The Moving picture world (November 1925-December 1925)

December 5, 1925 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 483 "Irish Luck" — Paramount Tom Meighan's Made-In-Treland Melodrama Has More Than Usual Allowance of Action You may not be superstitious, but you'll Reviewed by Epes W. Sargent Tom Donahue, a Fifth Avenue traffic admit that there is luck in the sham . ^ „„„„„ • , i i. • * policeman, wins a trip to Ireland in „ ^1 J • T to the scenes m Killarney, a pleasant mter ^ ' . tt i i .-i t j rock, if It IS personally gathered m Ire , ,• r u i c ■ -i ^ j a newspaper contest. He looks like Lord ,1 1 r T polation of a bunch of juvenile rooters for ; u i i ui i X. land. Certainly it was good luck for Tom tu-, „ .i, ^ n u Fitzhugh, nephew of a nobleman, who has . , , / 1 ■ " T • u T 1 u »^ their favorite cop that gets over well, but , , • r ■„ ■ r r i. Me.ghan for hegets m Irish Luck a better ^^^^ ^ cut him out of his will in favor of h.s vehicle that he has had for a year or two. g^ace, yet, somehow, the picture is On h.s deathbed the Earl longs to Just why this should be so is not clearly ^^^^ ^^^^^^ j,^^^ Meighan's make up with Fitzhugh. Fitzhugh s sister, apparent. The plot is trite meldorama. It recent average Gwendolyn, meets Tom and takes him back has been offered scores of times, and often „„„„ „, , ] „ ,, „„ .„ „ „,„ , to Killarney with her and when Fitzhugh with much more vivid action. It is not the Cast fails to appear persuades Tom to imperson authentic backgrounds, for twice the story Tom Donah ne. ) Thomas Meighan ^tc him and gains the fortune. Eventually is halted with a travelogue first in Dublin ^orA PitzhuKh ) Tom frees Fitzhugh who has been lured to J ,, . T7-*ii T-> ^1 • i — IjUdy Gwen€lol5ii Lois Wilson t^.,, , . • , and then in Killarney. Both are interesting Douglas Cecil Humphreys Killarney and wins the girl. and the latter really beautiful. It is not solicitor Claude King Lois Wilson has seldom been more delight the star himself, for he is still the same Karl Emcst Lawford ful than as Gwen. Cecil Humphreys is far Meighan with the pleasing personality he Doctor Charles Hammond remote from the typical villain, and yet ex always affects. It is not the acting of the uncVe s.^B"'car*rickson cellently bad, and Ernest Lawford has a few cast, for while uniformly good, it is not Denis MacSwincy Charles McDonald powerful scenes as the dying Earl. startlingly so. Kate MacSwiney Mary Foy There are some finely done double ex In a word, you don't know just why you tuised on masraxine story, "An Imperfect im posures and dozens of scenes of rare like it, but you do. There is a certain see,?ario by''Thomarx Ger^^^^^^ photographic beauty, but sincere direction, smoothness to the advancement of the action Directed by victor Heerman. which carries conviction, seems to be the (when it does advance), a certain conviction Lengrth — 7,oo.s feet. chief merit of the story. "The Only Thing" — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Eleanor Boardman and Conrad Nagel in Colorful And Pleasing Elinor Glyn Story of Ardent Love IN her newest production for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, "The Only Thing," Elinor Glyn is offering a romantic story laid in a mythical kingdom, based on a story written by her and directed by Jack Conway under her supervision. Eleanor Boardman and Conrad Nagle are cast in the leading roles. Like the majority of her stories, "The Only Thing" is a story of extremely ardent love that makes light of seemingly insurmountable difficulties to win its ends. There is no stressing of the sex angles the whole story centering on the romantic lines. A handsome and titled Englishman visits a Balkan kingdom and falls madly in love with a young princess who has come to marry the elderly, grouchy and ugly king. He determines to save her even against her will and so daring and ardent is his lovemaking that she is about to consent when she determines that duty to the state comes first. A revolution occurs and the hero when he finds that death has been decreed for all aristocrats, who are tied in pairs and send out to drown in leaky barges, contrives to be paired with her. A warship sent by her country saves them and they find happiness together. Cast Princess Thyra Eleanor Boardman Dnke of Chevenix Conrad IVnKel Kins' Edward Connelly Sir Charles iHiuis liayne GIgrberto Arthur Edmund Carewe Princess Erek Vera I^ewis Princess Anne Carrie Clarke Ward Governess Dale Filler Gibson IVed Sparks Prinme Minister Mario Cnrillo Maid I Mary Hawcs Story by Eleanor Glyn. Directed by Jack Conway. Length — 5,824 feet. Reviewed by C. S. Sewell A feature of this production is the remarkable quality of the photography and the striking pictorial effects produced in a number of scenes by the simplicity and scarcity of the furnishings in the castle scenes and the striking contrasts in black and white. The use of black back drops and even black flooring causes the figure to stand out in cameo-like relief. Naturally in a story of this kind there are some large exterior sets and the revolutionary sequences present opportunities for the use of mobs of several hundred persons. The romantic angle of the story is pleasing and will especially delight the romantically inclined. There are a number of humorous touches growing legitimately out of the story. The revolutionary sequences with the rise of the peasants, the setting up of a ragamuffin tribunal and the treatment of the aristocrats strongly suggests the French revolution but the hero's steam yacht and the arrival of a modern battleship brings the action up-to-date. We have never seen Eleanor Boardman look more beautiful than she does as the Princess and certainly Conrad Nagel was never so handsome as in his court uniform and wearing a tiny mustache. He is certainly a sight to make the feminine hearts flutter. Both give exceptionally fine performances and the other roles in the large cast are well handled. Arthur Edmund Carewe appears as the revolutionary leader, Edward Connelly as the king and Ned Sparks as the hero's valet. The story is highly improbable and manifestly intended solely to entertain. With its ardent dashing, sweeping romance, colorful settings, melodramatic mob stuff and touches of humor, and the fine acting of the cast it should accomplish its purpose, and especially delight the romantically inclined. "The Big Parade" (Continued from page 480) ling of the most spectacular scene with hundreds of men, guns, wagons, etc., produce the impression that it is all real, that it is war as it is, with its horror, tragedy and grim relentlessness, with its beauty, heroism and romance. Truly a remarkable picture, one to fill the box-office to overflowing, for all, even the most nervous female will be caught and transported, along in its majestic sweep. (lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllillllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllH^ Look These Over! Big Parade, The — Metro-Goldwyfi-Maycr. Hogan's Alley — Warner Brothers. Irish Luck — Paramount. Morals for Men — Tiffany Productions. Only Thing, The — Metro-Gold w^-Maycr. Scrappin' Kid, The — Universal. U nguarded Hour, ' The — First National. Wages for Wives' — William Fox. Wyoming Wildcat, The — Film Booking Offices. iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii^