Pictures and the Picturegoer (Jan-Dec 1925)

82 Pictures and Pichjrespver What QaYou Think? YOUR VIEWS AND " \Y/hy will these film stars disguise themselves so much? In the last film in which I saw Gloria Swanson, she did her hair in at least five different styles. Queries And why will Unlimited. they dress out of keeping? In the same film Miss Swanson who had gone to inspect some oil fields, wore in the evenings dresses that even the most luxurious woman would envy. And .as for the general American production, I don't consider it a patch on any English films. Witness Gwynefh of the Welsh Hills and then you will see the difference. What do you think?" R. S. H. {Longford) " Tt has occurred to me while seeing one of the Song pictures that the two arts do not properly synchronise ; I find one jars on the other. ' The mind is Down With incapable of taking Song Films. in more than one set of word symbols at once, and one has to choose between the singer and the film. One cannot read the subtitles and follow the song intelligently at the same time. At the same time orchestral music does not react in this manner being mostly taken in a semiconscious, dreamy fashion which does not serve for vocal music. One may listen to an orchestra and carry ©n a conversation, doing both intelligently but it is impossible to read and follow the words of a song at the same time. Has any other reader noted this?" 11'. A. D. {Liverpool). " I— lave you noticed how, after a Charlie Chaplin film, for the next 12 months Charlie's ideas are served up again and again in all forms ? Now do Dayliyht you think this is Robbery. fair? I think the public should show their disapproval of such injustice. Last evening I went to see The Destroying Angel, and as Leah Baird stands on the platform waiting for a lover (who doesn't turn up) the train comes in and the lights are shown on her face and on the wall — Charlie's idea taken straight from A Woman of Paris. Isn't there some law to prevent this kind of thing? It's enough to keep our little comedian from utilising his original ideas. Ditto with The Marriage Circle and countless others. I'd like to know what others think." Ethna {Cardiff). " \X/'iat ^° y°u thmk about devoting this page next month to readers' solutions of the German mystery film Warning Shadows. The aforesaid solutions An Ingenious would be so diverse Suggestion. and give all you people connected with the film industry an idea of how many filmgoers take the cinema seriously. My theory is this : Warning Shadozvs represents an allegory. Jealpus Husband — Germany; Wife — France ; Lover — England ; Cavaliers— Our allies, Japan, Italy and Spain ; Maidservant — Belgium; Manservant (with face reminiscent of JANUARY 1925 war-time Huns) who binds the Wife — Bolshevik Russia; the other Manservant who pleads, a forlorn remnant of Imperial Russia; Mesmerist— America trying to show Europe the folly of petty jealousy. " ""The Chinese silhouettes might have forecast China's Civil War, the Chinese holding the wool representing the industrial side doing It Might— And awa>' with the idIe Again It Might f I e a s" r ,e " Not. loving Manchus (the other figure being by his dress obviously a mandarin). Well that might have been interpolated with the main story to show that for the present the Yellow Peril is somewhat remote. China insular to the backbone is quite content with looking after her own affairs and won't bother about us, and does not want us to bother about her. The jealous husband having so many swords in his study might mean a polite hint that in the event of another war, Germany will have enough arms to supply us all and we had better look out, or go on making weapons of destruction ourselves." Thinker {London). "T wish the British film industry was not at such a low ebb, for there really is more scope for good film stories in this little island than all the rest of the Of Course ! world put together and including those British film making in America and Germany, enough local talent to compete with any other race under the sun." Hamlet {Westminster). " A propos of the 'Big Twelve,' I consider that such a question is simply asking for trouble ! Of Course, if you want lists of everyone's favourite ' stars,' you are certainly setting about it in the right way of thinking, ' Tandy ' does not seem able to distinguish between talent and genius. Filmdom does not contain a dozen to whom the word genius may truthfully be applied. I hand the palm to Ramon N o v a r r o amongst actors and Rex Ingram amongst producers. Gooseberry {Ches.)} THE THINKER. / Plead Guilty. way ! To my