Moving Picture World (Jan-Feb 1927)

February 5, 1927 HEROISM AND ADVENTURE of members of the police force has served as the basis for a lot of good melodramas and so has the life of the fire laddies. In the Gotham Production “Heroes of the Night” there is the combined drawing power of the two for the story deals with two brothers, one a policeman and the other a fireman and between the various adventures that befalls the two in their routine of duty, plus their rivalry over the love of a girl, there is something doing every minute, and the result is a melodrama that ranks well above the average. Of course there are a couple of fires, with Carl Laemmle presents “Tlie Perch of the Devil” With Mae Busch and Pat O'Malley Based on novel by Gertrude Atherton Directed by King Baggott A UniversalJewel Production CAST: Ida Hook Mae Busch Gregory Pat O’Malley Ora Blake Jane Winton Lord Mobray Theodore Von Eltz Slarchesc Mario Carillo Freddy Lincoln Steadman Charley Lee George Kuwa Length — 6,807 Feet Ida, a mining camp girl, marries Gregory when he is poor and when he strikes it rich, Ora, w'ho has fallen in love with him, causes an estrangement. Ida learns the truth and attacks Ora but saves her life when both are caught in a flood in the mine shaft. Stirring melodrama. A NOVEL BY ZANE GREY furnishes Tom Mix with an excellent vehicle in “The Last Trail" his newest western for William Fox.” Characteristic of Zane Grey’s works, there is plenty of action and interest. The story opens with two pals engaged in fighting Indians and later they get together, fighting stage coach bandits. The pal is killed, Tom adopts his young son, and eventually ferrets out the bandits and brings them to justice, and of course wins the right girl. The Indian fight makes a good opening MOVING PICTURE WORLD thrilling rescues, scaling ladders, life nets, etc. and these scenes are mighty well handled with real thrills. They also have the additional advantage of being worked legitimately into the story, and the same is true to an encounter with a burglar and a raid, that falls to the lot of the policeman. The fight with the burglar who seeks refuge in the cop’s home and intimidates his mother, is corking good stuff, genuinely dramatic with hair-trigger suspense. It hardly seems probable that these two lads would not have known they were loving the same girl, however, this serves as a good basis for enough action and adventure, romance and heroism to more than make up for any plot weakness. Cullen Landis as the fireman and Rex Iease as the cop, both do good work, and as is seldom the case with screen brothers, bear a striking likeliness to each other. A DAPTED FROM A NOVEL by the D well-known writer, Gertrude Atherton, the Universal-Jewel production, “Perch of the Devil,” is an interesting melodrama of a vamp’s attempts to win a man away from his wife, which works up to a fine thrill climax. The title refers to a mining town situated on a hillside and the story concerns a very ordinary but ambitious dance hall girl who marries a man above her in the social scale. A scheming society woman sees in the wife’s dissatisfaction a chance to win the husband and she adopts the novel means of taking the wife to Europe, seeking to have her fall in love with someone else and when the husband strikes it rich, making it appear that the wife is cold and mercenary. It all comes out satisfactorily and there is a corking good climax where the scene and there is fine punch in the running fight with the bandits who attack the stage coach, with Tom coming to the rescue. He cleverly outwits them at every turn, including an attempt to burn his home, but he escapes through a tunnel with the little boy. He captures one of the gang, learns the identity of the leader and then wins a stage coach race so that the girl’s father keeps the contract for the run. The race between several stage coaches is well handled with some real thrills when they turn over, even Tom’s vehicle not being immune. There is an exciting stunt where he climbs down on the wagon tongue and in danger of being hit by the horses, grabs the reins. Tom Mix fans, and all who like westerns and action-adventure films of the great open spaces will like “The Last Trail.” 447 Marion Nixon is attractive and appealing as the girl. Audiences that like thrill-action melodrama should find “Heroes of the Night” thoroughly satisfying. Sam Sax presents “Heroes of the Night” Directed by Frank O’Connor A Gotham Production CAST: Joe Riley Cullen Landis Mary Allen Marion Nixon Tom Biley Rex Lease Jack Nicholas Wheeler Oakman Mrs. Riley Sarah Padden. Marty Allen I. p. Loekney Length — 6,500 Feet Two brothers, Joe a fireman and Tom, a policeman, unknown to each other, love thesame .girl; both prove heroes in spectacular complications but Tom wins out. A corking melodrama. two women fight in a mine shaft which is. gradually filling up with water, and finally the wife drags the other woman to safety.. The work of the principals is good and adds much to the entertainment value. Mae Busch is cast as the wife, Jane Winton as the vamp and most of the action and interest lies between these two, as Pat O’Malley’s role as the husband is subordinate. None of the characters get your entire sympathy, nor is the story entirely convincing, there is good characterization and the interest is held. It should prove a popular attraction with the average patronage. William Fox presents Tom Mix in “The Last Trail” Based on novel by Zane Grey A ILew Seiler Production CAST: Tom Dane Tom Mix Nila Carrol Carmelita Geraghty Morley William Davidson Ben Ligget Frank S. Hagney Joe Pascal Lee Shumway Fete Robert Brower Tom Jerry the Giant Carrol Oliver Eckhardt Length — 5,100 Feet Tom, a sheriff, is in. love with Nita, whose father runs the stage line, and despite crooked work he succeeds in Winning a stage race on which the contract depends, then he rides after and arrests Morley, the head bandit and rescues Nita. Stirring action western. “Heroes of the Night” Unusually Exciting Thrill-Action Melodrama of the Adventures of Firemen and Policemen “Perch of the Devil” King Baggot Makes Interesting Adaptation of Gertrude Atherton Novel, With Thrill Climax “The Last Trial” Fast-Moving and Exciting Entertainment Offered in Tom Mix Western Based on a Zane Grey Novel