PARAMOUNT THEATRE.

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 29, 3 August 1939, Page 15

PARAMOUNT THEATRE.

Great War Programme,

With the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Great War falling this week, the management of the Paramount Theatre has chosen for its programme which changed today "two films dealing with the 1914-18 struggle as suitable for the occasion. The main feature is "Hell's Angels," one of the most expensive and most talked-about film dramas. Nearly three years m the , making, the film had an overhead cost of approximately 4,000,000 dollars. It is some years since "Hell's Angels" was first launched—as a silent super. Subsequently the cast and story were revamped, and' all of the non-flying sequences refilmed, with sound arid dialogue. Ben Lyon. James Hall, and Jean Harlow are co-featured m the leading roles and are supported by such well-known players as John Darrow, Lueien Prival, Jan£ Winton, Lena Malena, Douglas Gilmore, Stephen Carr, Tommy Carr, Pat Somerset. Granville Divis, Lisa Gora, Wyndham Hall, and others. Approximately. 137 aviators, and as many mechanics,'including nearly every stunt flyer and ex-war ace available in America, participated in the sky action of "Hell's Angels,' which '<alone required 18 months to record. Exactly 87 planes, including 40 true war-type ships, took part in the film. A Zeppelin and a giant German Gotha.bombing plane also figure prominently in mile-high action above the clouds. This is the largest air fleet ever assembled to perform ii. a private enterprise. More than 2,000,000 dollars was expended on aviation scenes alone, and another half a million was invested in the dirigible sequence, which is a spectacular high light of the film. The exploits of Baron yon Richthofen's "flying circus" have been accurately reproduced also, and in one scene 50 planes are shown participating simultaneously in a free-for-all "dog-fight" between fighting air devils of Germany and the Allies. The second feature is a photographic record of the Great War, entitled "The First World War." Almost three years of research went into the making of this chronicle, which is something entirely new in the field of screen fare. There is no faking of the scenes; each and every one is authentic arid conveys a message to all, particularly to the postwar generation. The film contains some of the most thrilling and breathtaking shots ever made in the heat of battle, either on land or sea. Closeup scenes of hand-to-hand fighting are varied with enthralling aeroplane sequences and horrifying torpedoing, showing in detail the critical conflicts of the war.