"BLOCKADE."

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 224, 22 September 1938, Page 4

"BLOCKADE."

DRAMA FOR CIVIC. Presenting a timely picture of life in war-torn Spain, "Blockade." opening at the Livic Theatre to-morrow, will be enjoyed by those who like their entertainment strong, but cannot be recommended to patrons who favour only pictures of the lighter variety. Although the centra! theme is the romance of Henrv Fonda, as Marco, and Madeleine Carroll, as Norma, the film itself is a bitter condemnation of modern warfare. The production preserves a strictly neutral attitude throughout but nevertheless there seems to be underlying it a strong indictment of the rascist war machine, with the sufferings of the innocent peasants alwavs evident. Henry Fonda reveals himself to be an actor with more than average dramatic ability and he handles his difficult part with conviction and effect; his last words, before the final fade-out. in which he condemns the horror and futility of modern warfare, are among the most memorable heard on the screen for a considerable time. Madeleine Carroll has long had a high, reputation as a versatile actress and her performance is every whit as good as Fonda's. Roistering Leo Cnrrillo is featured in the supporting cast, which also includes John Halliday. Reginald Denny. Vladimir Sokoloff and Katherine de Mille. while a further guarantee of the quality of the film is the fact that it was directed hr William Dieterle. who was resnonsih'e for "The Life of F.mile Zola." The plot concerns the adventures of Norma when civil -war breaks out soon after she hp.s arrived in Spain to visit her father and of her love affair with Marco, a yourre farmer-turned-soldier, who is forced to shoot her father as a spy.