Variety (Sep 1932)

Tuesday, September 13, 1932 (L Ml REVIEWS VARIETY 19 OKAY AMERICA Universal production and roleoso, starring Lew Ayres, .and. featuring Maureen O'Sulli- van, Directed by -Tay Oarnett from story and. adaptation by William Anthony Mo Outre,. Continuity by. Scott Pembroke: cam- era, Arthur Miller. Running time, 80 min- utes; at the Paramount, N. Y„ week com- inenclnff_Septi 0. ..'..Lew Ayrea Maureen O'Sulllvan Louis Calhern. Larry Wayne Miss Barton.... Mlleaway Rosso City Editor...., Jones,, Alsfctto Joe Morton.,,,.,. Ruth Drake...... Drake............ Mrs. Drake...;,.., President......... Commissioner.. Mrs. Wright...... (3am . ; Obituary.......... Jerry. Bobbins.... Phyllis..... Baron. ©'Toole •Walter Catlott .............Allan DIneliart Edward Arnold .. . . ....Hollo Lloyd .Margaret Lindsay ......Wallls Clarke Nance O'Neill . ,. .Frederlo Burton ... .Frank Sheridan ,. .Marjorle Oatcson ...'.Henry. Armetta .George Dow Clark ...Emerson Treacy ....... .Ruth Lyons . ..Berton Churchill .Frank Darlen Also Onslow Stevens, James Flavin.. Al Hall, William Daly, Neely Edwards.. Caryl Lincoln, the Three Cheers, the Bluettes, find Everett Hoagland's Band. <A lightweight picture. Ayrea is stilted as the columnist and, follow- ingspr7inchellesque personations by Fairbanks, Jr., In 'Love is a Racket,' Cortez In 'Is My Face Red?' and most notably, the corking perform- ance by Lee Tracy In 'Blessed Event,* not only does Ayres suffer in comparison, personally, but the sum total la eclipsed, by what has preceded It, particularly the last preceded It. 'Okay America,'* With perhaps ,the best picture title of any of them, Is ft sluggish proceeding: at best. Mc- Guire, the author, sought to cram in everything, including the Lindbergh kidnapping—in this case it's a cabi- net member's daughter—and the Capone mob's bargaining with the President of the United States along with the usual underworld and mob stuff. It's too much for one picture.' What almost every Dim maker has lost sight .of) in this columnist cycle, seems to have been the necessity to concisely characterize " this new journalistic upstart. Either he's a snooping buttlnsky whom everybody resent 3 .-or there should be' some , sorlpt compromise for "his noBlness, for < benefit of box office sympathy. In ah'.'endeavor to too literally ad- herd,' to what is believed to be the authentic, real-life v Columnist's ex- istence, his- becomes' a vacillating, chameleon-like "character • of -many hues, and moods. ~ The . actual Broadway columnist Is a more or .less innocuous person. If he becomes.invblved in too much hot water with the 'mob,' he .knows what to forget, or else. - After all; in. a city like New York, it's the mob that dominates in the control of most of the spots where congre- gate the personalities who make copy tor the town's gosslpers. Stepping on the corns of any jfseudo-rltz playboy or girl is fraught with hone of the headaches: entailed in cross- ing the mob, and,, with perhaps one exception in the past, all the col- utnnlzers know where to draw tho line. The snooping and the chit-chat that is the supposed whyfore and wherefore of the new type of col- umnist is In the main innocuous, for all the propaganda to. the contrary. It's chiefly concerned .faith' public- ity-hungry or seeking, personalities, and with the stock few about whom almost anything can be said, and who, by that very fact alone,' have been blown up into names that look good in print, . However, under Hollywood influ- ence, inspired in a measure by the eastern 'dramatic and fiction slant on the central character, the Win- chell type of cOlmunlst is a hybrid, at times a cross-between a Rover Boy and Deadshb^ Dick who always gets his man, or,'when the situa- tion warrants, a rascal who stops at nothing to' tear .reputations to Bhreds. That's the rather vague hue given Ayres' characterization of Larry Wayne, and Jus as uncertainly col- ored by the player. At first he's alto- gether dull, although something a softie in suppressing one story, and atrthe