Variety (Jan 1949)

22 PICTIJIIBS Wednesday, January 26,1949 Film Reviews ContinueA frnm pact 11 Henry the Rainmaker things tough for Walburn when he can't turn ofE the flood. There's an okay ending that neatly ties the events together. Walburn does an expert comedy chore as the forthright citizen affair between their father and a woman on the telephone whom no- body ever sees oi? knows. Their mother stoically fights the knowl- edge that she jnay lose her bus* I band, while the childreil contrive . . ... lall sorts of stunts to put their craftsmanlike Job with a ready-1 father on the right path. made public in Britain and likely i . „„„^ Kir Tmh ^rVrhi&™°'"' ; MaVarletffeTc^ure 'o'ver'tS^ Vntr^l^crar-in the plot sA]^^^-.^^^ Sammy Rice, scientist and re- search worker, whose lame foot hSs made him a complex individ' while Walter Catlett matches as j immersed in his work he the mayor who's not too ethical, jg^^g responsibility and steers Young romance is capably done by i ^jg^p y,e inevitable political in- William Tracy and Mary Stuart. jj.jgyg ^jj^j, g^gg ^n behind the Latter brings a freshness and ta 1-1 ^ggjjgg Although becoming ex- ent to her part that is unusual tor | ^^g^giy unpopular by his frank this type picture wherem an in-igj^^ adverse comments of a new genue is rarely more type of anti-tank gun, he redeems Barbara Brow, the unde^^^^^^^ by his skill and courage wife of Walburn; Gary Gray, very i dismantling a booby bomb AQQisoii, ^jj^jj ^jjg enemy's latest secret who looks and has a great sense of the comic. There are only nine people in the pic and almirit as many sets, but it proves once again how diffi- cult it is to put a play on celluloid as a play. Direction by Maurice Labro is fine and the action keeps moving at all times. Photography holds up and supporting cast han- dle their parts well. BucH.. good as the young son Richards, Mary Field, Robert E. weapon. It is this latter scene which is by far the high spot of the produc* tion, and although it is a long time j coming it is handled to extract every ounce of suspense from it. In scenes like that, the drama bC' Keane and Earle Hodgins, giving a neat reading to the rainmaker Pitch, are among the others helping to make this good fun. j .lean Yarbrough's pace in di-1 reeling the Lane Beauchamp script, j nal, IS fast and m p^^^^^^ reaction isn't forthcoming in | serSd' Eirho™;"c«mera,"iTor Ing the ebuckles. Feter bcuiiy, ae , v-iehlv imaeinative seauence in ' bergj special effects. Gerhard Ladner. bUtine as a producer, earns him- i^"^. "'^V'^ c„.«^,T i^^^ ' HcrmanS Lieblg, Wolfgang Znamenacek »olf a firstratP rrpdit A former which the complex Sammy seeks , and Guenther Strupp. Reviewed at Thalla fitii Pditor hp als^^ use' the solace in whisky. , theatre, Darrastadt. Germany. Running sci^sorf^lLrefully on this William ■ David Farrar has his best role Der Apfcl 1st Ab (The Apple Fell) (GERMAN) . Darmstadt, Jan. 15. Camera Film release of Helmut Beck- Herzog Film production. Features Bobby Todd; Bettina Molssi, Joana Maria Gorvin. Arno Assman and Helmut Kaeutner. Di- rected by Kaeutner. Adapted from r.nmoo TPal and snHxsfvihP ihiif thp f >"USieal xomcdy of same title by Kurd comes real ana saiisjying "V"- I'le i Heyne; Kaeutner and Todd; Music, Sickner did the okay lensing. Brog. Woman of Evil (FRENCH) Leo Cohen release of Edmond T-, Ore- *llle production. in this production and comes out of it with full marks. His is a sincere and understanding inter- pretation of the principal char- acter and plays' a major part in bringing conviction to the theme. Kathleen Byron has' the sympa- thetic part of the understanding time, 105 MINS, Adam Schmidt... Bobby Todd Eva Meier . .Bettina Moissi Lilli Schmidt.,..... .Joana Maria; Gorvin Dr. Lutz .. ............ . - Arno Assman Pl'of. Petri............ ^ Helmut Kaeutner .. Stars Ch.irUs VancI, Helena Bossis. Directed by Edmond T. , . ^ i i: u CrJvm*!.^ Miisic by Yves Baudricr. ^ At j girl and demonstrates her compe- Ambassador. N. rtarting^^Jan. 21, '49. | (gnce with a moving characteriza- Swvitae Helena Bossis | tion. Lesser roles are particularly XAurent....'; ..»