Variety (November 1922)

JPICTURES K Ti tvt'-s»'";t^.: r-^ Friday, November 10, 1922 7 « THE YOUNG RAJAH Jesse Lasky presents Uodulph Valentino In K drama from the play by Althea Luce ftnd the novel by John Ames Mitchtll. the latter having enjoyed a vokuv -0 years URO. Directed by rhllip liosen. Scenario by June Mathla. Amos Judd Rodolph Vdilentino Molly ('al>()t Wanda JIawley Amos Judd (as a boy) .....Pat Moore Joshua Judd Charles Oicle Harah Judd Fanny Midxely Horace l<<nnett Hobert Ober Klade Jack tJiddinK^ John Cabot Kdw.iid Jubsin Narada Joseph SwUkard Maharajiih It.rtram Gra?sby Tehjundor Hoy J. l-'arrell MacDonall C.encral Cadi GeorKe rerl.il u Prince Musnud Oeorge Field MIhh V«n Kovert Maude Wayne Stephen Van Kovtrt William lt<iyci l>r. rclUplace Josciih Harrinsrion Caleb Spotlitivvoode Altken This mystic tale loses aomethiriK In the tellinp on the screen. The novel was a lot nore plausible. The screen version savors of camera trickery and the whole thing loses In sincerity and conviction. The device of having a luminous spot appear on the brow of the hero as he goes into a trance strikes one as a crude arrangement. It brutally reminds one that the whoJe affair is a piece of fiction, this to the sad damage of the illusion. The book w .s infinitely more p - suasive in its appeal to the imag- ination. The screen is much too literal, even to the fla:hbacks which show the Hindoo uprising and po- litical plottings in India. They were faintly suggested in the novel, but on the screen they are mere the- atrical display, having some value as a series of spectacles, but ex- ceedingly stagy and unreal. It's not an especially fortunate part for Valentino. His successes have been made in roles which called for hectic ronrance with a dash of paprika in their flavoring. This one is a milkshake after the cocktail of "The Sheik" or even of the Toreador of "Blood and Sand." Nevertheless, the star has a pull. as testified Monday night when the Rlvoli was well filled in spite of the rain. The picture probably won't repeat "Blood and Sand." but it should be a satisfactory enter- tainment and a profitable release. It's nearly 20 years sine r the popu- larity of "Amos Judd" in no. form and the name probably doesn't ; -an much. The flashbacks to the Oriental part of the story make violent ahd disturbing contrast to the modern American locale, and the finish has been twisted into a happy one to the damage of the work, although there is no disputing the good judg- ment in a commercial way of the arrangement as a general rule. If memory serves, the novel finished with the death of Amos, while the film takes him back to India, re- stores him to the throne of his na- tive principality and gives a hint of future wedding bells. The B' y opens in the Connecti- cut home of Ctfleb Judd. To the farmhouse come two mysterious strattgers and a boy, bearing a letter from Caleb's brother, a merchant in Calcutta. There has been a revo- lution in a native state, the ruler has been slain by the successful pretender and his son has escaped and is to be brought up by Cal6b. The strangers are high ofndals of the former royal court. They give a vast fortune in money and jewels to Caleb in trust for the boy, who remains in ignorance of his origin. He grows up and enters Harvard, becoming a leading athlete and leader of the wealthy set. He is regarded with suspicion by the other youths because of his foreign air ant^. a strange gift of seeing into the future. He falls in love with Molly Cabot, who Is divided In her affections between him and an American youth who turns out to be something of a bounder. At length Amos' suit triumphs and the wed- ding day is set, but Amos has a vision that he will dio before the marriage day. There is a fadeback to India. The usurper is a tyrant over the people, who are suffering. He learns (t! .• disclo^re through an American newspaper is pretty hard to sw^al- low) that the rightful heir is alive, and he sends a crew of assassins to America to put him out of the way. But other forces assemble to pro- tect the prince. .* mystl^ religious leader with powers of clairvoyance has a vision of th,3 danger to the young Rajah and he sets out to pre- lOOo/c vent injury to the prince. The usurper's hirelings capture Amos and are about to do away with him when the priest and his fol- lowers appear, killing the leader of the assassins and conducting the prince' back to India, where he is acclaimed by the peoplo as their savior and restoiud to his throne after the pretender has committed .»»uiolde. Thi' epilog shows the Hajah In his garden, mourning for the love which \.o had d'serled at the call of duty, but the vision of prophecy, which has never been wronjr. appears to show that ultimately they will be reunited. Jiush. VILLAGEBLACKSMITH A William Kox Special, founded on I^jhr- folloM s pixui, with the wreeii acript by I'aul II. Sloar.e and diro-ted by Jack Ford. It Is ruriil meludrama in al>out six reels rrcrented at the 4Uh Htrect theatre for a run. openinj? Nov. 11. 