Screen Opinions (1923-24)

164 “BOOK THE NEW PERCENTAGE WAY” soldier. But when Walter is ordered home she becomes the victim of Godunoff, leader of the reds in Siberia, who forces her to marry him, promising to spare the life of Leonidoff, whom he has sentenced to death. Leonidoff is found dead in his cell, murdered by order of the villainous Godunoff, who is later arrested, but returns to further harass Vera. The arrival of Walter on the scene complicates matters, but with the aid of Winkle, an English tommy and friend of Walter, Vera gets away and boards the boat for America, while Godunoff, accidentally locked in the shrine where Vera goes to pray at her mother’s grave, is left to his fate. PROGRAM COPY — “The Rendezvous” — With Conrad Nagel, Lucille Rickson, Richard Travers and Sydney Chaplin The romance of Vera Tamiroff in Siberia with a handsome American soldier is the sort of love story that will melt your heart. Conrad Nagel, Lucille Rickson, Richard Travers and Sydney Chaplin head the cast. “LULLABY”— [Class A] 80% (Adapted from story of same name) Story: — Tragedy of Innocent Woman Whose Baby Was Born in Prison VALUE CAST Photography — Very good — Jack McKenzie. TYPE OF PICTURE— Depressing. Moral Standard — Average. Story — Very good — Melodrama — Family. Star — Very good — Jane Novak. Author — Very good — Lillian Ducey. Direction — Very good — Chester Bennett. Adaptation — Very good — Hope Loring and Louis D. Lighton. Technique — Very good. Spiritual Influence — Average. Producer — Chester Bennett Felipa Jane Novak Antoinette Jane Novak Tony Robert Anderson Pietro Fred Malatesta Baby Antoinette Dorothy Marion Mack Mrs. Marvin Cleo Madison Thomas Elliott Otis Harlan Thomas, Jr Peter Burke Mary Lydia Yeamans Titus February 1 to 15, 1924. Distributor — F. B. O. Footage — 7,000 ft. Our Opinion MORAL O’THE PICTURE — Our Responsibility Should Encompass the Lives of Others. Well-Made Production Is Too Harrowing — Jane Novak and Robert Anderson Score There is no question about the drawing quality of “The Lullaby,” which has been directed by Chester Bennett in his best style. We believe, however, that the majority of people will find it too depressing to be genuinely entertained by it. The opening scenes give a pleasing description of the arrival of the heroine from Italy to marry her Tony, and of the first happy moments in a home shared by Pietro, Tony’s friend, who afterward proves the undoing of the happy couple. From the point in the story where Tony shoots and kills Pietro because he attacked Felipa, the situation in which Felipa, about to become a mother, is sentenced to twenty years in prison, and Tony is sentenced to be hanged, becomes intensely harrowing. The parting of husband and wife, and later the parting of mother and child, at the order of the new warden, is equally depressing. The picture is artistically made, and Jane Novak, as wife and mother, is a thing of beauty. Robert Anderson is convincing as Tony, and Fred Malatesta, in the thankless role of Pietro, does well. Then there are Otis Harlan, Lydia Yeamans Titus, and last, but not least, the sweetest baby girl of probably two years of age, Dorothy Marion Mack, who seems totally unconscious that she is before the camera. It is a marvel to see how her actions are made to fit the situation. Lovely closeups of Jan Novak are good to see. STORY OF THE PLAY Pretty Felipa arrives from Italy to marry her lover, Tony, who lives with his friend, Pietro Martini. All is well, and Tony is smuggling a cradle into the house when he hears his wife’s call for help and discovers her struggling to free herself from Pietro. In the events that follow Tony shoots Pietro, who, with his dying breath tells the police that Felipa and Tony killed him for his money. The result is that Felipa is sent to prison for twenty years, and Tony is sentenced to die. A child born in prison is taken from Felipa when it is about two years old, and is adopted by the judge who passed sentence on her. Years later Felipa steals a page from the record of the orphanage where the child was first taken, and learns for the first time by whom her child has been adopted. She goes to the judge’s house meaning to kill him, but realizing that her child’s happiness is at stake, she leaves again and is found unconscious in the grounds. The closing scenes reveal the truth and constitute a happy ending. PROGRAM COPY— “The Lullaby”— Featuring Jane Novak Life in America seemed a paradise to Felipa, a pretty immigrant bride, until tragedy appeared on the scene and prison walls and death placed a barrier between her and happiness. Jane Novak is the star of “The Lullaby,” a forceful drama of mother love. No Advertising Support Accepted!