Wid's Filmdom (1920)

e LS fe Sunday, March 21, 1920 oi DAILY : ESTEE ST SB SLT NS EE A EY Average Feature But Doesn’t Make Most of the Story Mitchell Lewis in “KING SPRUCE” Dial Film Co.—Hodkinson DIRECTOR ... Beas ar easier s ns ony Roy Clements eM EMRE Kt eee 05 295 45 25 ob ek we Holman Day AT 2 RE Not credited CAMERAMAN 3. oo.5cceec ccs... Fred G. Hartman AS A WHOLE...... Fair production with appropri ate background for story; runs along in an even tenor throughout. me Gh le Wo7 oe ois os Lumber camp setting makes it just little out of the ordinary. DIRECTION ..Doesn’t vary the force of action enough to indicate the bigger moments in the story. BRR CCR EE 5 oo ov de tee ne ecco’ Splendid eee MR OCROMIPE ET iia y faye ovo nt eee baw Good CAMERA WORK...... Some pretty scenes of actual work in lumber camp. SEAR... ... Doesn’t compel any particular attention SUPPORT.:.... Badly directed and terribly “acty.” [| oa ed (4) 8 Beautiful scenes BOM PRLG RCHE EE Sao ye cco ks cece cues Adequate Bree eh es ss bre Fails to get punch in action scenes CHARACTER OF STORY....:.. Melodrama of lumber camp settlement. LENGTH OF PRODUCTION...... About 6,600 feet It would seem very much as though they have purposely made an effort to secure good locations and beautiful scenes to help cover up a weak plot which is further weakened by the lack of force to get over ‘the few worth while moments. that the story does not contain. Perhaps the biggest fault is the fact that the climax is reached toward the middle of the picture and from then on the remaining reels are obviously padded. The direction is bad for the most part, the main fault being that the interest is not properly coached to accept the more dramatic moments that come along, and there were several good ones which might have been made quite worth while had they been properly handled. Then again after the climax had been reached, the action falls back into ordinary routine stuff which included a great many shots of men at work in the forest, and a general finishing up toward the happy ending. John Barrett, for no very apparent reason, to persuade Dwight Wade, Mitchell Lewis, carrying out his plan to go into the timberlands to seek his fortune. Especially when the lumber king found that his daughter was in love with Wade, he was doubly opposed to any possible rivalry in the forest trade. However, Dwight went into the woods where he came upon a hut occupied by a band of paupers. Among them was a young girl said to be fatherless. The hut was on Barrett’s property and the only way he could drive the paupers out was to burn their hut. But Wade arrived in time to see the destruction and chase after the girl who was avenging the wrong by starting a forest fire. In the meantime the old lookout had overpowered Barrett and related how he (Barrett) had run away with the old man’s daughter and how the girl of the woods was Barrett’s, own child. Later Wade came to his rival’s rescue. Barrett then agreed to take the girl home and give her a name but later decided to pay one of his men $10,000 to marry her and keep her in the lumber camp. McCloud liked the money end of the deal and accepted the offer although he was in love with a girl in the village. After various scuffles and tedious details they arrived at the usual happy ending. The only laugh in the picture came when a downand-outer heard the controversy over the marriage deal and volunteered to marry both girls for $10,000. In the cast were Mignon Anderson in a double role, Arthur Millet, Joe Ray, James O’Neil, Betty Wales, Melbourne MacDowell, Gus Soville and Frederic Herzog. tries from Names of Author and Star Together With Pretty Locations May Help This Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor “King Spruce” is just another average program feature picture with no particular high lights to flash about nor substantial box office argument unless it be that Mitchell Lewis’ name means something to your crowd. In that case it would be worth your while to do a little talking about it and refer to one of his previous pictures which was somewhat along the same lines as “King Spruce,” called “The Last of His People.” If you happened to run that, “King Spruce” may appeal to them. For those who appreciate pretty scenery, there are a great many well chosen shots that they will like. There are also several scenes showing the chopping of huge trees which seem to fall dangerously near the camera and shots showing the huge trunks tearing down dun-ways and splashing into the river to be carried to the mill. These are instructive as well as pretty to look at.