Motion Picture Review Digest (Jan-Dec 1936)

94 MOTION PICTURE REVIEW DIGEST MEN OF THE PLAINS — Continued is a bit under par and the story rolls along under rather standardized formula, nevertheless Rex Bell's pleasing personality gives sequences repeated lifts." H Film Daily plO S 29 '36 -\ Motion Pict Daily p4 O 1 '36 "Estimate: twin bill Western." _4 phila Exhibitor p34 O 1 '36 "This is a recipe coyote drama. It has the familiar heavies, whether afoot or in the saddle. . . The romance is transparent. For the multiples. . . The camera flatters nobody, not even the scenery, and the acting fits the plot." — Variety pl7 S 30 '36 LES MISERABLES. Pathe-Natan 165min O 27 '36 Cast: Harry Baur. Charles Vanel. Henry Krauss. Gaby Triquet. Josseline Gael. Max Dearly Director: Raymond Bernard Music: Arthur Honneger Based on the novel of the same title by Victor Hugo. French dialogue film produced in France several years ago and • recently released in this country. Originally made in three parts which run for a total of six hours and twenty minutes. It was cut for the American release. It was held until the American version was made and released. Contains English sub-titles. "The film traces Valjean's attempts to make amends for his crimes and the feud that exists between him and the bloodhound, Javert, with whom the law is a religion and who must hound his man no matter how desperately a criminal tries to reform." (N Y World-Telegram) Newspaper and Magazine Reviews "[It] turned out to be disappointing. 'Les Miserables' has of course some great acting by Harry Baur, who plays three roles; but as a film it is intolerably slow. The American thing called 'pace' is said not to be highly regarded in the European studios, and perhaps it is not the highest virtue a film can have; yet it seems to me a necessary one, and at any rate I can derive only moderate pleasure from a picture that dies dozens of deaths before its close. A few fine moments — and Harry Baur provides more than a few as Jean Valjean — are not in themselves enough." Mark Van Doren H Nation p558 N 7 '36 "[It] is an extended but beautifully wrought and absorbing motion picture. . . Brilliantly directed by Raymond Bernard, and performed with vigor and distinction, it is a memorable cinematic production. The current offering has been cut, but even so it runs for close to three hours. So compellingly has the tale of human suffering and redemption been filmed, however, that it is only in the very ending that your interest is likely to flag. The photoplay inevitably challenges comparison with the handsome Darryl Zanuck screening of the novel. . . It has not the dramatic finesse and surface polish of its American counterpart and it has no Charles Laughton. . . It has reached deeper into the Hugo work for its material, creating a rich and profoundly moving document of human experience. In addition, there is a magnificent performance by Harry Baur as the hounded Jean Valjean, which gives substance and unity to a necessarily episodic treatment." Howard Barnes + + N Y Herald Tribune p21 O 28 '36 "With Charles Laughton and Fredric March as Javert and Jean Valjean, 20th Century's 'Les Miserables' was a fine picture and deservedly a success. . . This [French version] also is a fine film, less powerful than the Hollywood production but far more French. The pictures differ considerably, not only in technic, in acting, in direction, but in point of view. . . Harry Baur is the current Valjean and a memorable one. . . The picture should be shortened; but, in spite of its length, Harry Baur's characterization and the French version of a powerful French novel makes 'Les Miserables' a picture well worth seeing." Eileen Creelman + NY Sun p36 O 28 '36 "Simplicity is a dangerous word to pin upon so diffuse a work as Victor Hugo's 'Les Miserables,' yet it is simplicity — simplicity of production, of mood, of performance and direction— which distinguishes the French film edition of the classic . . . and lends it dignity, strength and a measure of great beauty. . . This is a thoroughgoing edition of Hugo, telescoped perforce, but not a sketchy abridgment nor a high-lighting, however admirable, of one phase of the novel. The picture has a running time of two and three-quarter hours, but you probably will not be conscious of its length. . . It is part of the simplicity of the Gallic producers that they do not require, as Hollywood always requires, that their leading man be handsome. . . Mr. March had your sympathy from the moment you saw him; Mr Baur's Valjean must overcome repugnance to win yours, and that he does, utterly, is the most objective way of appraising a magnificent performance. . . Beyond question, the French 'Les Miserables' has its faults, but only the hyper-critical could be blinded by them to its equally unquestionable excellence." F. S. Nugent + NY Times p31 O 28 '36 "Although the French cinema version of 'Les Miserables' runs for nearly three hours without a single intermission, this is the report of one who sat enthralled through every minute. . . It is one of the distinguished films of the season. . . Harry Baur comes off with first acting honors, partly, no doubt, because he has the vivid role of Valjean and his various aliases, but mainly for the insights, and brilliance of his portrayal. Charles Vanel' s realization of Javert is a superb piece of acting." William Boehnel + + N Y World-Telegram p29 O 28 '36 "To try to put over another 'Les Miserables' — a French one, at that, and one which runs two hours and three-quarters — seems to me about as tough a job as any eager little film house might take on its shoulders. . . I am going right on to announce that this is a fine film, that somehow or other it manages to hold up right from start to end, and that I hope the Cinema de Paris manages to persuade the public to take a look at it. . . I groaned at the mere two-hour length of the American 'Les Miserables.' That was by no means my experience this time. So solid is the treatment, so skillful the camerawork, so generally adroit the adaptation of the novel, that I forgot all about the length, the passing of the years, and the shifting seasons. Much of this was due, of course, to the performance of Harry Baur as Valjean." John Mosher + + New Yorker p76 O 31 '36 "Here is a stupendous translation, drawing its truth from the Hugo writing, and projecting it in the purest terms of the camera. We seldom have indictments of such honest cinematic content, so sure, so purposeful. . . This 'Les Miserables' is not to be confused, or spoken of in the same room, with the Hollywood production. There is no romanticism here, no handsome martyrdom, no compromise with names and persons as in the LaughtonMarch version. There is no room here for glamor. . . Here is a classic story unfolded on the screen to dominate each of its parts and become a masterpiece." + + Stage pl4 N '36 Trade Paper Revieivs "Despite its extreme length, during which every important sequence of the original Victor Hugo novel is graphically pictured, this French dialogue version of the oft-filmed masterpiece is one of the most engrossing dramas of all time. Adults." + Box Office p35 N 7 '36 -j+ Exceptionally Good; + Good; -\ Fair; 1 Mediocre; — Poor; Exceptionally Poor