1!>-"J. John Hammond William Wallit.g The IJlacksmlth's Wife VlrRinia True Itoardman .Mice Vii-ginia Va'li Alice, as child Ida Nan McKenKie Tiill Have Hutler Hill. a» child Cordon Orifflth Johnnie Urothfr Oeorgrr Uackath<:rne Johnnie, as child I*at Moore I':.;ra i:ri»;ham Tully Marshall Squire s Wife Curi.lint Ilankin Aiipon .' Ralph Veardsley An.':'>n. ns child Henri tie la /Itarrique A>a M.iHin Krancia Ford liii.icniary Martin Hesaio I.ove Ro.»emary Martin, us chl.'dt Helen Field D'jcior Hrewster Mark Fenton Cidc;''n Crane Lon Poff Aunt Hattie Cordelia Callahan A VillaKe Go>6ip Eddie Grib»;on Flapicr from the CHy.T. Luclle Hutton 0 ®P THE Exhibitors of Michigan Read our magazine published every Tuesday. If you want to reach this ch'entclc there is no better mcditi in. — • Rates very low MICHIGAN FAM REVIEW JACOB SMITH, Publisher 415 Fr^e Press Bldg. V DETROIT, MICH. , A real weep-inspirin«: melo- drama that has trials and tribula- tions piled one on the other until the final scenes, when all the com- plications work out for the ul^^mate happiness of the Villuge Smith and his family. It is a picture that the majority of picture house audiences will love and rave over. It has al- most all of the tear-compelling strength of " Over the Hill" and it is well enough done on the screen to make it a really worth-while fea- ture from the standpoint of the big pre-release theatres. The picture is presented in the form of a prolog and main story, there being about a 50-50 split In the two themes, with the opening portion holding the greatest inter- est. Because of the division in the story it is neces.sary to have two sets o fplayers for the smith's chil- dren, those that appear in the pro- log having supposedly aged con- siderably when the second portion of the tale is told. In matching up the players, for these characters splendid work was done. Being founded on the Longfellow poem will undoubtedly prove some- thing of a draft in a box office way for the picture. The poem is util- ized in the sub-titles from time to time as the melodramatic action de- velops in keeping with it. The story opens showing the smith at his force under the spreading chestnut tree, and his family of wife, two sons and daugh- ter are introduced in their home and school life. In opposition is the family of the squire, who was hn unsuccessful suitor for the hand of the girl that married the smith, he in turn having married a vinegary cousin who has led him a wretched life, and therefore he has harbored a grudge against his succesi^ful rival through all his years. It is the squire's son that eggs on the youngest of the smith's brood to climb a tree from which he falls and cripples himself. This accident inspires the older brother's ambi- tions to become a great surgeon, so that he may cure his kin. The ac- cident is the second of the family's trials, the first being the death of the mother. Then {is the story de- velops the elder brother is almost killed in a train smash, which inci- dentally is counted on to be one of the real thrills Of the picture, but so badly done that it got a laugh from the first night's audience. The daughter is accused of the theft of church funds, after her father has .suspected her of being unduly friendly with the son of the squire. In the end. however, the girl is cleared of both suspicions; the elder brother recovers from his accident and operates successfully on the younger, and the picture ends with the marriage of the youngster and the daughter as well, while the smith and his elder son look on pridefully. William Walling plays the smith with much feeling and scores heav- ily, while a"s the squire TuIIy Mar- shall manages lo warrant hisses for his villain. Of the other adult char- acterizations tho.se enacted by lYancis Ford. Carolina Rankin, Mark lYnlon, LoM I'off. Cordelia Calla- han and Virginia True lioardman were worthy more than pa.