same time an egoistic by-liner who ribs his city editor and is surly to his m. e„ knowing he has a four- year contract and nurturing a yearn to tie up elsewhere. That djgtall, too, is. so peculiar to one or two indi-. vidual columnists that it's not illus- trative of the field and, what's most Important, for cinema-dramatic purposes, it only confuses the whole; Not much disguise at the Winchell thing, with the 'Okay America' salu- tation and WEF the station in lieu of the NBC's major link, WBAF. Once the story gets under Way, it's all rather fantastic. Ayres hands opt buck tips like a drunken sailor and is slipped hand- and type-writ- ten messages surreptitiously by cigaret girls, hat checkers and other stooges. His bucking a tough mob, plus the development of this theme, which takes him into their stronghold and up aga}nst the Big Fellow (an ob- vious Capone suggestion), plus the r-ai'terin? for the girl's release.'after $100,000 had been paid over, is cine of those Hollywoodish scenarip nightmares. Once the verities are assailed, it's difficult to reconcile the little good that preceded it, or what follows. .Let one false note of irh- plausiblity creep into a script anO it'll tear down the entire: structure for. that phase Is the keystone of the whole. Such is the case in hand.< '• Maureen O'Sulllvan'as the moon- ing, wide-eyed sec, is rather sappy, offsetting the several good impres- sions she has given of herself in recent releases. This 'un sets her hack to almost her innocuous Fox novitiate days. Ayres is vapid and with the negative impression of what should be the two principal sympathetic characters, goes an in- verse stance/to the rest of it. The proposition of the columnist going t6 the White House to barter with: the President of the U. S. to ease up on the Big Fellow on Fed- eral Indictments In exchange for the kidnapped girl's release, cannot even be whitewashed by the Amer- ican flag speech it prompts-rto wit, Hell those hoodlums that the sacred government of the United States will never be party to or barter with criminals of that calibre,'. etc., and that 'we have other forces to drive all such undesirables but of this country.' Garnett, the director, did all he could with a script that lacked in- trinsic punch and power of convic- tion.' Film, at the Paramount,, -on Broadway, needs all the stage show strength possible. Abel. Blondie of the Follies M-G-M production* and release. Starring: Marlon -Davles and- featuring Robert Mont- gomery, Direction, Edmund'Gouldlng; con- tinuity, Frances . Marlon} dialog:, Anita Lobs';,photography, George Barries. At the Capitol, N. Y., .week Sept: 2. Running tlmo,"91'mlns. . Blondie..,. Larry. •... • • • • • Lottie.'.., Jimmy. Fa McCtune... Gertie......... Pete......;.... Murchenson.... Ma McClune... Ma Callahan... ,.......Marlon Davles .Robert' Montgomery Bllllo- Dove ,.... .Jimmy Durante ....; .James Gleason .V. .. Zaau Pitta .....j...Sidney Toler . .Douglass Dumbrllle Sarah Padden .... ..... .Louise Carter Instead of the sock rating it might hav3 attained, 'Blondie' will have to be content with so-so returns, Just about .on the good side, in the major ity ' o'f theatres it plays. While on straight merit it wavers at the edge of' non-profit, there are accompany lngr- elements that ought to shove the picture over the line and into the profit class. - " Marion Davles* long established following still is sizeable and the names of Robert Montgomery, Billie Dove 1 , and' Jimmy Durante in the cast should mean something; plac- ing marquee quality first among the angles' in 'Blondie's' favor. An ex- tremely attractive, title; promising mucn* Tn the way of entertainment, ratejf-with the names if not. above therjnVas a likely b. o. stimulator.. Also-, of exploitation value wherever rendered, this talker is getting the customary lavish Help in the Hearst papers. Latter may mean extra at- tention, but it can't be given all over, so 'Blondie'-is the type of film that will show wide variance in Its grosses in different' localities. Where