PICTURE THEATRES

Evening Star, Issue 20998, 12 January 1932, Page 5

PICTURE THEATRES

REGENT Considered by many overseas critics as one of the greatest triumphs of screen art, ' The Outsider,' starring Joan Barry, is tin's week showing at tho Regent Theatre. The show concerns the beautiful, talented, but crippled daughter of England's foremost surgeon, Dr Stnrdee, who is approached by Bagatzy, an unqualified specialist, who wants to cure her. Her father, believing her incurable, hotly opposes the idea; her fiance supports it; and in the end she places herself in Ragatzy's hands, to fight for life and love. There is romance, drama, suspense, with moments of priceless comedy, and the picture has wonderful genuine audience appeal. Harold Hutli plays the role of Anton Ragatzy, and gives one of the first exhibitions of sustained, emotional acting that has come from any screen player, and Joan Barry as Lalage Sturdee scores a triumph that borders on the sensational. Frank Lawton as the fiance and Norman M'Kinnel as Dr Sturdee, add to their reputations, and the rest of the cast give creditable performances. EMPIRE Picture goers who see Gloria Swanson's latest United Artists picture, ' Indiscreet,' at the Empire J'li'eatve will be agreeably surprised at the tremendous improvement made in sound recording. This betterment of voice reproduction is due to a new device, which, for simpler understanding; has been called a " noise reduction valve." Its function is to close automatically between words and phrases or whenever there is no sound impulse travelling through the recording apparatus from the microphones, thus shutting out practically all of the " ground noise " and preventing its being photographed on the film. With the elimination of the hissing and crackling that has always emanated from " ground noise," the new recording offers a fidelity of tone that is almost startling. It, also permits tho reproduction of vocal tones in lower registers, such as whispered conversations, with marked success. ' Indiscreet,' a smart comedy-drama, again reveals Miss Swanson in a role of fashion, with an ultra-modern wardrobe to delight the feminine fan. The star's supporting cast includes Ben Lyon, Monroe Owsley, Barbara. Kent, Arthur Lake, and Maude Eburne. ST. JAMES A challenge to women in love! That is the absorbing theme of the picture ' Seed,' with John -Boles, Genevieve Tobin, and Lois Wilson in the leading roles, at the St. James Theatre. There have been many " triangle " pictures, but never one like this production. It is startling in its sincerity, and the lifelike quality that dominates everything about it—story, players, and direction. A screen play dealing seriously with domestic problems is always full of interest, if it is well done. And ' Seed ' is much better than " well done." It is superlative—without doubt one of the best talking pictures ever produced. The story was adapted from Charles G. Norris's much-dis-cussed best-seller, and its principal roles are acted by a trio of players whose ability is of a very high order. John Boles is seen as a husband and father whose latent abilities as a writer have been wrecked because he must continually devote himself to the difficult task of supporting a large family of children. Genevieve Tobin gives a magnificent portrayal of the boyhood sweetheart of the would-be writer. She appears ten years after his marriage and stirs his ambition, which, under her inspiration, flames into successful creative writing. Then there is the third member of this remarkable trio of players—Lois Wilson, in the role of the , author's wife, the mother of. his five children. Her performance is a classic of acting—unquestionably the greatest mother-portrayal ever seen on the screen, and utterly natural. STRAND The screen adaptation of the stage play,-' The Gorilla,' is the main feature on tli© current programme at the Strand Theatre. Lila Lee has the principal role. Those who sftW the play will well recollect the story, the basis of which is that a mysterious menace terrorises a city. Man or beast, he strangles his victims, and leaves them with the mark of a gorilla's paw on their chests, and in all his horrible work he seemed to be directed by a human intelligence. Cyrus Stevens is warned that lie is to be the next victim, and he adopts all sorts of precautions to secure the animal.and prevent harm to his guests. The sensational happenings that follow are followed by an audience with the closest attention, and the mystery has a startling close and solution in a way that few, ifr any, suspected. The second picture on the programme is 'Divorce Among Friends,' an adaptation of 'Two-time Marriages,' a popular magazine story. The box plans are at the theatre and The Bristol. OCTAGON ' The Public Defender,' which is a story of the quixotic actions of a wealthy young New York man who takes the law into his own hands in order to clear the name of the father of the girl he loves, is now showing at the Octagon. It is a story of a tyne that is always popular, no matter in what form it is presented. Richard Dix makes an excellent hero, and Shirley Grey an equally excellent heroine. Tho story of ' A Man From Wyoming,' the second attraction, concerns the adventures of a certain company of American engineers in the Great' War, Gary Cooper taking the part of the officer commanding the company. There is in the story a girl who goes from America to France to "do her bit." She finds the discipline of training quarters in Paris not to her liking, and she sets out for the front line to see what there is to be seen. Cooper takes her prisoner and treats her sternly, but is unable to resist her charms. They are married by an old French padre, and Cooper almost immediately receives orders to return to the front line. He is reported to have been killed in action, and his wife's endeavours to forget her sorrow give him a bad impression when he_ returns to the land of the living. This situation forms the climax of the picture.

‘ HUCKLEBERRY FINN.’ Four delightful child actors and a distinguished cast of adults will bring enjoyable entertainment to the Octagon Theatre, where Paramount’s ‘Huckleberry Finn,’ the second of the Mark Twain classics to come to the screen, will be shown for a week, commencing on Friday next. Jackie Coogan is again cast in the role of Tom Sawyer, in which ho made such a hit in the moving picture of that name, and Junior Durkin continues his portrayal of Huck Finn. Mitzie Green and Jackie Sear! are just as enjoyable in ‘ Huckleberry Finn ’ as they were in ‘Tom .Sawyer.’ Fat and jolly Eugene Pallctto heads the cast of adults. Ho portrays ouo of the pair of desperadoes who lead Tom and Huck into mischief. Oscar Apfel is the other bad man. Clara Blaudick is again seen in jthe role pf

the worried Aunt Polly, and Jane Darwell portrays the role of Widow Douglas. KINS EDWARD Reginald Denny, Leila Hyams, Charlotte Greenwood, and Cliff Edwards have the principal roles in ' Stepping Out,' which heads the current bill at the King Edward Theatre. The story is laid in Hollywood, the theme being the backing of pictures as a speculation, with entangling results to the ladies of the piece. The propensity for the chief actors to back amateur moving picture outfits and play around with the would-be stars is responsible for many entanglements, and the complications that ensue before the irate wives decide to forgive their husbands provide a lot of laughs. An elaborate swimming pool scene, where the errant husbands entertain the girls, is a feature of the settings, while the dialogue is particularly amusing from beginning to end. In addition to the' main attraction, a fine array of short films is also screened.