Screen Opinions (1923-24)

44 SCREEN OPINIONS TELLS THE TRUTH Craig when he grows to be a man, and Mary Ellen is still his sweetheart. This part of the picture is quite ordinary and covers the old story of an attempt to swindle the townspeople out of their property in a fake oil deal, with the usual finale of the unexpected gusher. Neither the adaptation of the poem nor the direction is what it might be, consequently the leading players, Helen Jerome Eddy and Elliott Dexter suffer an unfavorable appearance, and Miss Eddy is photographed from the wrong angle in almost every instance throughout the picture. This is a wholesome production and should do well in neighborhood houses. STORY OF THE PLAY John Craig, while rummaging through the attic of his home, finds an old Christmas card that recalls childhood days, and while he sits smoking he lives in memory of the days when he and Mary Ellen Anderson, now his wife, played together in their home town. Then comes a lapse of years when both are grown and Jack is the proprietor of a newspaper in a small town, and an old school friend, who has developed a get-rich-quick scheme, makes him treasurer for moneys extracted from the townspeople on a fake oil scheme. Jack is saved from disgrace! by being apprised of the scheme by a relative of the schemer, but while he is withholding th money PROGRAM COPY — “An Old Sweetheart of Mine” — With an All-Star Cast You will like the screen setting of the James Whitcomb Riley poem, “An Old Sweetheart of Mine,” with its scenes from childhood, the schoolhouse, the old swimmin’ hole and various other reminiscent scenes. Pat Moore, Mary Jane Irving, Elliott Dexter and Helen Jerome Eddy there is a lucky strike of oil. « “BAVU”— [Class A] 80% (Adapted from play of same name) Story: — Romance and Adventures of Russian Revolution VALUE Photography — Very good — Allen Davey. TYPE OF PICTURE — Sensational. Moral Standard — Average. Story — Very good — Melodrama — Family. Cast — Very good — All-Star, with Wallace Beery, Estelle Taylor and Forrest Stanley. Author — Very good — Earl Carroll. Direction — Very good — Stuart Paton. Adaptation — Very good — Raymond L. Schrock and Albert G* Kenyon. Technique — Very good. Spiritual Influence — Neutral. Felix Bavu . . . . Princess Annia Mischka Vleck. Olga Stropik. . Prince Markoff Kuroff Piplette Shadow Michael Revno. May 1 to 15, 1923. Producer — Universal Footage — 6,968 ft. Our Opinion MORAL O’THE PICTURE— None Outstanding. CAST Wallace Beery Estelle Taylor Forrest Stanley Sylvia Breamer Joseph Swickard Nick De Ruiz Martha Mattox Harry Carter Jack Rollens Distributor — Universal Entertaining Melodrama Excels in Character Development The very name of the Russian revolution suggests melodrama, and so “Bavu” lives up to what is expected of it, and perhaps a bit more — it is a production out of which the exhibitor as well as the producer should have a great deal of satisfaction; it is well made. Wallace Beery, in the title role, outlines a forceful character in a sufficiently forceful manner to cause the part to to remembered— Bavu, the barbarous, cunning revolutionist, loving only one thing on earth, and that a woman who becomes a victim of a trap set by him for another. Forrest Stanley also does well as Mischka Vleck, the heroic character of the play, and Estelle Taylor, as Princess Annia, loved by Mischka, her father’s servant, and rescued when her father’s palace is visited by the deathdealing mob, gives a delightful performance. The picture has many points of excellence; it is extremely realistic and often gruesome, as, for instance, where Olga, Bavu’s sweetheart, is walled into the treasure vault. STORY OF THE PLAY Bavu, a brutal Russian and would-be leader of the mob during the revolution, is beaten by the vote of the people, and Mischka Vleck, a servant in the home of a Russian prince, is chosen in his place. With a view to inciting the mob against Mischka, Bavu shoots a citizen and then tells that Mischka committed the deed. In the events of the story the angered mob follows Bavu, entering the palace of Mischka’s employer and murdering all in sight. Princess Annia is rescued by Mischka, and in an attempt to gain possession of a certain seal necessary for the stamping of a passport to aid them to flee the country, they are trapped in the home of Bavu. Believing Mischka to be hiding in a treasure vault, Bavu has the vault walled up, and his sweetheart, Olga, perishes therein. Bavu is killed in a fight with Mischka, and the lovers finally make their way to freedom. PROGRAM COPY— “Bavu”— With an All-Star Cast “Bavu,” a thrilling tale of the recent Russian revolution, will keep you at the edge of your seat from start to finish. Wallace Beery, Estelle Taylor and Forrest Stanley head the cast. Don’t miss this one. t No Advertising Support Accepted!