Wid's Filmdom (1921)

i ‘to Sunday, September 4, 1921 . é RP ES LL OE SR La eter ee of DAILY 5 Poor Story Makes Mild Entertainment Eileen Percy in “HICKVILLE TO BROADWAY” Fox pre’ O Re Set ey ee Carl Harbaugh PORMEIACI IN Soe a ss 5 0 ds ta eee Carl Harbaugh ieee O OB Yen, cs «03. eae ee eee Carl Harbaugh Reg RATA Nott. as orn Cae Otto Brautigam AS AWHOLE...... Mild entertainment built around sex theme ay eee ees. ac Lacking in plot and action, Takes a long time to get under way Brie 1 LON Fie Poor story allowed little room for anything but plain direction RAAT CALE ree tr ste ss sy ws All right ee IN Crys eee ee es lene, eee Ps 6 oes are Ordinary Rear Eri AS VVC) be mane ee crm yee. = ese oe ns Good SAEs ts RM. Pe Ly costes. = Lacks personality Reuse be Lewy sete eee econ echoes eke ws oe a8 All right UCU 8 Ra CRIES? oe it ate a eee er or Few BNE TG TCC) em ee one kone ee cde ees « Good REL Lae hairs ea ew 6 6s Continuity not smooth CHARACTHEROF STORY =... .. Girl from the coun try tests her lover by going to New York and _ playing the part of an actress PENG PHoObKerPRODUCTION ..... 0. a0. 4,219 feet _ The story provided for Eileen Percy in “Hickville to Broadway” lacks the elements of screen material. The story is a bit too heavy for a comedy and too light for a drama. The incidents do not follow one another in a sequence that builds up to a climax and the atten tion from the main theme is often diverted. Almost two reels are consumed in getting under way and then the action is needlessly retarded when the scenes are changed from Hickville to New York. It is here that Eileen Percy throws off her gingham _dress and adorning herself in Broadway’s snappiest tells her lover that she is not Anna from Hickville, but a member of the Follies. The entire production cen ters around the very unconvincing fact that he fails to recognize his fiance, Eileen Percy does quite well in a very untempting role, but fails to put any characterization or personality into her work. She goes through her paces, but neglects to put the motives that move her across. William Scott plays opposite Miss Percy and takes the part of the young man who has some loose wild oats that he wants to sow in New York. The story opens with some shots in Hickville where Anna and Virgil are happily engaged. Sibyl Fane, an actress, arrives at the farm and is entertained by the. couple in the best Hickville fashion. They go to a dance and to a movie, which by the way was very cleverly shown. Virgil Cole, the young man, now gets a desire to have a fling at New York and accordingly sells his drug store and leaves. Sibyl Fane, the actress, sends Anna to her friends in New York, who lay a deep rooted plot to test the love of, the young man from Hickville. Anna herself has now undergone a complete change and pretending to be a girl from the Follies allows her former lover to make love to her. Again she appears as a masked model in a studio set, and to escape his attentions runs into another studio in the same building and meets a millionaire artist, who protects her. In the end the rube from Hickville is shown up and Anna becomes engaged to the rich artist. Don’t Make Too Many Promises Box Office Analysis for the Exhibitor Your best talking point is the title and the “wild oats in New York” idea if you decide to run this one or have it coming to you. The gay side of New York will attract if you are located in a small town. Don’t promise too much in the way of a story or production. You know your audience best and if they are at all critical this is not the one for them, Men tion Eileen Percy as having been an artist’s model and a Follies girl before she became a motion picture star. If you use catch lines, something like this might help attract: “It is a long jump from a village girl to a Broadway vamp, but it is done by Eileen Percy in a9 ‘Hickville to Broadway.