• •.........Charier Vanei 1 carefully cast, and experienced »ie«o .. ...Jean Chevrier . pjgyg^g jj^g ^g^yg Bgnks, Jack . /T t. p.^^iJoi. TifjocV Hawkins, Renee Asherson, Michael E^tnrT'i'brTvluf hI:*?LckiS^ -lil?**'-'' Bushell^stand film in "Woman of Evil." Film is {out in support. Myro. in much the same tempo as his \ earlier success. "Passionelle," and i looks like it will land strong busi- ness at foreign-language and arty | houses. Hollywood should look over this Helmut Kaeutner. He has a Lubitsch touch that runs all over this, picture, the first musical com- edy to be produced by Camera Film. •The tale—adventures of a mod- ern Adam and Eve in Paradise— probably wouldn't encounter diffi- culties such as it did with the churchmen in: Bavaria before it even had been -produced — but the motley crew of adventurers lured to those wastes in the search for gold. Sabina (Umos is Rosa, a honky-tonk girl who loves ■ husky sea captain (Soffici), but can only get him to believe in her love when she bears his child, delivered by his friend the priest. Mario Closas plays the heavy, Kindrell (supposedly either Eng- lish or German), a brutal political boss, whose only interest seems to be to massacre all {be Indians, so he can establish ownership of the territory. Lopez Lagar wins new laurels for himself with his sincere p6r- trayal of the bewildered but valiant priest of the Salesian order. Orestes Caviglia, as the aged mis- sionary, gives a perfoi-manee that is too stagey. Great play is made of the background, the rugged mountains of Tiem del ^uego, and the lonesome wastes: to which Chi Tele ss Continued from page 1 ; the daytime audiences^ Wiir ema- nate from Chi. Chi lost out in radio when top. name film and legit personalities developed into outstanding radio stars. That put Hollywood into the top origination point with N. Y. a close second, leaving Chi with only a few soap operas: Type of talent that could give Chi its early start in radio is still avail- able there, as evidenced by the fact that the four TV stations now on the air were able to supply their own programming until the cable link went through recently. . . t . „ , With even minor tele shows re- the fur-trappers are sent to bring quiring considerably more time in back pelts of the turtive sea- y ^ staging than some ni4^ate7''s1iU?n\^rU?o^^e's^ i ^'^^est ra^o show^ a greater shading All is sombre tragedy, struggle and bitterness. No inkling of humor is allowed to creep in for a single moment. This is a pattern that is all too frequent in Argentine-made pix, and doesn't make for good entertainment, Wid. lieved the network^ and ageneies will find it physically impossible; to handle a full programming log from> only N. Y. and Hollywood.' As a result. Chi is expected to pro- vide some of the daytime shows, as well as the le.ss ambitious eve- ning programs which require no top-name film or legit talent. Fact that NBC and ABC both have owned - and - operated stations in the city, with DuMont and CBS I linked to affiliates, leaves , the question of the number of shows Emlgrantes (Immigrrants) (ARGENTINE-MADE) ' (SPANISH) Buenos Aires, Jan, 19. CabSSJfp^od«cti'oTwriuln"nd°dir^^^^^^^^ originating from there dependent by Ald6 Fabrizzl. Stars Fabrizzt. Ave Nin chi; features Nando Bruno, Eduardo Pas- sarelli, Loredana, Ivan Grondona, Nicolas Olivari, and Julio Traversa. ,At Llberta- dor, Buenos Aires. Nov.-10, ;'48. Runnmg time, Ji!0 SIINH.; . only on availability of networking facilities. . ; Of the four webs, ABC is now relying most heavily on Chi, draw- ing 12; shows weekly to feed its eastern and midwest webs. NBC has the only , other program with its "Kukla, Fran and Ollie," now In this production, which is en- tirely his own brain-child, Aldo Fabrizzi, shows up again as the great actor of "Open City," and aired acrOss-theiboarfl over ItjS full —-- —r. r.