Motography (Apr-Jun 1916)

May 13, 1916. MOTOGRAPHY 1109 makes quite an acceptable link in the serial chain. Several scenes within a foundry are taken at some risk and they savor of realism. Altogether this episode is on a par with those which have gone before, and people who have debated the question of who the Laughing Mask is, will find their desire for the revelation of this character is growing keener. Davy. Golden's secretary, pretends to be dead as a result of being pierced by one of the darts which, as we learned at the end of the last episode, were previously rendered harmless by the Laughing Mask. Legar sends one of his female lieutenants to betray Margery into his power, but while she is in Margery's bedroom that which appears to be the ghost of Davy looms up on the other side of the room. This and other appearances of what Legar's men think is Davy's ghost, lead Legar to make an investigation at the mausoleum. Immediately after Legar has discovered that the corpse there has been masked to look like Davy; in walks the latter. The Iron Claw falls upon the man who has tricked him, but the police are without and they proceed to take Legar. Then Legar blows up the mausoleum. Both he and Davy are wounded and they make their separate escapes. Legar comes upon Margery in the wood near her stalled auto, but the Laughing Mask saves her and then pursues the Iron Claw. The latter leads his pursuer into a foundry and finally evades him there. "Spellbound" Knickerbocker Star Feature Released by General Film. Reviewed by Thomas C. Kennedy INDIAN mysticism brought to England is used as a means to bring the story dealt with in "Spellbound" to an ending that is happy for the central characters in this Knickerbocker Star Feature for release on the General Film Program May 17. The story has, at no stage of its development, any regard whatever for logic. It is wildly improbable, and no attempt has been made to present it as anything but a pice of screen fiction. As such it contains enough that appeals to make it a good program offering. Lois Meredith, whose popularity should help the picture to attract, heads a cast made up of William Conklin, Edward Brady, George Burrell, Frank Erlanger, Daniel Gilfeather, Joyce Moore and Edward Peters. "Spellbound" is a Horkheimer production directed by Harry Harvey. The story by Bess Meredyth tells of an English heiress who is engaged to a man named Harrington Graeme. Both Graeme and Elsie are a queer combination of good and bad. The girl's guardian returns to England after an absence of ten years, spent in India. He brings with him a bronze idol, which he purchased from one of the natives and which was stolen from one of the temples. Major Cavendish asks Elsie to marry him but she laughs heartily at the thought of such a thing. The night she has planned to elope with Graeme is fraught with strange happenings. Sitting and watching the idol she is suddenly frightened when she sees it move, or she Katti Hab sees the idol and in an attempt to recover it kills Cavendish. Graeme, back from Africa, is accused of the murder, but acquitted at the trial. Elsie and Graeme now marry, and in a little while are unhappy. Elsie gambles and Graeme, unknown to Elsie, pays visits to the apartment of a certain chorus girl. A child is born, and it is unwelcome in the Graeme home. But Katti Hab returns. He is trapped in a closet in the house and calls for deliverance to the idol. The statue commences to move around the table, knocks a lamp off it and a fire starts. So Katti Hab instead of being delivered is destroyed. The baby is rescued and happiness is brought to the Graemes by this fire. Then it is discovered that the idol's head is full of jewels. The settings for the action are all commendable and the photography is quite good. "Susan Rocks the Boat" Triangle-Fine Arts Comedy With Gish and Moore. Reviewed by Thomas C. Kennedy PvOROTHY GISH as a society girl with a large fortune *-* and Owen Moore in the role of Larry O'Neil, the son of an ex-political boss, who lives in the slum district and, though their intellectual superior, he consorts with under \ 1 f ! i ■ 1 . "■] ;] i I ^ La. T*'"m m^ ' *^F vMIMl thinks it does. Cavendish comes into the room and reassures her, and Graeme, looking in at the window, thinks he is witnessing a love scene and hurries off to Africa to forget. Then there comes to the Cavendish house a noted yogi. world characters, are the featured players in "Susan Rocks the Boat," which is a melodramatic comedy coming from the Fine Arts Studio. • We have seen Dorothy Gish in parts much better suited ot her, but she is an actress of natural and acquired skill so her performance as Susan is not in the least disappointing, while Owen Moore is a very good Larry O'Neil. Leading the spectator along a well-beaten path "Susan Rocks the Boat" arrives in the slums, the place screen patrons have grown to know so well, and continues on through a romance fundamentally quite conventional. Despite the fact that one never was in doubt as to what would eventually happen, the director brought "Susan Rocks the Boat" to a thrilling climax, one that is sensational, but there is no denying that it thrills. The melodramatic suspense coming out of a situation which shows a young, innocent girl locked in a room with a saloon keeper whose desires are evil spelled with a capital E, is brought out in its full power and duration in this picture. Paul Powell is the producer of this story by Bernard McConville. The picture opens with some humorous scenes introducing Susan Johnstone as a society girl who is bored with her present life. She reads a few paragraphs of a story about Joan of Arc, and determines to use her time, energy and money in uplifting the poor. Susan founds a mission in the slums and she is an easy mark for all the fakers in the district. When Larry O'Neil exposes one or two cases of hypocrisy Susan becomes vexed and her displeasure centers in Larry. But this Larry regrets rather than resents and he uses brawn in upholding her good name, and when Susan hears about it she again looks with favor upon Larry. Susan has an idea that she can accomplish a great good by persuading Jim Cardigan to convert his saloon into an ice cream parlor. Cardigan has only to pretend he is taken with the idea to lead Susan to his private office, one flight up a stairway whose location and appearances are all against it.