PICTURE THEATRES

Evening Star, Issue 21721, 16 May 1934, Page 13

PICTURE THEATRES

GRAND Filled with tense drama and vivid romance and filmed against a rick background, Fox Film’s screen production, 1 Orient Express,’ is attracting large audiences to the Grand Theatre. ‘Orient Express ’ is a .story of seven people who meet on board a train headed from Ostond to Constantinople. Each one has Ids own ambition and goal in life, but by a trick of fate they meet, and, at the end of their journey, they find their lives completely changed. A wealthy young merchant falls in love with a dancer; a woman reporter gets her big story from a Communist leader; a thief fleeing from justice .meets with death; a retiring Englishman begins to assert himself before bis domineering wife; and a beautiful girl finds the love she has always sought. The film reaches an exciting climax when the Communist gives the dancer an incriminating letter. This leads to liei arrest along with the thief and the radical bimsell . at the Jugoslavian border, How each manages to disentangle himself from the web of fate, and reach his destiny, brings the film to a truly stirring conclusion. Heather Angel and Norman Foster bead the cast as the romantic loads. Their performances arc praise-worthy-to the highest degree. Special commendation should also be given to Ralph Morgan and Herbert Mundin. — ‘ A OUCKOO IN THE NEST ’ AT THE STATE Next to ‘Rookery Nook,’ that screamingly funny film, ‘A Cuckoo In tho Nest,’ which began to-day at the State Theatre, is probably tho best of tho Ren Travers farces that have been brought to the screen, and its success would seem to show that the public . cannot have too much of Messrs Walls, Lynn, and the other Aldwychitcs, and of the witty nonsense of Ben Travers. Walls breaks right away from his conventional roles to portray a tipsy old man who is dominated by his wife (Grace Edwin) most of the time. He drinks steadily throughout the film; and the spirits of the audience go up in proportion as other spirits go down his capacious throat. As tor Ralph Lynn, if there were nothing else in the picture except Ralph doing his origina and painstaking best to curl up mid go to sleep under a washstand, it would be worth paying to see. And part of that particular bit of fun is the outrageous manner in which Yvonne Arnand, cosily installed in a comfortable bed, laughs at his struggles. She, by the way, re-enacts Margaret Hickett, the role she played so brilliantly in the original stage farce, while the veteran actress, Mary Brough, recreates her part of Mrs Spoker, the acidulous and suspicious landlady of the village inn at Maiden Blotton. She has ample scope for delineating this narrow-minded, highly “proper” old party, and makes an important contribution to the success of the picture. It is difficult to select an outstanding humorous incident in ‘ A Cuckoo la tho. Nest,’ for it is so tightly packed with laughable situations. If selection is to be made, preference would probably bo given to Tom Walls’s taxi ride through the pouring rain to the little village of Maiden Blotton, whither Walls’s film son-in-law ♦ (Ralph Lynn) has eloped with an unknown lady. With him is his wife, bent on exposing the foibles of her son-in-law. The taxi is of unknown age, with ail engine that eventually breaks down, necessitating the descent of the driver to peer intc the depths of the bonnet. To add tc tlic discomfort of the occupants, the roof of the taxi is riddled with holes through which pour streams of water Tom Walls’s business with an iunkeepei to obtain a drink by pretending that his wife is ill is ns funny a bit of fooling as, has been seen on the screen foi many a day. Other fine comedy part; are given by Roger Livesey as Alfrec the barman, and Robertson Haro a> Rev, Slolely-Joncs. •

REGEHT Stanley Lupino is right at the top of liis fun form us a superbly comic Petrucliio, and the lovely Thelma Todd brings all her wide Hollywood experience to bear in her happy and clever ininterprotation of a bewitching, if completely shrewish* Katherine in ‘ You Made Me Love You,’ at the llegent. This riotous farce concerns a happy-go-lucky song-writer’s tribulations in endeavouring to win the love of his ravishing and turbulent wife. Bewitching in all but temper, the fair Thelma makes life impossible for her family, who welcome Stanley with open arms as the solution of their problems,'.and do all they can to further his schemes for marrying her. They are eventually successful; but “ you can take a horse to the water ” etc., and after the Ceremony Thelma bids her husband a frigid adieu, but Stanley is prepared, and they set off together—handcuffed together—for their honeymoon. ’What happened on that honeymoon and its resultant convulsing complications wdl keep everyone laughing. Even further enhancing the picture’s teeming entertainment delights arc two merry musical' ‘ Gav ’ compositions, 1 What’s Her Name?’“and 1 tVhy Can’t We?’ sung as only Stanley l Lupino could sing .them.

EMPIRE It is doubtful if Mr George Arliss has ever been seen to better advantage than in ‘ Voltaire,’ at the Ejupire. It was expected that this him would prove very popular—but it has exceeded expectations. Here is one qt the most skilful performances this great author has yet contributed to either stage or screen. In short, it is an amassing.' drama, spectacularly" produced, magnificently' staged, and dramatically sound. The story moves swiftly fro’m Voltaire’s Pans apartments to the palace of the I rcnch king, into the boudoir of Madame Pompadour, and then to the unrivalled extravagance of Versailles. All of these settings have been reproduced with a lavish and spectacular hand. It is not just costume drama —it is the panorama of the world’s most dramatic history' unfolded realistically. The story of ) Voltaire ’ is based on a single dramatic incident in Voltaire’s career; dining the long reign of King Louis -V \ . of Prance. Voltaire has been called •the’father of the French’Revolution, •and the incident upon which the picture is founded was actually one of the .contributing causes to the greatest governmental upheaval of the age. A Star cast of able players headed by Dons Kenyon as Madame Pompadour and Margaret Lindsay as Nanette, support fho star in this production.

