Variety (Dec 1929)

26 VARIETY FILM RE VIE W S Wednesday December 25, 192A DEVIL MAY CARE (Continued from page 20) this scene. It was a tough one for liny • girl to juggle. . In story Novarro is a Napoleon follower, condemned to martial death by King Louis for conspiracy against the throne. Escaping when before the firing squad by a ruse, Novarro accidentally runs into Miss Jordan"^ bedroom, is given up by her to the soldiers because he's for Napoleon, and the devil may care lad becomes the butler or first asst. but in the home . of a Countess friend, to whicli same home the ' same girl later goes as a guest. Some nice photography and some better bits lieye and there withoiit any novelty. Novarro picture all of. the way, for, a front rank juvenile and. actor, whose singing voice is not unlike Maurice Clreva- lier's. Perhaps It's the aiccent. THE VIRGINIAN (ALL DIALOG) Facatifiount production and release. Di- rected tjy Victor Fleming. Prom the story by Owen "Wister . and Kirk La . Slielle, adapted by Howard EatAbrodlc. At the Rlalto beglnnlhe Dec. 20. on grlfld run. Running time, .92 minutes. The Virginian.Gary Cooper Trampaa..^.Walter Huston Steve..Richard Arlen Molly' Wood Mary Er!a n Uncle tlu'ghey. Chester Conkllii Honey Wiggln..... <.<^ugene Pallette Jtvdge Henry..K. Calvert "Ma" Taylor.... Helen Waro . Nebraskey.......>.......«.. Victor Potel Shotty.. .i; ...................... .Tex Toung Pedrodiaries Stevens "The Virginian"'proves that with the right material properly handled sound turjis.: the khell for westerns into, one ctf'.aniination. This Par- amount production takes the old play dirt of ancient plains pictures, sliuifles it around a bit, and, with the studio mind fully concentrated, makes of the Wister and La Shelle story 92 minutes of projection, superbly combining drama and. comedy. It will be ah outstanding ntoriey. maker dviririg 1930. This goes for any theatre that shows it, because "The Virginian" is truly a nugig;et of ra.re entertainment. Victor Fleming has done a great directorial job, preserved in the cutting room. Although there are laughs l;hroughout unanimous : in their spontaneity, the audience Is never permitted to forget that it is things dramatic which are under- liring. The laughs are simply nec- essary comedy relief from situa- tions so tense that tlie audience cannot resist that feeling of rigidity. An ante-cliniax toward tlie mid- dle, one of the most liarrowirig and vivid sequences ever before the lense. It is when tlie silent and lanky Virginian is forced to give the- signal "which sends his pal, Steve, along with three' other cattle rustlers, galloping to their death in nooses. Close-ups of the ad- justing of the ropes are followed by tlie sudden swisliing of tails be-: fore the rear hoofs plunge forward. Trampas, the menace, and proven as such during the first 10 min- utes when he Is restrained by the Virginian from assaulting jthe. bar- maid, is saved from the hanging to bait along the story for the ven- geance climax at the picture's close. ' That's the theme idea, one that has been used: hundreds of times by indies in the silent days for grind consumption. But the indies slap-banged away Avhile Paramount, as "The Vir- ginian" substantiates, regarded the theme in a seriotis and- thoughtful manner. No all-staooting with some patched-in comedy and the organi- zation didn't pad nothing Into less. The school mam, played by the pretty Mary Brian, didn't' fly at the neck of the tall backwoodsman. She teased him, letting him use the old' gag of rescuing her from a frightened cow and then promptly bawling him out. This provided Gary Cooper; in a style that Is one of the reiasons why the entire pro- duction Is that way, with a chance for a bit of byplay and wlse-cra-ck- ing with Richard-Arleh as a sincere but out-for-easy-doiigh Steve. And the village folk gathered to fete the new teacber, just as in hundreds Of this western's prede- cessors. But here It Is also a christening and the boys had to change the babies so that the Vir- ginian could walk th6 tutor home. Even the ifiowboy bathing gag, as old as Hollywood, got a maxi- mum of laulrhs; not juist the gag itself but the manner In which it was wedged tn. Returning to the old barroom after the Virginian has been shot in the: back hunting for Trampas. is recovered, and. has the gun oiled onie more. Then the menace ap-* peai's and orders the hero out of town by sunset it's all that way. The same old story stuff, but made brand new by Paramount. All the fans know what is going to happen .and yet they don't. This goes even when the Virginian, stalking the town for Trampas, Is shot a.t, returns three shots for a, perfect target and takes his little teacher farther west. . Waly. Marcellhe Day In "Temple Ton- ers" (Fox). Sue Carol In VThe Golden Calf" (Fox), for —at low cost—sauiid caii be ]iliiite<i without sacrificing an^^^^ tlie delicate tints formerly used• • • .Eastnmn Sonochrdme Tinted Pc^idve Films tiaye ^veh the industry a wider range of tints than was ever avattable before—-in films so kdjusted that they give amazingly faith- fii]t sound reproduction.