that; extra plug is missing; so Will that extra attentIon.be missing. Durante is rushed into a house party scene for his first and only appearance after the picture .has gone 70 minutes. That's the best evidence that this picture's big weakness was analyzed by the pro- ducers, •. The question, however, is whether after making the analysis, the studio carried through with the proper treatment. .In the five min- utes that Durante is on, his Barry- more-Garbo takeoff with Miss'Da- vies easily becomes the bright spot on the picture. On the other hand, it. accentuates the talker's inherent slowness of pace. The 70 minutes up ahead are draggy, while the 16 following are none too speedy in comparison with the Davles-Duranie bit, either. In a livelier .Aim this scene would hardly , stand out : In such:' clear relief. The result is a break for the one scene, against a handicap for the picture as a whole. At the -Capitol 'Blondie' goes 91 minutes. . When , the film moves slowly, like this one. that extra footage hurts. 'Blondie' isn't-padded out'; it's just flatfooted. The story is simply the rise of two New York girls of the poor class to 'Follies' girj status^ their temporary enjoyment of the luxuri- ous fancy living and then their re- turn to. normalcy. At least one of them settles down to domestic bliss. The other's windup isn't clarified, but it doesn't make much difference. Quite simple, and frequently told just as simply. Sometimes too simple.- It won't kill the popular belief that most 'Follies' gals grab oft millionaires when matrimony calls, because Blondie (Miss Davles) gets her man, and he appears to have plenty. But the story must be pre- deprcsh because her boy friend does nothing but dabble in the market, yet he still holds heavy at the finish. Situations are scarce, forcing the story to progress in slow fashion toward a natural climax. Chief situ- ation is love rivalry • between the two girl pals, with Blondie finally winning out. They open fighting on the stairs of their tenement home Mimatnre Reviews 'Okay America' (U). Bit late for a columnist story and suf- fering tn comparison to its predecessors. Ayres and O'Sul- llvan also lacking in lodestono. 'Blondie .of .the .Follies' (Metro). . Marlon Davies back- stage picture that fails to ful- fill promise of the title. Not bad, but hot very good, with v chances that it .will just about , get by. Length and slow pace the drawbacks. 'Bird of Paradise* (Radio). The old tropical romance nicely, done. A strong per- formance by Dolores Del Rio of a standard part. Joel Mc- Crea has matinee idol possi- bilities. Spectacular and fine scenic surroundings lend punch to' peppy romance,- O.K.: for the main stem stands and a natural for general release for the lesser spots." •The Crash' (-N). A lame and stumbling story which will get little beyond the personal following of Ruth Chatterton, its star. George Brent, her new husband, heads support, lending release some topical interest for the women. Stun- ning clothes will help,'but gen-' erally it's a weak sister. 'Big City Blues' (WB). Not eligible for. fast company, with both storjr and lack of strong names against it. Joan Blon- dell and Eric Linden featured. 'Fast Companions' (U).. Well ■ made race track: comedy. Good enough for some of the A the- atres. Plenty, of laughs and an . unusual thread in the story. A cinch entertainer for the minor houses. 'Santa' (Mexican). First Mexican 'made by and for Mexicans. . Technically, very poor and story sloppy , from U. S, standpoint, but undoubt- edly good b. o." stuff for Span- ish markets. . 