Picture-Play Magazine (Jul - Dec 1929)

. ■' 1 HjJttKiuLl! A Confidential Guide to Current Releases WHAT EVERY FAN SHOULD SEE "She Goes to War"— United Artists. Incidental sound. War picture with unusual story and magnificent acting, in which a girl dons her drunken fiance's uniform and goes to hattle, and is awakened to real life. Alma Rubens and Eleanor Boardman give fine performances, and the talents of Edmund Burns are brought out. John Holland, Al St. John, Yola d'Avril, Glen Walters, Eulalie Jensen. "Studio Murder Mystery, The" — Paramount. All dialogue. Film studio crime unraveled by gag man and police, with suspense, many laughs, and after suspicion points to five persons, a satisfactory solution is hit upon. Xeil Hamilton in leading role gives engaging performance, Fredric March the murdered actor. Florence Eldridge's talking debut. Warner Oland, Doris Hill, Lane Chandler, Eugene Pallette, Chester Conklin. "Where East Is East" — Metro-Goldwyn. Silent. Troubles of a jungle animal hunter, who seeks happiness for his untamed daughter. Lon Chaney as you would expect him, Lupe Velez, and Estelle Taylor in a brilliant role. Lloyd Hughes also at his best. Splendid atmosphere and a picture to see. "Man I Love, The"— Paramount. All dialogue. Striking film of prize fighter's drifting and his come-back in the nick of time. Richard Arlen's pleasing talkie debut as the fighter who is captivated by Baclanova, but in the end knows heart is with his wife, Mary Brian. Swiftly presented, engrossing. Leslie Fenton effective. "On With the Show"— Warner. All dialogue, singing, dancing, and entirely in color besides. Gayety and beauty of musical corned)-, with young love of an usher and coat-room girl, with other issues galore. Entire cast does well. Betty Compson, Louise Fazenda, Sally O'Neil, Joe E. Brown, William Bakewell, Arthur Lake, Wheeler Oakman, Sam Hardy, Ethel Waters. "Bulldog Drummond" — United Artists. All dialogue. A melodramatic thriller, witli sophisticated viewpoint which makes fun of what transpires. Story of bored ex-war hero, who advertises for adventure and gets it. Ronald Colman vitalized and remade by speech, giving memorable performance, ably seconded by Joan Bennett, Lilyan Tashman, and Montagu Love. "Madame X" — Metro-Goldwyn. All dialogue. Old-time melodrama of mother love superbly vivified by fresh dialogue, modern direction, and superb acting, with Ruth Chatterton and Raymond Hackett as mother and son reaching heights of tear-wringing emotion in famous courtroom scene, where wretched woman charged with murder is defended by son taught to believe her dead. Lewis Stone, Eugenie Besserer, Mitchell Lewis, Holmes Herbert, and Ulrich Haupt. "Valiant, The"— Fox. All dialogue. Grimly uncompromising picture notable for introduction to screen of Paul Muni, whose place among leaders now is unchallenged. Story of murderer's efforts to convince sister that her brother is not himself, but a soldier who died a hero. Marguerite Churchill also fine, and John Mack Brown does well. "Pagan, The" — Metro-Goldwyn. Singing. Treat for Ramon Novarro's fans and justification of all they've read of his singing voice, which is delightful, exceptional. Story of young South Sea Islander's love for half-caste girl. Dorothy Janis, Renee Adoree, and Donald Crisp. "Close Harmony" — Paramount. All dialogue. Lively, up-to-date medley of backstage life, shrewd, clever, entertaining, with best performance Charles Rogers has given in talkies, and another by Nancy Carroll. Jack Oakie, "Skeets" Gallagher, and Harry Green. "Trial of Mary Dugan, The"— MetroGoldwyn. All dialogue. Courtroom drama glorified in baffling mystery murder of a chorus girl's lover. Norma Shearer excellent in talkie debut, as accused girl. Raymond Hackett, a newcomer, Lewis Stone, H. B. Warner, Lilyan Tashman give fine support. "Coquette"— United Artists. All dialogue. The "new" Mary Pickford, in fancy frocks and bob, essays a flirt whose actions create drama in a smalltown Southern family. John Mack Brown, John St. Polis, Matt Moore. "Rainbow Man, The" — Paramount. All dialogue. An irresistible picture, with finely balanced sentiment and fun, with Eddie Dowling, the stage star, and his young partner, F.ankie Darro, in minstrel-show settings. They find Marian Nixon and love and trouble. Dowling is a knock-out. "Divine Lady, The" — First National. Silent. A series of exquisite paintings animated with poetic feeling and a little drama. Lovely presentment of "Lady Hamilton" by Corinne Griffith and finely modulated "Lord Nelson" by Victor Yarconi. H. B. Warner, Ian Keith, Montagu Love, Dorothy dimming, Marie Dressier. "Alibi"— United Artists. All dialogue. Crook picture, played and directed with distinction. A cop's daughter sympathizes with underworld, marries a crook, but is soon disillusioned in a thrilling climax. Chester Morris, Eleanor Griffith, Pat O'Malley, Regis Toomey supply high lights in action and talk. "Wild Orchids"— Metro-Goldwyn. Silent. Greta Garbo in her best role, rather slow, but impelled by adult emotions. Java beautifully pictured. Nils Asther and Lewis Stone. Triangular love situation, a wife's admirer punished. "Letter, The"— Paramount. Entertaining eloquence and dramatic situa tions make this a milestone in all-dialogue 1 1 1 n i > . and bring t < . tin screen the gifted Jeanne Eagels. \ civilized picture showing tin wrecked lives of an English couple in Singapore. cast devoid of cut its includes 0. I'. Heggie, Reginald Owen, and Herbert Marshall. "Iron Mask, The"--L"nitcd Artist! \ picturesque tapestry, sequel to "The Three Musketeers." superbly exploiting Douglas Fairbanks. Story from Dumas revolves around the throne of seventeenth-century France. Marguerite de la Motte, Dorothy Revier, William Bakewell, and Ulrich Haupt. "Broadway Melody, The"— MetroGoldwyn. An extraordinarily entertaining musical-comedy picture, human in its appealing story of stage life, with dialogue, song and spectacle. Concerning two sisters with ambitions to make Broadway, and a song-and-dance artist from their home town, and their careers and loves. Bessie Love, Anita Page, and Charles King top-notch. "Doctor's Secret, The" — Paramount. Talkie version of a stage play with Ruth Chatterton achieving distinction in her talking-celluloid debut. Oldfashioned story of bridge-building lover and frustrated elopement with dramatic situations. Excellent support by H. B. Warner, Robert Edeson, John Loder, Ethel Wales, Xanci Price. "In Old Arizona"— Fox. An all-dialogue picture, most of it occurring in the open, it is in a class by itself — superlative. Story of a calico "Carmen," her passing love for a Portuguese cattle thief, and her betrayal of him to an American soldier. Gripping, picturesque, amusing, tragic; superb performances by Warner Baxter and Edmund Lowe, with interesting support from Dorothy Burgess, a newcomer. "Shopworn Angel, The"— Paramount. Simple story of ingenuous soldier in love with sophisticated chorus girl who gradually responds to his idealistic worship, but hasn't courage to tell him truth about herself. Acted with rare feeling, delicacy and intelligence by Gary Cooper, Nancy Carroll, and Paul Lukas, with complete absence of the maudlin. Mr. Cooper heard for first time in talking sequence. He's there! FOR SECOND CHOICE "Four Feathers, The"— Paramount. Silent. English soldier loses his nerve before Sudan war, but later proes to the jungles to redeem himself in the eyes of fiancee and friends. Authentic, thrilling sequences made in the wilds, around which picture is cleverly built. Fay Wray, Richard Arlen, Give Brook, William Powell. Noah Beery. Philippe de Lacy. "Black Watch, The"— Fox. All dialogue. Pictorially magnificent film about English soldier on the Afghan [Continued on pasrc 11«]