^sing mention. The village gos.sip bit of I'Jddie CJribbons wa.s a fine piece of character work. He i.s 'coming along in great shape as a character actor. In the two sets of characters for the children the first comprised Ida Nan McKenzie u.s the daughter, dor- don C.rifTlth the el<hr son and Pat Moor*- as the xountrer. The latter imnuMli;Utly woo n pl«<<© foi- himKetf in the hearts of the audience, and as far as he was concerned the au- dience felt that they did not want him dropped from the cnst when the prolog ended. The squire's son was played by Henri de la (Sarrique. In ih(*ir second stage of develop- ment these characters are played by Virginia Valll. Dave lUjtIer and CJeorge Hackathorne as the smith's family, while the son of the squire is Ralph Yoardsley, who developed into a real heavy. Miss VaUl'a per- formance, however, was the prize piece of worK, She has Improved greatly in her screen work In the last year and certainly appears to be starring material at present. The production is an adequatfe one, and in keeping with all the late pic- tures that have come along it has a storm scene. It seems as if all the directors are trying to outdo each other with the'wlnd and rain stuCT, and had this picture appeared be- fore the others—"The Old Home- stead" and "The Town that Forgot (Jod," not forgetting "One Exciting Night"—the storm scene would have been a wallop indeod. In all. "The Village Blacksmith' looks like a feature that will clean- up as strongly as did "Over the Hill." It gets an audience in the throat at the beginning and never releases its grip until the final min- ute. Fred, TO HAVE AND HOLD A Georv« F'ltzmaurice production, pre- sented by Adol|>h Zukor. Mary Johnntun's famous novel has been itcenurlzed by Uulda llergere. This paramount picture is cur- rent thlB we«k at the CUtpitol, New York, with the following ca»t: I.ady Jocelyn Lii^igh Betty Compson Onptain Percy Ucrt I.ytcll lx)rd Cirnal Theodore KoulolT Jerrmy Spairow W. J. Fi>rKus> n icing Jamca I Raymond Hatton Patience Worth Claire Dubrey Ued (Jill, u pirate Walter L.ong l.Ady Jane Cart Anne Cornwall Paradise Fred Huntloy I..ord Cecil, Jc-celyn'a brother. Arthur Rankin Duke of Backlngham Lucien Littletirld ed by Lon Chaney and the Bill Sikes of Oeorg^ Slegmaan. As to the picture itself. Dlckeas without the lines seems to be some- thing other than Dickens. Jackie Coogan manages to endow the role of Oliver with real youth, and one -perhaps feels more for the young- ster than one would for a more mature girl playing the role, as has been the case in the past; but stil and all it isn't a Coogan picture in the full sense. There is this, however: the produc- tion with the coupling of the names of "Oliver Twist." a standard classic, Charles Dickens and Jackie Coogan'makes a rather imposing combination for the average picture theatre^ and it is on the strength of this combination that the picture will have to be sold to the public. It won't sell itself by word-of-mouth advertising by those that view it. The exhibitor will have to go out and create the demand," otherwise he cannot look for an unusual box-oflAce return. From a production standpoint the feature is well done, and Frank Lloyd, who directed the work, is to receive no small measure of credit. In lightings and the sets reproducing the old London streets the picture is superb*. Fred. The costume play is enjoying quite a vogue. Here's another with sword play and all that sort of thing prominent throughout. Whether by design or accident it follows Doug- las Fairbanks' "Uobin Hood" on the market, permitting the latter to pave the way. The Mary Johnstonnovel Is famil- iar to almost everybody, in type It thrilled with its romantic climaxes depicting the trials and tribtllatlons of Lady Jocelyn Leigh (Betty Compson) and Captain Ralph Percy (Bert Lytell) in winning their hap- piness and the dissolute King James I's patronage. The monarch is in- tent for four and a half reels on re- warding his favorite. Lord Carnal (Theodore Kosloff). with the hand of the fair lady. The latter would not have it, and sails to the Virginias to become the bride of some settler. Captain Percy marries her out of pity at her plight to prevent her re- turn to England. Lord Carnal fol- lows with a king's warrant for her return. She is Imprisoned; her lover dungeoned; escape, strategy, sword play and lots of other things fol- low. The suspense is maintained even until the actual scene of the forced marriage between Lady Leigh and her unwelcome Lord Car- nal. Enter Captain Percy for a duel for the lady'« hand (their marriage was annulled by court decree), and in besting the most expert sword in England wins a reprieve. There are a number of interesting details in the production. Of course, the court masque s?ene of King James could not have been anything so Hollywood-esque as depicted de- spite the monarch's w, k. love of regal revel. Here, however, Kosloff is given a chance to do a couple of his Russian whirls and dizzy spins that have been neglected since pos- turing before the camera. A battle scene between a pirate galleon and a king's vessel was a thriller, with another storm scene standing out. It is lavish production through- out, with the cast intelligently de- porting itself in keeping with the action. In addition to Miss Comp- son and Mr. Lytell, the central fig- ures. W. J. Ferguson does a neat character bit. Kosloff and Raymond Hatton as King James I stand out in the support. Abe$. OLIVER TWIST A Sol Leaser production, with Jackie Ci>ogan nfarring in a screen rcrsion of Charles Dickens* •Oliver Twist." Directtd by Frank Lloyd. Presented at the Strand. New York, two weeks beginning Oct. 30 Oliver Twist Jackie Coogan !