Moving Picture World (Oct-Dec 1913)

iS6 THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD ^ of native Cambodians; bas its rich lover favored by the Cambodian belle's parents and its poor lover whom she favors, and shows how the poor lover, after saving the rich suitor's life, is assisted by him and wins the girl. Truly, it is perfect in its convincing naturalness and simplicity, and very instructive on account of the insight that it gives into Cambodian customs and ways of life. These scenes arc acted with absolute sincerity by native players. The photography is fair considering the difficulties. "BLAZING A NEW TRAIL IN GLAOER NATIONAL PARK" (Patheplay). Sept. 25. — Makes a very good offering. People like to be shown things that are new, if for no better reason than that it gives them something to talk about and do a Httlc crowing over. In this case the views are full of intrinsic interest and are well worth seeing; they give glimpses of mountain scenery far up among the clouds; of glaciers, of wild lakes, of great water falls. And then they have never been pictured before. "THE SAGO INDUSTRY OF BORNEO" (Patheplay). Sept. 25.— Surely it is worth while to know a little about these things; few of us are overinformed as to what the things we use or eat come from. Here is clearly pictured for us how the sago palm tree is cut down and turned into sawdust, which is then soaked and strained for the useful material the pith hojds. These two on the same reel make a valuable offering. "THE CAPTURE OF BAD BROWN" (Selig), Sept. 25-— A Western love story with a good deal of character comedy in it. The audience watched it for the story; but the comedy didn't get over strongly: in fact, it seemed a bit in the way. Buck, played by William Duncan, "wants to marry a teacher (Myrtle Stedman), but is too scared to ask her." The sheriff needs a brave man and chooses Buck to "gel" Bad Brown, whom Buck doesn't know is the girl's father. The knock-about search in the village boardinghouse changes it into a farce. When Brown is discovered biding under Myrtle's bed and captured, the deputy has to comfort her and then he "dast." The kind of work this company docs is well-known. "THE RACE" (Vitagraph), Sept. 25. — A bit more care would have made this conventional melodrama a good deal better. The chief difference between it and many others is that, instead of a horse race, it has an automobile race. Its heroine is very unconvincing, and it ha= no villain. It trys to make a villain of the banker, a realty good sort of fellow, by having him outrageously treated by the girl and also by the hero, to whom he had just promised a loan that he might go on with his engineering work. The hero wins a prize in the race, so doesn't need the loan. In truth, it looks as though the picture was thrown together merely to give pertinency to some views of a motor car race which are only fair. It does neither author nor producer little credit. "A SATURDAY HOLIDAY" (Biograph), Sept. 25.— A slight farce showing the predicament of Hurry-Up Harry, who takes a swell girl out for a joy ride. His week's salary is ten "bucks." It is like other farces of its kind and there were some in the audience who seemed to enjoy it, for we beard laughter. "THE END OF THE WORLD" (Biograph), Sept. 25.— On the same reel is this, also a farce; but is fresher than the foregoing. A tramp hoodwinks simple-minded Holy Groaners, telling them that the world is coming to an end. He is clothed in one of their robes that a pal of bis had stolen and they believe him and turn over to him all their worldly goods. He waits for more graft and meets with the real prophet and then is chased into the river. WtUiJlli Murray plays the tramp and his comical facial expression amused some in the audience a good deal. "PATHE'S WEEKLY, No. 53" (Sept. 25).— Pictures of Mayor Gaynor's funeral, very clearly photographed, are the most notable part of this mid-week topical. There are other items of the usual interest. "THE STOLEN MODELS" (Edison). Sept. 29.— A pretty little farce with queer characters who time and again aroused the audience to hearty laughter. Gertrude McCoy plays am artist who needs a man model to smoke a pipe; but can't get one suitable. We watch her try out two or three with comical results and then she sees Benjamin Wilson across the court smoking at the window. He, too, is an artist and has bad the same difficulty over getting a female model for his picture and he also has already looked across to her window and has painted her without her knowing. The committee at the exhibition hang the two portraits side by side which furnishes a snappy, pleasant ending. The trouble with this as with most farces that we see is that it is too long; it shows padding. Mark Swain is the author, and it was produced by C. Jay Williams. .-Mice Washburn, as Wilson's housekeeper, who thinks she would make a good model, and Arthur Houseman, as the electric light man in Gertrude's studio, help in the final result. "DYED, BUT NOT DEAD*' (Biograph), Sept. 29.— Red paint is not real evidence, but it surely looks like murder. In this knock-about farce, XVttlidui Murray, a very clean tramp in the beginning, is suspected of being the crazy culprit; but he is the good-natured victim of the two kids and their pail of red paint. Kate Toncray and Gus Pixley play the parents, and there arc three farcical cops, all of whom are amusing in their roles. The offering seemed to please and made a good deal of laughter. "WITH THE AID OF PHRENOLOGY" (Biograph), Sept. 29.— On the same reel, this farce is not so funny, and there was little sign that it was especially liked. *WntTa« Murray plays the bossed husband of a new woman. She bats him over the head with the broom and he gets a bump of corobativencss that looks so much like a malignant tumor that, watching it, the reviewer's scalp began to itch. "THE ATHEIST" (Kalem), Sept. 29.— We do not think this picture with a moral clearly dragged in will impress majiy spectators. It doesn't ring true except at the very end; but the closing episode is very good. The leading role is taken by Tom Moore, who plays with vivacity; but is not able to make his character seem a real human being through most of the action. The photographs are excellent. ■•WHEN THE WEST WAS YOUNG" (Vitagraph), Sept. 29.