'Zwei Heraen und Ein Schlag' (Ufa). Excellent German musi- cal and the . best Lilian Harvey picture to date. Not too com- plicated for- non - German speaking audiences, though they may not get tho gags. Sure b. o. where Germans are to t>e found. ductlon end, while between thorn the Misses Davles and Dove, especially the latter, show enough new duds to catch the feminine eye. Picture looks good at all times without al- ways playing that way. At the Capitol 'Blondie' is running with a $19,000 stage show of stage and radio names, For that reason the New York figure cannot be taken as criterion on the picture either way. Bige. BIRD OF PARADISE Radio production and release. Directed by Kins; Vldor. Featuring Dolores Del Rio and Joel McCrea, Based upon the famous stage- play of the same name by Richard. Walton Tully. Adapted by Wells Root. Additional dialog by Leonard Prasklns and Wanda Tuchock. Musical score by Max Stelner. Camera, Clyde DeVlnna.' Assist- ant directors; Lucky Humborstone and Fred Fleck.' At the Mayfair, New York, com- raenplng Sopt. 0,. Running time, 80 minutes. Luaha... .Dolores Del Rio Johnny Baker. Joel 1 McCrea Mac ................... .John Halllday Thornton Creighton Chancy Chester:..; Richard 'Skeets' Gallagher Hector , .Bert Roach The King . ...:Pukul Medicine Man............Agoatlno Borgato Old Native Woman... .Sophie Ortego and the same situation Is repeated with new trimmings. three or: four times. Gradually it loses Its kick. Final scrap la over the same' fellow in a crack-the-whlp ensemble, num- ber of the show. Blondie ts on the end and Lottie lets go accidentally on purpose, hurling Blondie Into the Orchestra: pit. . From Whore thft scene was photographed it ' looked like a musician got hurt, if any- body, but it's Blondie who's crippled. The docs say she'll be all .. right at the finish,- which takes the sting out of a sad, semi-climax to a -sort of femme Flagg-Quirt friendship. Misses Davles and Dove are both real life 'Follies' grads, so their backstage conduct in this picture probably is authentic. Of the two Miss Dove is more the show girl type in looks and manner. Her rather unsympathetic role is a de- parture for Miss Dove, who has be- come accustomed to the lead her- self, but she' makes the change with- out effort and* turns in a good per- formance. As usual Miss Davles is best in her few comedy chances, but on the whole this try is under par for her. Of the. men, Montgomery has no corapetish,- wi_th both girls chasing him and jiiobody else all the way up to the finish. No flaws in his hans- elling of the playboy assignment. Like Miss Dove, Jimmy Gleason was also forced to turn About in a role that's unfamiliar for him In' pic- tures, and also* quite a switch for the audience. As the father of Blondie, he's sent but ..after sym- pathy instead of the usual laughs. Gleason Is a real, trouper, which makes the. change a cinch for him, but therels always the chance that audiences Will be waiting for a laugh from him. They wonlt get It In 'Blondie.' Apparently the production's basic slowness, precluding chances for speeding things up in any other way, forced the insertion of the Durante interlude at the tail end. It does help, but the sagacity in tossing a potential star picture comedian and draw Into a spot like that is questionable. This is the second such incident involving Du- rante. They slipped him Into 'The Wet Parade* previously on a re- make. It makes Durante the champ pinch hitter of the Metro lot, for he got , on base both - times. But it look's like waste, besides taking chances on injuring valuable film talent by catch-as-catch-can spot- ting. There was no stinting on the pro- The old Richard Walton Tully stage perennial stands the test of time remarkably well. It stands the' test equally of the Innumerable South Seas pictures that have been done since its stage production way back yonder, although the belated screen version will by ho manner of means equal the furor of its.foot- light presentation. It will Just make a moderately successful picture, but no sensation. ' In the intervening years the pic- tures have taken the edge off tropi- cal romance. The pioneer in that field comes as an aftefthought. Pic- ture's production quality, is first rate* It was canny move to. give it a spectacular twist and .soft pedal the more serious stage angle deal- ing with the unfitness of a child, of nature for civilization. Outside of its romantic side, the subject's greatest asset is- the tculy fine performance