-T-T"" 1 "~i I also proves himself as a master of ! network, some of Its satire is topical and I direction. But he has fallen down | wouldn't register heavily with ^ screen-writer, because he re-1 stateside audiences. f^gg^ ^^^k with a script" and, The Hays office undoubtedly used his method of making se My Last Mistress (FRENCH) Leo Cohen release of Sacha Guitry pro I ,,. , ,. . , i, i — - duction. stafs sacha Guitry; features ' would take a dim View of the cello- nuences dictated by "inspiration." Genevieve Guitrv. Mona Onva. ntrft<^if>f1 I v.l.nnn **v,>,.,.rAn1.,^* nncfiiwiAc nt fh^ . ....... .... ^..^^..: Jean Laurent Old Man Painter . ^S^r-::::::::::::::r^ ~ I piayeT'by "either MTss"Moi^^^^^ "uveTad has shSwnTcall"'?'^ f p™*''^'"- Guardian Georges Lajnaire j Joana Maria Gorvin. I directors that locsl talent Is avail-i .eon i ^,!^^^^.SU^J± 1 -d" his X=v "of iva^n GiTn" 1 ^-^^-^ ^aify. will seek combina- Pteture.introduces Helena Bossis j %r^''ir«t^'V^S.^i?^i.r?n 1 fi'/P 'l^tfj^l"}?" 'thp"'"af„vpM1.* ?° ^J^^ "T"" as the newest s.a. lure from the I stai^ting Jan. 21, '49. Running time. 8!s i leads, especially tne aopve-the-| lopical form. As a director he even Paris studios. A lusty tale of two men loving a cafe pianist, picture boasts heat character portrayals by Charles Vanel and sultry Mile. Bossis, It is probable that Ameri- can audiences will hear and see more of Miss Bossis, but likely no more of the latter if the film cen- sorial boys have their way; Al- though several of the more torrid episodes have been cut to almost flashes, enough has been left in to give the general idea. The garb she of ten wears is flimsy to a high degree Schehck Chain CDnUnwed from page 3 ^■-^ 5Sl!wood_ wouldn't, be impressed by Lehavl n.^tu^aUy'Sn th'e scS ir^.„!\'\.J!™P»f.f,? .11 Catherine Genevieve Guitry Singer Mona Goya Florian . . :MiIa Parely Grandmother.........Marguerite Moreno Thomasain. Marguerite Pierry Clotilde... ........ . Jeanne. Fusier Gir (In French; English TitXes) A fine : performance by Sacha Guitry. won't save this. It's a slow, - ... „ .„ , , methodical, pseudo. love story., a At times, Greville became so en- j q^^^^ production that stars him in trossed with depicting the rising ood waters surrounding the i.sland where the three principal charac- ters are marooned that he permit- ted the action to lag. But for the most part, the plot gallops along at a typical French melodramatic speed. ^ , Vanef. is painted as a husky, wealthy landowner who would do almost anything to satisfy MUe a rather ponderous'role. "Mistress" is mild even for arty spots. Picture was made several years ago. This is a story of a famed sculptor who falls for his model and mistress. It depicts him as vir- tually tossing , her out when he realizes he's going blind. There are some tender passages near the end . when the girl returns to his side, but it all comes too late to Bo.ssis; whim.^ Jean Chevrier, as | gajy^gg ^^gj, the film. Most of the virile refugee surgeon, con- - ° ... tributes an inspired performance, initial part of his portrayal calling on him to emulate a mute. His re- action to the charms of La Bossis are nicely conveyed without too much emphasis. Capable support- ing cast is completely overshad- owed by the acting of the three principals. V.^cor. The Small Back Room (BRITISH) London, Jani 19. British Lion release of London Films- Archers (Michael PoweU-Emeric Press- burger) production. Stars David Farrar. Kathleen Bryon. ; Written and directed by Powell,'. Pressburgcr. froAi novel by Nigel Balchini 'camera. Christopher Chal- 11.S, Freddy Francis; editor. Clifford Turner; music. Brian' Easdale. At Rialto. London, Jan. IBi '49; . Running, time. 10(1 MINS. •■ Sammy Rice;....., . .David Farrar :SUsan..........,.....,.. ..Kathleen- .Byron R.: B. Waring............ i.. . Jack Hawkins Colonel Holland.. .. Leslie Banks Stuart.. . Michael Gough Corp. Taylor..... .