— The artistic, pictorial quality of most of the scenes in this offering give it very high merit; they are lovely and will surely please those who care for art. The story is simple and convincing as a real episode, except that the starving Indian of the early scenes is round of limb and well nourished in ap pearance. Ihosc who want the story alone wilt also like it. and there is nothmg m the action that seems cheap or that will detract fr;m the deUghl the d.scr.minat.ng w.Il take in its scenes. W. J. Bauman dc«rves mucb 7-f, r vl^r,'*' ^' ?"' ^""^'*^^ '^'^ P'"^*"^*^ •-'"d the storj was well wrt.en by WT Hanson Durham. George Holt plays the settler father of a hnle g.rl (Maxu.e Elliot), and the friendly Indian is played by George Licensed Specials. '-IN CONVICT GARB" (Essan.-.y). .September 26.-This two-reel subject holds interest very steadily throughout the greater part of the picture. Too much IS made of the pursuit of the handcar on which the escaped convict and kidnapper of the warden's daughter is trying 10 get away from .IS pursuers. It is overdone. The fleeing prisoner must have jumped his handcar over the two dead handcars standing on the same track, as revealcd m the flash showing the warden's automobile. It is hardly probable also, that a man turning slate's evidence in an unsuccessful burglary would still be in prison five years after the commission of the crime, especially as a trusty It was forcing a situation to put in as warden of the prison and over the convicted cashier the man who won a wife by reason of his rival's downfall. In the print seen the warden's wife twice descended the stairs from the room where the whistle rope was. It appeared like a retake overlooked. The prison scenes are exciting, and arc well put on. h. H. Calvert was strong as the convicted cashier, although inclined to overact in one or two scenes. Ruth Stonehousc played well in the role of the wife of the warden. "HARD CASH" (Edison), September 26.— There are good situations and strong ones, too. in this two-part adaptation from the novel of Charles Ri-ade. Some of the best of these begin at the point where Captain Dodd, finely portrayed by Charles Ogle, has rescued young Hardic from the burn ■ ing insane asylum and stands on the cliff overlooking the surf below. The picture is well played throughout. Bigelow Cooper, Barry O'Moore, Miss McCoy and Richard Tucker are especailly deserving of mention for good work. An excellent release. "FOR HIS BROTHER'S CRIME" (Ones), Sept. 23.— This two-part feature offering is an artistic production in all save the construction of its story. Its plot is coherent enough and, with the exception of one very weak part, plausible enough to interest. Of the two brothers, both of whom love the same girl, one earns an honest living as a butler. The other, favored of the girl, tries so hard to make a fortune that, being unsuccessful, grows dissipated, becomes a thief, and robs the house of his brother's employer. The fastening of the crime on the good brother won't hold water one minute. The ending in which the good brother gets the widow is a bit too sentimental for most of us. we fear. The picture has some fine scenes, such as an Italian court of justice, Italian prisoners at work. etc. The players are natural; the photography is very clear, and many of the backgrounds are full of beauty. "A MIDNIGHT MESSAGE" (Kalem), Sept. 24.— A picture story notable for the dramatic quality of its action, which is full of suspense, except at the climax, where three persons, an elderly father, his very pretty second wife and his son by a former wife, arc standing together, and a thieving butler has accused the son falsely to the jealous father. This is full of dramatic possibilities and in a play-dialogue would have lengthened the suspense and made it effective; but in the picture tliere are no attempts, so it seems, to explain anything, and the result makes the characters seem stupid and, for a moment, ineffective. The situation is, in the beginning, delightfully introduced and pretty carefully developed. There are clearly-drawn characters, natural acting in distinguished scenes with perfect photography. Alice Joyce's prettiness is also of much use in this picture. Henry Hallem plays the father; Alice Joyce, his second wife; Tom Moore, his son. and James Cooper, his butler. Everyone of thes« is good, especially the last as a character. "SELF-CONVICTED" (Lubin), Sept. 25.— It is a novel idea to give a man who bad escaped from prison and become a detective his own Bertillion identification data and ask him to go out and hunt for himself. This melodramatic picture exists for this. It begins without a love story, although at the time of the climax, the detective has a wife and child, brought in, of course, to give the situation punch. This is already enough to make the offering acceptable, although there are three unnecessary blemishes in it that noticeably weaken it. It wasn't made clear what the hero was doing at the mill when the strike was talked of. If he were a workman, he becomes a traitor, in the atmosphere of the story, to his cause when, after averting a bad strike, be becomes a detective to light all strikes, good or bad. Then, when later he has taken home the "mug" and the finger prints, be loses ner\'e, becomes a coward; there was no conscience in it at all. At the end he shows a flash of nerve; but goes against conscience. Then, to have bis wife play the snoop, was not desirable in a melodrama end harmed our opinion of her. A melodrama should shut its eyes to unpleasant weaknesses in its heroine. It cannot be said that the heroine or any of the cast acted strongly; the heroine is plainly not equal yet to such demands as her part made. The picture is staged very well. "THE INVISIBLE GOVERNMENT" (Selig). Sept. 29.— There is very little that is probable in the story told by this picture; but our interest is kept awake; for with such perfect photography and such careful handling, especially as to staging, it could not be wholly a failure. The players also help it much by their unconstrained acting. They are as natural as the script would let them be; but the script is very unconvincing. This is the second of the "Man in the Street" stories and, while it is a complete story, it assumes that the spectator has seen the former and will understand that the "Man" is a detective. We heard one spectator ask whether he were the District Attorney, which, in the early scenes he seemed to be. Thomas Carrigan carries the detective's role as well as in the first of the series. Frank Weed, as the "Invisible boss." and Jack Nellson, as his son. also do well — the affection of these two, which convinces, is the story's biggest asset. Oscar Eagle produced it.