of Dolores. Del Rib as the savage princess Luaha, a role made to order for this electric young Mexican, and one that Will go down In the archives as among the best things she has ever done. . That and. the. possibilities for spicy billing are enough to put the picture over.. On the romantic side the punch of the Del Rio performance is aid irilrably supplemented by the play Ihg of the Stalwart joel .McCrea, handsome . young giant of the Johnny. Weismuller order, whb. plays simply and: with' -natural ".grace -a romantic role that .has bQen tested by the years for its baslp appeal, Spectacular side pic. the produc tlon has received, handsome treat ment by. Vidor. Possibilities for stunning^trpplcal Hawaiian scenery have bee>h realized to the fullest. In Jik'e rtianner the screer* possibili- ties of the hul& as a screen display have been "employed. MlaiV Del Rio's version of the stimulating South Seas callsthentlcs will be the sub- ject of much talk hither a^nd yon, Adaptation Is a workmanlike job -Story gets into motion promptly by a strictly camera technique, as dis- tinguished from .its stage original Scene is aboard a pleasure yacht carrylnug a group of Americans on a jaunt,. with one of the amateur skippers driving the ship .under full canvas in - a stiff, wind through a tricky channel into an atoll. Camera angles give a stirring passage full value. ; " '. Yacht co'mes safely to anchor and' the natives come ; out to greet it, opening the story neatly. Use of the American party is neatly worked for purposes of contrast and also as a literary scheme to provide the contrast for the romantic situation. John Halliday does another of his impeccable bits, and 'Skeets' Galla- gher contributes a neat Juve type. Ceremonials of the natives are used to serve the purpose of spec- tacle, notably the passage given over to tribal dances which are emphat- ically, very oo-la-li.' in the wild abandon of the hula girls and the not less eloquent- Wriggles of the men Kanakas. Wholesale love- making of these natives gives .the sequence plenty of punch. With Miss Del Rio, an eyeful of undraped sym- metry, occupying' the center of the picture. •• Another neatly handled sequence early in the action has the two lovers disporting in the sea, much of the footage being under-water shots of their trim figures innocent of coverings. Screen treatment is wise in de- voting itself principally to the de- velopment of the artless romantic angle and merely suggesting in the sketchiest way the bizarre, native superstition which ultimately parts the lovers—^the native belief that Liiana is the 'bride of Pell,' the vol- cano, and, when the mountain be- comes active, demands that she be sacrificed to appease its diety. Picture follows the unhappy end- ing of the play, but treats It in a rather remote way, and not with the same emphasis whidh the stage ver- sion used it for a crudely theatrical climax. Effect is an improvement. South Seas romances are timeless and staple, and this one, which pio- neer the subject, is still one o£ its best.. It promises well and d^orves to prosper. Rush. Zwei Herzen und Ein Schlag A (Two Hearts That Beat as One') (GERMAN MADE) (With Songs) Ufa production. Leo Brocher release tor U. S. Stars Lilian Harvey and features Wolf Albach-Retty. Supervision, Guenther Stapcnhorst-: dlresHSn,... Wllhelm Thlels; scenario, Franz Schulz, from the play by Blrabeau and Dolley; photography. Carl Hoffman; music, Jean Gilbert. At. the Lit- tle Carnegie, N. Y., on grind run, beginning Sept. 8. Running time; 80 minutes. Jenny. .Lilian Harvey Victor i .......... .Wolf Albach-Retty Aunt Adele......,.............Ro3a Valettl Uncle Morltz. . .Kurt Llllen Duke d'Aurlbeau,............Otto Wallburgr Dr. Epstein.................. Herman Bias* A splendid German musical, per- haps the best Of the Lilian Harvey ; features to date, and almost certain box office in German territory. For a change the Germans take a hand at high comedy here,' and do it WelU the. usual elephantine pace being conspicuous by its absence and