seven Brave Men' in the money class." Variety p45 Je 24 '36 + + Exceptionally Good; Good; + Fair; + Mediocre; — Poor; Exceptionally Poor