OCTAGON The central idea of ‘ Lady' for a Day, at the Octagon, is very aptly described by the title—a fact sufficiently unusual to Ixi well worth mentioning. May Robson, as Apple Annie, literally does become a “ lady for a day,” thanks to a superstitions gambler, who regards her as a sort of lucky mascot. Wheneven he is about to try 7 his luck, he buvs an apple from the shabby old peddler; and so learns that Apply Annie has a daughter in Spam who is being expensively educated, quite unaware of her mother’s real identity, Accordingly, the gambler decides tc finance Annie’s temporary transformation into a great lady. Annie is pro- ■ vided with a suite at a fashionabU hotel, luxurious clothes, a hasty’ odu cation,” and even with an ‘ ansto • cratic ” .husband to ensure her daugn i ter’s happiness when she goes hack t( ■ Spain as a bride. The fantastic mas . querade is carried through in Inlanom fashion, and in the end Annie return , to her old life with the knowledge tha , h er daughter will be happy m ignor ' mice. May Robson, as Apple Annie ’ easily dominates the film, giving a per - . formance that is brilliant. W arrei i William takes the role of the gain hie in his stride, and Guy Kibbeo, Waite ' Conolly, Glenda Farrell, and Nei . Sparks all fill the other quaint am I varied roles with complete success.

ST. JAMES : Some most amusing Cockney studie by Gordon Harker are features of ‘ Tin is tlio Life,’ the current attraction a the St. .lames. Binnie Hale, the well known stage player, plays the. oppo site role, and reveals a distinctly screen personality. The bulk of th humour is supplied by these two player and their team-work is of an cxccp tionallv high order. The story concern the life of a couple living in humbl circumstances. They inherit a fortun and their efforts to enter into socict, are most entertaining. Very few fun nier things have been perpetrated r films than the singing by the pair o the ‘ Miserere ’ duet to a party o titled guests at a lavish banquet, con corning which the host and hostess d not neglect to supply, all details. Tin banquet scene alone is well worth sec ing, even if the picture contained nc thing else. All through, however, 1 carries the hall-mark of outstanding clean British comedy. The second af traction, 1 Kamct Conquered,’ is a re markable production dealing i the most thorough and faithfi manner with one of the mos hazardous and difficult of alpin ventures, the ascent of Mount Kamel in the Himalayas, by the Smytho Brit ish expedition. STRAND

Two startling innovations are oft'ere in the laughable Universal comedi ‘ Love, Honour, and Oh, Baby!’ at th Strand. The first is the work of Slii Summerville, who, co-starred with Zas Pitts, emerges as a dominating, fas talking young man, in contrast to h roles as the easy-going, bashful, an always slouching comedian. Tho sei

oud is the superb direction of Eddie Buzzoll, the Broadway comedian, who lias turned director. The story is different from anything in which that leading comedy team, Summerville and Pitts, have yet appeared. Miss Pitts is a filing clerk who, to get business for Summerville, her lawyer lover, tries compromising herself with a vegetarian banker who always tries to take girls wdio wmrk for him to lloohestcr. A satirical trial results in which Summerville, cast as an arch liar, proves that all his enemies are liars, and leaves the impression that he is a truthful man.

In addition to good direction, fine acting, and an excellent story, the picture offers a remarkable supporting cast, including Lucille Gleason, Verrec Teasdale, George Barbier, Purnell Pratt, and Adrienne Dore. For those who like satires with broad, crackling dialogue, this one is recommended. Excellent supporting subjects balance a good programme.

KING EDWARD An interesting feature of talkie-pro-duction in 1933 w:as the trend towards the removal of all superfluous dialogue. The idea is said to have been started byAlbert do Courville, the well-known stage director, whose first talking picture, ‘ There Goes the Bride,’ will be show'll to-day at the King Edward Theatre. This film is claimed to be,one of the greatest pictures yet produced of its type. Mr de Courville has based his talking picture technique on the idea that wdien action can bo told pictorially dialogue should be omitted. “ The picture is like a man,” he declares. “A_ man of .few words will alw'ays get his words over best. People who “talk a great deal fail to obtain listeners.” Comparing stage and talkie technique, Mr do Courville points out that audiences can watch real people on the stage conversing for a quarter of an hour without becoming bored; on the screen, on the other hand, the audience becomes restive after the images talk for more than three minutes. He has given orders that all scripts now in course of production are to undergo, cuts in dialogue. A w'ell varied supporting programme will also be screened.

GREEN ISLAND ‘ Cynara, 1 from the international stage success, is an . excellent vehicle for the talents 'of Ronald Column, as will be attested at the showing of this picture at the Green Island Theatre tonight. Indeed, even the suave Column has made few pictures more artistic and entertaining than this one. The word “sophisticates!” with regard to motion pictures has been very much abused, but here is one instance in which it must be used. For sophisti-cation-is the hall-mark of ‘Cynara,’ but contrary to the usual story, it exerts a strong appeal for the so-called masses. Col man was never better than in the role of dim Warlock, the young English barrister who, much against his better judgment, is drawn by his best friend into what is called a harmless flirtation, which results in disaster for everybody concerned. Kay Francis, in the role of Warlock’s young wife, gives a finished performance. Henry Stephenson, who played the stage role of John Tring, repeats the part in the screen play. Other parts are played by Paul Porcasi, Viva Tattcrsall, Clarissa Selwyn, George Kirbv, Donald Stewart, and Wilson Benge. King Vidor directed.