^ thougih th^ combine sound and c«olQr, these new Eastnian films cost no more than regulsur black-and-white positive. EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY ROCHESTER, NEW YORK ;Jr^rBriih^ New York Chicago Hollywood THE KIBITZER (ALL DIALOG) Paramount production and releqse. Fea- turing Harry Green. JiVom the etage play of the £anie name by Jo ^n-erlin? and £d- ward O. Robinson} adapted by Sam Mintz and "Viola Brothers Shore. Directed by Ed- waj-d Sloman. Marion Dix, scenario. Al- fred Gulick, photographe.-. At Parantount,. New "Vork, week Dec. 20. Kunnlng time, 77 minutes. Ike .idzarus (the kibitzer) Harry Green Jo.iio Lazorua.....i.'...<Mary Brian Eddie Brown.............Nell Hamilton Eort ....... .... Da-id Xowell Tankel Lee Kohlmar Kikapotipolos. i....... .Henry Fink Mover , .....,........... i .Tenen. Holt/ JltGlnty «?uy Oliver Jame.s Livingston.......Albert O-an PhUllps................. •>....Eddie K'-.'e Should kibitz through the first runs to modei'ate . eroisses, oh strength of Its timely stoclc market theme, well travestied, and.accom-, panylng liaughs. Stage icingle may mean^ something; play having done fairly well in New Tprk, Chicago and the Coast. : While the' screen treatment .of the stage script may. have been expected to result in; variations from the original,. It doesn't happen to be the case here, .tliQUgh con- siderable liberties 'were taken in elaborating and drawing put th$ primary continuity. All of whtoh combines to proyide .a good many extraneouis and. ambiguous shots, hardly nefcessary to the plot, as the scenario sticks pretty close to the play in directing and Centering en-, tire action around on© character; the kitjltzer. Holding on to that was okay, as it probably couldn't have been done otherwise, :without hurting tlie story propel*, .but In- jecting a lot of atmospheric se- quences that have no bearing, ac- tually ..did squelch the- -picture, a good deal. As a result th,o 77. min«- uteS It runs is too long, with sev-. eral dull, and draggy moments that might have been ellnjinated by ju- dicious cutting.. .. No fault of the director,' 'who evidently, tqbk . pains not to deviate tbo much, from/the original script, and ..yet had .screen proportions of the story ih mind. In silent version this may have proved acceptable, .-but not where dialog holds together everything:. For . Harry Green, former vaud6 comic, and 'vi^ho -slnco has-, contrlb- • uted some excellent bits ahd r61es on . the Paramount lot, this'plcifure will doubtless mean something. Be- sides projecting him In- his first featured work It serves to .accen- tuate not so niilch what he does with the lead here, but what he could do In specially prepared roles along- Yiddish lines In the future. With "Thfe Kibitzer" fitting right into his knapsack, (Grreen walks away with all honors. Story lu . of the Proverbial an- hoyer . who dishes out. advice ' to others while never participating In ahytliing himself. Through .coin- cidence of. jnlstakeh identity ' In a young maii whQ Is after his daugh- ter, Liazarus, the kibitzer, falls heir to a . block of stock with free .yeln to .dispose Of it at his judgment. A sudden upheaval'in the poor storekeeper's life naturally/follows. Installing a ticker In his store he lets business go hang and can think of nothing but. anticipated profits. . Daughter is in love, with a good but poor boy who loses his life's sttvihgs oh a horse race through a tip by Liazarus. .But the 61d main alibis himself .'by saying the bciy. Shouldn't have heeded hlm^ The way he previously dopes the losing nag should be. a howl. Every horse, .says Lazarus, • must win at least one race In. his career. This one hasn't come in yet in 69 starts,- but Is-being retired after this par- ticular race,- so by the bid man's consensus he can't inlss. That the nag does,:and by a mile, it) another story, , - , CUmax is when Lazarus's stock goes Into action and from a rise of nine points suddenly drops and wipes everything out, Surrounded by cajoling friends and other kibitzers, Lazarus Is -audderily coflfrented with the .mllllohaire who gave him the stock, who congratulates him on: selling to a $39,000 profit before' it was too late. Then it's discov- ered that Lazarus's half wit brother did It by answering a phone call from the broker with "Yes, sure, certainly," the only English he knew. Rest of the cast is substantial enough with little to do. Mary Brian, whom Paramount has been giving a big play of late, is demure and charming as the daughter.' Neil Hamilton also acceptable as her lover. Eddie Kane (Kane and Herman) has just a whiff of a bit in this, but good. Kane and Henry Fink, both vaudevillaina, handle dialog in true fashion and photograph well. Span. Supporting Dorothy Mackaill In •"Brlght-Llgllts''^ fOr F.