Screen Opinions (1923-24)

"BOOK THE NEW PERCENTAGE WAY" 69 Our Opinion MORAL O'THE PICTURE— None. Best of Viola Dana’s Recent Pictures — Good Comedy in Amusing Situation Viola Dana fans are going to be well pleased with her latest screen effort, “Her Fatal Millions,” which gives her plenty of opportunity for the cute business that she knows so well how to put over. She is supported by a capable cast who have been wisely selected to portray the various types. Kate Price, for instance, who plays Amos Bishop’s nineteen-year-lost wife, was never funnier than in “Her Fatal Millions”; nor has Edward Connelley ever fitted an eccentric role any better than he does the character of the grouchy Amos Bishop. Huntly Gordon gives a pleasing portrayal of the story’s lover, and Allan Forrest, as the married man whose extravagant wife causes him to step from the straight road and become a thief, does acceptably well with a role that does not quite suit him. The chief situation of the story is humorous as well as sensational, and causes the heroine to be taken to the home of a rich man whose wife she has pretended to be when she meets with an accident. This is a good general purpose feature. STORY OF THE PLAY Mary Bishop, a small-town girl, receives word that her lover, who has been absent from town for several years, is returning. Anxious to appear prosperous before Fred Garrison, whp is now a rich man, Mary borrows a pearl necklace from her employer without permission, and also a set of furs from another party. Both articles require to be returned by five o’clock in order to avoid their absence from accustomed places being noticed. An accident to the automobile in which she is riding with Fred causes her to be taken to the home of Amos Bishop, a grouchy old millionaire whose wife she has pretended to be in her effort to appear indifferent to Fred. The complications that occur include the return of a long-lost wife to Amos, a theft of bonds and finally Mary’s clever manipulation of affairs which gets her out of her trouble and makes her the wife of Fred. PROGRAM COPY— “Her Fatal Millions”— Featuring Viola Dana When Mary Bishop pretended to be the wife of a rich old man, she didn’t count on accidents which sometimes cause unhappy complications. Come and see just what did happen when her automobile skidded across the path of fate. Viola Dana is the star. “ROMANCE OF THE REPUBLIC”— [Educational] 80% (Review of ten departments of U. S. Government in action) Producer — Instructive Film Society of America Footage — 10,000 ft. Distributor — Not given Our Opinion MORAL O’THE PICTURE— Know Your Country. Interesting Compilation of Facts Regarding the Governmental Machinery of Our Country Not Generally Known If the material contained in “Romance of the Republic” could be carefully trimmed, eliminating a number of superfluous scenes, such as the frequent injection of Mr. and Mrs. Citizen, presenting facts briefly, concisely and dramatically, a great and useful film would be the result. However, Captain Julius Frankenberg, who is associated with Harry L. Knappen in the Instructive Film Society of America, undertook an unwieldy task in the direction of a film which places before the public in concrete and understandable shape the motive power that keeps the machinery of the great American government in ceaseless and progressive motion, and is deserving of praise. The titles of the film, aglow with the patriotic spirit, are a bit too long, and many of the subjects of the film, such as the treasury department, the post office department, aerial views of the navy, bombs dropped from above exploding in the water, and reviews of infantry, and cavalry have been seen before, but the picture also contains sufficient that is new to the average spectator to hold his interest. The identification of mutilated bank bills, scenes of the Walter Reed Hospital at Washington, modernized American Indians at v/ork in the department on Indian affairs, the hoisting and recharging of life buoys, a revelation in the death instruments of radicals, collected by the secret service, and innumerable scenes from the different departments of the government are intensely interesting. But outside of any criticism which may be offered, the fact remains that “Romance of the Republic,” made with a view not only toward the enlightenment of our own people, but of the peoples of other nations on (Continued on next page) No Advertising Support Accepted!