<iCyril Gusack Prof. Mair............... .Milton Rosmer the nearly 90 minutes are con- sumed with heavy verbiage and a dearth of action, Direction, of , H. .Verdun is lacl^ lustre. I^oduCtion values likewise are inferior. Genevieve Guitry adds some sparkle as the model-mistress. She is .' highly decorative but suffers "Der Apfel"—-which, as result of publicity arising from the pre-pro-- duction controversy with Catholic and Protestant. churcbmeiT who. got a glimpse of the script. Is doing landoffice business in Germany- is a pleasant fantasy. Bobby Todd, as Adam, is mar- ried to and in love with his wife. But he's also in love with his sec- retary. Unable to decide ' on a solution of his problem he visits a psychiatrist, Kaeutner, who de- cides that Adam must choose one or the other—which is just what has been worrying Adam. One of the doc's tricks to strengthen the will and energy of able for those who kiiow how to] The studio exec's plans to take find'it. I over, a 50% interest in UC had Following the trend of Italian pix. this is more of a docu g(j,g^.'been stymied for many months ' under a commitment by him to the mentary than a feature picture, .but it has V high entertainment values. The acting of Fabrizzl himself and of Ave. Ninchi are of a realism so moving as not to seem .-ictine. but real life story unfold- ing itself on the screen. The .scene where the immiPrant wife, I about to leave her life-lone home, hides in a. closet, rather than let her husband see her cry. While he leans again.st the door and talks to her, is a gem in it.self. The action starts in Rome. In his patients is to give each an 1 the tenement home of Don Peoe apple with orders it must not be eaten. When Adam eats his, he gets the boot from the sanitarium, but falls asleep and dreams he is strolling with Eve in Paradise— in shorts. (Fabrizzi), his wife (Av«) Niiichi) and grown daughter (Loredana). a.s the family chattels are carted away and they move to a new iand in search of a higher .<!tandarfi of livinK starts for all three. The- The episodes in Heaven give an I iourney. the birth of the chilcl on opportunity for some excellent the high seas, the arrival in the technical effects—and they're well D. of J. to do nothing to consum- mate the deal pending study by' the Government. Meanwhile, Schenck has been active in clear- ing up United Artists' partnership ties with major companies includ- ing Paramount and 20th. Once 20th liquidates its 25% interest in Golden State—and that is almost certain under. the anti^ trust rulings—Schenck will be free to act without any inference of Intra-company dealings. Price re- portedly to be paid by him for the half slice of UC is $6,750,000. done from both direction and from the outfits she's forced to P.l^f^^uf.P^*®* ~ ^^?P"? « ^ome- Arnall ;. continued jTcbm page 3 space in the; Radio Citv' area, where; strange land, where another Ian- prefers to he, Buaee has to be mastered, are all nrpsented in documentary form wear, and very uneven camera work. Mona Goya, as a cafe singer, does okay. Support is barely ;pass-< able. Wear. Trois Garcons, IJne Fille (Three Boys, One Girl) (FRENCH) Paris, Jan. 19. Cine.Selection release of F.A.O. produc- tion.. Directed by Maurice Labro. Stars Gaby Morlay. Suzy Carrier. Jean Marchat. Lajarriage. Scripted by Roger Ferdinand from his own play. - The Father. ..i,, ...:,;... Jean Marchat The Mother...,.......: Gaby Morlay Michel ..!,.... ......... Lajarriage Gilbert ............. . Francois-Patrice Bernard ..Maurice Favieres The Daughter ^^uiy.., Carrier BrineWalter Fitzgerald ....Joe,.'. ...i . . Emrys Joneji! Till.... Michael Goodiifft 1 This is a so-BO film itom a sue ^JS*i?Srg''''-.V.\V.-.V.'^nTh'„V&fi ?.