the usual Teutonic flufflness being suffi- ciently down to earth to get solid laughs. There's not ar great deal of sub- stance to the story, but it's nicely handled thi/oughout.... Miss Harvey: is Jenny Mueller, cabaret girl with opera ambitions. She 'goes down- stairs to get. her handsome young hubby's breakfast and fails to come back, her aunt going along with her to nurse the ambition.. Couple years later she's almost made the grade and. is about to' be engaged to a marquis, so she wants & divorce. Hubby, how a waiter iji- .a hotel, won't give it to. her, and the rest of the film consists of attempts, on her part to .coax him Into treating her cruelly as • grounds for it divorce. By the' time he gives in. «f course, she. doesn't' want a divorce any ^nore. ■'•■- Whoever-, fs responsible tor the situations and dialog lias done a splendid job, and Mlsa Harvey's miming helps. no little. ,. She still makes faces And mbuea a "bit too often for everybody's happiness, but you can't help liking -fter. Wolf. Albach-Retty is new (or . seems to be) to pictures. . He's never ap- peared opposite Miss Harvey, at any rate, but is altogether okay. He's a handsome lad that know* how to sing and dance. Rosa Valettl as the crabby, aunt turns in ai^. excellent performance, and Otto Wa)burg as the Duke ,1s more exagg^fltted than necessary;,' perhaps, but gets more laughs than he ever has before. He's a fat fellow with a funny^inanner- lsm of- sputtering his - words fn a ludicrous manner.. ProbAWy among the first- 1n9.it dpzeh comioli • in Ger- Wany today; .>:■"• . • . Music is excellent though, ho out- sttthdthgt' songs. One tuji«? a fox trot, may ; catch oh. .Photography and direction first rate, -ihoMgh no. attempt at trick angles. ^J^fluf. ; ;Ahe CRAsil ■'■ \'t ■ \ First -National production ; and release, starring"Ruth Chatterton, featuring George. Brent, Her new husband. Directed by William DIeterle. Made from •T.aAy Bar- rfttto's novel, and first called- -'Children of Pleasure.' Cameraman, Bnnest Haller. At the Roxy.- New York, Sept. . 8, Run- ning time, 00 reins. ■ V-J . ■ Linda. '....'....'... ■.■RuwYiChatterton Geoff George Brent Ronnie »:..Paul Cavanagh Celeste Barbara Leonard John Fair .Henry .Kpllwr Marcla Peterson <Loi« Wilson Hodge ?............Iran- Simpson Esther Parrlsh, Melen Vinson Artluir ; Hardle Albright Landlady....-.>«».......'...UMen Klngdon Frank Parrish.. •. '.Richard Tucker Kadtne............^Virginia Hammond This Is the first of; the Warner pictures Involved in the product deal for the - Roxy," ■ A weak picture, its principal merit is that it at least commands the personal following of Ruth Chatterton, which Will be at-, tracted to the Cathedral while they might pass up the star In a lesser stand. ■ .'■ 'The Crash' may arouse mild in- terest, among femme fans, .but for others it makes dull entertainment. It's an ambling narrative of . how a parasitic Wife With philandering habits, .reacted to the stock market panic. It ends about whe~re it be- gan,: -at both .'of\ which points it. is indefinite and in' the meanwhile it meanders * vaguely.' Admirers; of Miss • Chatterton will find in her playing nothing to add to her pres- tige. ' Indeed, as a part, it is prin- cipally distinguished by an impres- sive parade of sumptuous clothes and little else. George Brent's rple Is still less attractive.' Picture release is timely anyhow, coming oh the heels, of the Chat- terton-Brent nuptials and the Chat- terton divorce, which was abun- dantly aired in the public prints. Circumstance that Brent has the lead opposite his bride may be, the occasion of a flutter of feminln; In- terest, although at the Roxy open- ing Thursday evening attendance didn't promise much in this direc- tion. Seems reasonable to look for the picture, to bring indifferent returns and go down In the records as an in-and-out Chatterton, which means less than that star's average, but better than the run Of program ma- terial, due to her marquee poten- tials. Picture is a medley of Inconslst- (Continued on page 29)