• agin i^on Chaney ^.i'.V'^Jf.^'•*" Gladys Urockwell Hill Hikes .• Ceorg.. Siogrnann Mr. Urownlow Lionr-i Ucimore Mr. Humble (the bedalej James Marcus The Widow Corney Aggie Herring The Artful Dodger Edouard Trcbaol Charlie Bates Taylor (Jravrs Noah Claypole LewU .SarKcni <;harlotte Joan .Standmc Mr. Urimwig fo.veph H. Hiizlfton .Sowcrbrrry Nelson Mr Dowel I flo.«e Maylie Esther Ital«lon Mrs. Dcdwin Florence Hale Monks Carl .Stockdalo Toby Crackit Eddie Holand Jackie Coogan in a co.siume play. That about sums up the production of Dickens' "Oli\or Twist" as pre- sented by Sol Lesser. It is a series of characterization.s from the pages of Dickens, but hardly enough of .lackie Coogan to please the picture fans. Just how the picture will ap- peal to the majority of fans is a question. Of cuurst*, there is a cer- tain element of non-fan DickciiH lovers who will he attracted to the theatre by this pict ure. Although there are a number of names with i)icture value in the Kuppojtinp cast, there i.< hardly any- thing in their performances tiiat stands out. They appear to be rather lacking when weighed .igainsi some of the .«!tage characteriz;itions that have been presented of the bet- ter known roles of the Dicken.s work. This Is [larticularly true of the Interpretation of Fagin present- ALIAS JULIUS CAESAR A Charles Ray production. re'.eased through First National. Written by Rich- ard Andres, directed by the sur. About six reels. Hilly Barnes Charles Ray He:en Barbara Bedford Harry William 3oott Tom .Robert Fernandez Dick Pred Miller Nervy Norton Eddie Grlbbon This is a typical Ray comedy, with more laughs in it than any picture that Ray has turned out for more than a year while he was making productions for First National re- ! lease. It was one of those pictures ' that in the old day.s made Ray a I favorite and one of the type which I he failed to make for a long time. * It Is a laugh producer of rare quaijl ty, with the starring honors sue that these should have been divide between Kddie Grlbbon and R4» himself. Oribbon is there forty ways with the tough hick stuff* aj the orook in this picture. He is the foil for Ray all the way and makes possible the laugh-getting that the star does. Without Oribbon th«r«t would have been fewer laughs fi»r Ray. • The story Is »ne that was palpably manufactdired for the screen, ftiiy has the «lge on three other young men In the affections of Helen.. Ho deserts a golf foursome to be In hor company and the three others decide to even things up with hl«i. They get h^m into the locker-room and stage "a race for the showers. Ray is the first in. and then Um others steal his clothes and lock hiai in so he can't attend a dance thai night. Ray. however, makes his es- cape clad in a shower sheet, and is pinched as a nut who is paradinjv as Julius Caesar. In the jail houM he is clad in a discarded cop's form, and the coon Janitor of place believes him an ollicer. leavl the cell open so that hb and tl crook who works society affaire (Grlbbon) can make their escape." As soon as the crook gets loose h4 starts operations and turns up c(« the very dance where Ray goes tW square things with the girl. The* action from that point is all at thel society function, with Oribbon wan- ; dering through and cleaning up alll the Jewelry In the place and slipplnifl it to Ray. whom he has pres.sed into! service as an accomplice. Flnallv ttes-j real cops arrive, round up Oribbon ] and leave Rav to work out his 8al-4 vation with the girl. j Barbara Redford plays opposite j the star and manages to impress i nlcelv. But all the way through it,* is a Ray-Oribbon picture, which fer laughs would be hard to beat out-u side of an out-and-out Chaplin or i Lloyd slapstick comedy. rrcd. Notice To.the Trade! World's Rights on the following re-^ leases are controlled by Associated First National Pictures, Inc.-- VTfl THE TOONERVILLE TROLLEY SERIES "The Skipper's Boozem Friends'* "The Skipper's Flirtation" "The Skipper Has His Fling" "The Skipper's ISfarrow Escape" "The Skipper's Scheme" "The Skipper's Treasure Garden" •« «• «• •« The Skipper Strikes It Rich" 7 Toonerville's Fire Brigade" Toonerville Follies" Toonerville Tactice" The Toonerville Tangle** The Toonerville Trolley Meets ' ' All Trains** OTHER RELEASES 'Back to God's Country'* 'What Women Love" 'The Punch of the Irish" «•' 'The Game Lady" "Twin Beds" - "Bow Wow" Associated First National Pictures, Inc. X- ■'■% 6-8 West 48th Street NEW YORK, N. Y., U. S. A.