«sful play by Roger Ferdhiand Sgt..Maj. Rose. .Henry Caine Gladwin.............. Elwyn BrookvTones Brigadier James Dale Crowhurst/. .Sam K.vdd GiUian. June Elvin Nerval>> .iDavld Hutcheson Knucksie............... . .. Sidney James Pearson................. .Roderick Lovell Through the motion, picture and ' the novel the unsung heroes of the last war, the backro6m boys, are fradually -coming into thieir own: his is the theme of the Powell- Pressburger^ dramatization; of the Mgel Balchin story, translated to .the screen with full measure of suspense.': 'Although' Jacking; the production trickis which are ; tisually associated with the Arch-: Crs, "The Small Back Room" is a It's a comedy-drama slightly , comyi slightly funny, and slightly bo. Three sons and a daughter take it upon themselves to break up the what obvious pauciity in produc-i [with the cooperfition of Argentine tion settings. Considering difficul- ties of procuring supplies in Ger- many, however, staging is gener^ ally excellent. Because of the technical effects. Also in New. York are Robert J. Rubin, SIMPP counsel, and Mar- vin Faris, exec secretary, in prep- aration for depositions to be taken next week in SIMPP's suit against Detroit buying-booking combines. immipratiftn authorities) on an ac- tual immierant liner and in the Hotel de Inmigrante.<i (Argentina's „„j„.6-„«„„...f, Elli.s IslandK but with humor, and; Walt Disney, one of the leading T. . V,,-,- -7- — -'i nJ^^f ' human interest. ] SIMPP members, is also in New ^.1F *"*8ht make the grade IArgentine soil, however, York and will likewise go to De- synchronizati()n-but fuT'^'^' f ^^T'J''^'"^f ''''I touch, I troit next week for a deposition cutting a bit wouldn't hurt it, ID.'' .".'"'T flags, and only Ave .Sond. Tierra Del Fuego (ARGENTINE-MADE) Buenos Aires, Jan. 19. EMPA release of Emelco production. Di- rected by Mario SoffiCi, from screenstory by Ulisei Petit de Murat. Stars Pedro Lo- pez Lagar; features Sabina OlmOs, Alberto QlQias, Orestes CavlgUa. RicardO Duggah ??d,C'orina Glmenez. Rupniug time, m MINS. Released at the tail-end of the 1948 seas()n, this picture has been, voted the best screen story tumeel' , p«t by a local studio in the year i = I and one of the three best pix in a The Woman in the Hall !u"l'appeaUs shIS?""*^* . ''The Woman in the Hall,".J. The action is casi towards the end of the past centuiy, hi the country's most southerly wilder- Ninchi'.s a.stonLshine realism nulls i the picture out of a slouch of dragging action and defective story intecratlon. Fabrizzi gets in what amounts to sheer propaganda for the Peron government's immigration policy,.. u- . . j including a hint to rich Italo-Air-1 setup in order, eentines to nrovide *<^mfi to help it along, but none of this is over- stressed. The nieture has possi- bilities for U. S. audiences, par- ticularly among Italian communi- ties. Nid. Former Georgia governor was in Washington last week for the Pres- idential Inaugural ceremonies. He took up no SIMPP business there so far as is known, preferring to wait a few weeks until Dean Acheson; new Secretary of; State, Benny's TV Continued from page vaudeo and concert talent □ not Arthur Rank production trade- shown in New York Friday (21), was reviewed in Variety from London, Nov. 12,1947^ An unscrupulous mother, a daughter with a warped sense of honesty and a couple of com- pletely uninteresting love stories make up film, which reviewer folt "stands little chance in U. S." ness, when the rule of force was the only law that prevailed. Pedro Lopez Lagar is cast in the role of Father Paul, a Roman Catholic priest, and story deals with his martyred attempts to • bring some light into the lives of the Patago- nian Indians, persecuted by the white conquerors, and to redeem The Chips Are Down "The Chips are Down," Jean- Paul Sartre's initial venture as a creen writer, i^hown in N. Y. this week, was reviewed in Variety from Paris, Feb. 4, 1948, under its original French title, "Les Jeux Sont Faits." Because of Sartre's name and that of the star, Micheline Presle, pic was labelled by Variety's reviewer as "a po- tential for U. S. foreign film houses.," necessarily aligned with CBS. Web's board chairman William S. Paley had wanted the show to preem about Feb. 1, but Benny balked at the suggestion, feeling he needed more time to develop his video routine. Program isw originate in the studios of KTTv, the CBS-TV Hollywood outlet, and will be . kinescope recorded fpr subsequent trantsmission over the web's eastern and midwest stationfi. Whether the projected one-shot will be built into a weekly series hasn't been determined.