CITY THEATRES

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23378, 11 July 1941, Page 3

CITY THEATRES

AVON

“ THE GOLDEN FLEECING ”

Machinations of racketeers are turned to hilarious use in the comical adven-tures,of-Lew Ayres among a group of the tou'ghest denizens of a big city in “The Golden Fleecing,” a romance with Rita Johnson, coming to the Avon. . It is the .story of a timid young insurance clerk. ■ His sweetheart stirs him to ambition, so he goes out and sells a £ 10,000 insurance policy. The next day he learns he has insured , a racketeer leader, now a fugitive from the’ authorities and likely to be “rubbed out" any minute. The boss, seeing a £IO,OOO pay-off near, sends the clerk out to find the gangsters “or else." Dodging in and ' out ambng gangsters, Ayres goes from one comical tribulation to another. ’ .', ■ He finds himself a public ? hero, finally makes a fortune overnight, is sued for breach of promise, is pursued by the gangsters and climbs on the seventh storey ledge of an office building to rescue Miss Johnson ' from henchmen of the gang overlord. A comical denouement ends the story in a gale of laughter. , „ Lloyd Nolan returns to racketeer roles in this film with a good performance as the gang overlord.' Others id the film are Virginia Grey, Nat Pendleton and Marc Lawrence.

CRYSTAL PALACE “ RIDE ON VAQUBRO ” A double-feature programme at. the Crystal Palace to-day includes a Cisco Kid film, with a new Michael Shayne detective story. . • Both are fast' action films, with good comedy interludes. In “Ride on Vaquero” the part of the Cisco Kid is played by Cesar , Romero, as only Romero can play it—to perfection. This time he not only tangles with kidnappers, but tangos with Mary’Beth Hughes, who becomes more ‘popular with each picture -she appears in. , Others featured in . the cast .are Lynne Roberts, Chris-Pm Martin, Bobart Lowery, and Ben Carter. - The Story is again an exciting one of kidnappers and sheriffs, with; plenty of .‘romance included* ¥ to The jassociate feature, ‘ Sleepers West;’ stars Lloyd Nolan as Detective Midhaelt Shayne. ~ gnd Lynh Bap and Edward ißropßy. 5 : „ , “Sleepfers C Wfet” V takes , place aboard - the crash-bound 1 Comanche Limited, ’ with a bninette, a blonde, and’ other mysterious * characters aboard, and it offers Shayne his tough,estcase, .

MAYFAIR ,

“MR AND MRS SMITH”

Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery will be seen in the brand of comedy with which both have been identified as experts for many a season' in "Mr and Mrs Smith," opening at the Mayfair to-day. This excursion into the field of humour by Director Alfred Hitchcock abounds in situations, incidents, and dialogue which combine to make one of the brightest modern* films. The genius of the famous director of “Rebecca” and ''Foreign Correspondent” is again evident in this production, ancfethe utmost is extracted from every incident and witticism. Contributing in equal measure to the success of the film is the masterly portrayal of Robert He turns in an,.extremely clever and amusing performance, well maintaining the high standard he has set in this type of picture.- Carole Lombard, too, is very pleasing In the opposite role, and the supporting cast, headed by Gene Raymond, lends effective support.

PLAZA “TUNDRA” : . “Tundra,” the unusual film coming to the Plaza, stars a white man, three .hears, and some Eskimo men and women. • In the trackless wilderness north of the Yukon, where sparsely populated villages lie hundreds of miles apart, a physician who travels alone in his ohe-seater aeroplane, is returning from an errand of mercy to a sick Eskimo child. The flying doctor’s aeroplane is wrecked, making a forced landing on. an iceberg. Miraculously, he escapes ; unhurt, but is hopelessly stranded uriarmed, without provisions, in a wild waste of ice, rivers, and fqrests. , . Out of a cave stalks a huge black bear and two small cubs. Pursued by the mother-bear, the fugitive flees. An avalanche, sweeps away the big bear, as the man finds refuge in the cleft of a rock. , He enters the cave and makes friends with the cubs, who become his companions.* The wanderer presses doggedly, forward over unknown trails.. His extraordinary adventures make a first-rate film. . “Blondie Meets the Boss” returns the Bumstead family—Blondie, Dagwood. Baby Dumpling, and Daisy—to the Plaza soon. Hilarious successor to their initial picture, “Blondie," the new production, continues the adventures and misadventures of. . the screen’s favourite family,,. This time Blondie decides that a husband’s place is in the home, and'Dagwood has to try to cook. .... T . Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake mxm iaatured: in thenew Columbia

production.- and Larry Simms is seen as Baby Dumpling. . ..

STATE

“THE THIEF OF BAGDAD”

Alexander Korda’s great technicolour adventure romance, “The Thief of Bagdad," opening soon at the State, stars Sabu, Conrad Veidt, June Duprez, and John Justin. Filmed at a budget exceeding 2,000,000 dollars, “The Thief of Bagdad” is a picture filled with action, fabulous adventure, Arabian Nights romance. ft was directed by’ Ludwig Berger and Michael Powell, and William Cameron Menzies, who won an Academy award for designing the “Gone With the Wind” sets, acted as production designer.* The Story of “The Thief of Bagdad" takes place in the cities of Basra and Bagdad, in Persia. Basra, many hundreds of years ago, was the most important town- and seaport of Persia. Oriental merchandise of every description was brought by camel caravan from Bagdad, making it a seething, colour-splashed seaport, swarming with Chinese, Arabs, Egyptians, Turks, Hindus, and African negroes. Its busy waters were filled with all kinds of junks, painted in dazzling colours. The story of the light-fingered urchin is well told in this highly successful film.

LIBERTY “ OLD BILL AND SON ” The spirit and humour which carry British soldiers through war’s difficult situations inspire “Old Bill and Son,” which stars Bruce Bairnsfather’s world-famous character, "Old Bill,” will be shown at the Liberty to-day. Not just another war picture, supercharged with guns and shells, this production gets off the beaten track. It presents the human side of war. It shows the scenes in the estaminet, the scrounging for food, and the friendly bickering over girls, and an intensely dramatic night raid on a German position forms one of the most exciting endings possible. _ . In the hands of Morland Graham, Old Bill, as millions knew him in the last wax. comes to life. John Mills, as his swaggering Cockney son, Young Bilk gives a remarkably fine performance; Old Bill’s wife, Maggie, dogged but homely, is a part which is uncannily suited to the talents of Mary Clare, one of Britain’s premier actresses. As the step-daugh-ter who joins the A.T.S., Rene Ray is pert and attractive, besides being an exceptionally clever actress. The associate feature is “Quick Millions,” with the Jones Family.