^rafri^aWc^ Fay, Frank McHugh, Noah Beery, Inez Courtney, Eddie Nugent. Daphne Pollard. Cast of "His Woman" for F. N. Includes Jlonte Blue, Llla Loe, Wil- liam Boyd. Betty Compson, Gino Corrado, WllHani Janney. Maurice Black for "Framed." Radio. Charlotte Moniam to "Dumbbells In Krmlno," W..B., Jack AdolphI di- recting. Girl From Woolworth's (ALL DIAtOG, with Sonos) First National production and iclcnR*. Alee White ITeatured In screen credit, but starred in Strand's advertising. Oharlei Delaniey underlined, Directed by William Bcaudlne from Adele Comandinl's storv Dialog by Richard .Weil and K. Luddy.* music and lyrics by. Al Bryan and Georsa Meyer. Cameraman, Jackson Rose. Super*' viaed by Ray Bockett, At Strand, New Yorki week Dec. ;^0. Running time, 6tf mins, . Pat Klng> > • .Alice- Wblte Bill Harrlgan..,........i.Charles Dolancy Lawrence Maj-fleldv. i Wheeler Oakman TiUle Hart.».... .Rita l^lyntj Nice program i>icture with the titI6 and the. Alice White name composing the draw. Inelde the dialog, Charles Delahey. Rita Flynn, and a melody, which sounds as if it had a chance will be found all im- portant. . ' . ;. This picture may turn out to be a working girl's delight, that going for. the boys, too. Reason is that the dialog is strictly according to the film's title. Cbuclied in tene- ment style, the flaps and jellies can't mufC it, and as' delivered by Miss Flynn and Delaney it's not only naive, but at times plenty funny. And this Flynn girl: oke on looks'with a. great sense, of de- livery for droll comedy. Maybe a future! Helen.' Broderick. Pretty close to being, her picture, |is De« laney Is the only rival in this re- cipect. Miss White can't -take bows on this one. Warbles a couple of songs fairly, but .if she's going to continue ° to lead dance numbers something ought to be done about it. Not . much doubt that Miss White is; restricted to this type of story, and' If that's the case a stitch In time would be constant vocal and terpslchore coaching, mostly the latter. In lieu . of" what the bunch has found out/they can do with a microphone.. . To Imvo had' less well-fitting dialog "Girl from Wool worth's" might easily have become one of thOde things. An example of taking an ordinary story and building it into so.mething vlia writers and cast. Not an expensive picture, the flash end being a cabaret set and the usual numbers. Mention of the. cabaret added . to- the film's title tells the whole, scenario, even unto the cafe proprietor, as the on the 'make menace. . ; ' Feattire Is . constantly on the" mo've, a feather for Beaiidine, while the crossfire between Miss Flynn, Delaney and Miss White holds laiighs. Opens. ..'With Miss White turning on the: bhlll for Delaney at a flat party , whlle^ her sidekick, Mlas Flynnj is ready .to «iv.e-in after one flash at ■ the .isax playing subway guard. That Delaney must fall for the Harlem- Carmen isn't always going to be the way audiences ^ould have It, due to Miss Flynn's sympathetic, assignment-- -and the manner in which . she plays it. But that takes the edge off Miss White more than the picture. By the time .th« latter gets through trying to Impress the other half of the love interest With her ImjpOrtanCe, and he, in .turn, has dutifully registered his Indlllerence, they're both Trell on their Way to a license. Girl's accepta,nce of the cabaret job brings . about - the ■ threatened split-up. .Ditty which sounds as if It may mean something Is "What I Khow About Love," sent In by Miss White . and not badly, although further tutoring In puttln'g over these pops will .help. Wheelier Oakman does excellently by the heavy, but the dialog''writers .cah be designated the outstanding factor; also Beaudine, who probably had a hand in It somewhere'. Release Is Ray Rock- ett's supervising swan song to FN. It's trashy and snappy, a com- bination which doesn't often miss for business, no matter how the In- tiellectuals shndder. And keep, an eye -on that Flynn person.. Sid- Nosferatu the Vampire (GERMAN MADE) (Silent) Parana production,^ Film Arts Guild re- lease. Directed by F. W. Murnau. Titles by Benjamin de Casaeress. Cast includes Max Scbreck, Alexander Gianach; Gus- tavo Wagenhelm, Greta Schroder. Karl Sohnell and Ruth Landshoft. At tlie Film Guild, New York, week Dec. 14. Running time, 70 mlnutee. Skillfully mounted and - directed, this symbolical legendary cinema story of reanimated ghosts in a period set about a century or so ago when vampirism was pretty Well entrenched in the World's be- liefs, is a depressive piece of art made even more incompatible for bourgeolse theatre fare because of mlsspott^d and poor titling. Latter lends the filrii more 'than one con- fusing moment and therefbre it is a risky exhibit for the sure seaters too—although the artistic quality of settings and_ direction _cojn'imand consideratlbn, tlils "and" Miirhau'S Work leaving the question open whether this film was made long ago. or lately. Story is claimed to have been in- spired by "Dracula." Whether the play or the book not told. Bram Stokes authored the novel more than 20 years ago and the plaV which was based on It, written by Hamilton Dean and John Balder- son, produced on Broadway by (Continued on page 30)