PICTURE THEATRES

Evening Star, Issue 22719, 5 August 1937, Page 17

PICTURE THEATRES

EXCITEMENT AND HILARITY GRAB'S ENTERTAINING CGM3IHATIOH Two widely different 'types oi' films make up a very acceptable new programme at the Grand Theatre, which gives its patrons a liberal dash of excitement in ‘Wanted—Jane Turner,’ and completes the evening with the highly comic adventures ot the Jones family, who go 1 Back To Nature,’ Relentless warfare by postal inspectors against mail bandits and racketeers is dramatically pictured in ‘ Wanted — Jane Turner,’ co-featuring Lee Tracy and Gloria Stuart, Tracy, as one of the most daring agents in the post office, a dynamic, smooth-tongued operator, with the sometimes confusing, sometimes helpful co-operation of the lovely Gloria Stuart, is dispatched to capture, dead or alive, Phil Crowley, chief of a gang of desperadoes. Learning of Crowley’s whereabouts, Tracy and Gloria journey to Los Angeles overnight, and by' clever intrigue and intricate plans, Crowley is attracted to Miss Stuart’s apartment, where she and Tracy are imperilled in the killer’s last stand. However, the capture of the ruthless killer-leader of the gang brings ‘Wanted—Jane Turner’ to a thrill-packed climax, and crowns the romance between the hero and heroine. In support of Tracy and Miss Stuart, who make their third romantic co-appearance, are Guilfoyle, Bryant Washburn, Frank M. Thomas, Frank Conroy, Patricia Wilder, Irene Franlklin, and Barbara Pepper.

Moving merrily on a vacation , on wheels the happy-go-luolcy Jones family create clean, honest fun in ‘ Back To Nature.’ Featuring Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane, Dixie Dunbar, Tony Martin, Spring Byingtou, Kenneth Howell, George Ernest, June Carlson, Florence Roberts, and Billy Mahan, the picture is an hilarious narrative of the Jones’ vacation, which they take on the open road in an automobile trailer. The film opens with Dad Jones beamingly announcing to his family that he is going to Tranquil Lake while they spend their vacation at a backwoods farm. At the concerted roar of protest which greets this announcement dad gives in weakly and agrees to buy a new automobile trailer and take the whole family to the convention. En route the Joneses go through a merry series of adventures and escapades, climaxed when Bonnie Jones is rescued from a bear cub by Tom Williams, who visits the Joneses before going on his way, and promising to meet Bonnie later at Tranquil Lake. Arriving at the site of the convention, the Joneses park their and pitch camp. The children have a grand time, but Dad and Mother Jones are a little perturbed at Bonnie’s romance, and their fears are justified when they discover that the smooth-talking Williams is not what he says he is. Rushing back to camp, the Joneses find that Williams has departed with Bonnie and the Joneses oar. In an exciting climax, punctuated by a wild drive down a narrow mountain road, dad and the family catch up with Williams, and the film comes to an hilarious close. REGENT A vivid film of one of the most brilliant periods in English history, 1 Fire Over England,’ from the novel ofi>A. E. V. 7 . Mason, concludes at the Regent to-night. A feature that should appeal to the student is the faithful manner in which the customs and events of those days have been recorded. The part of Queen Elizabeth is taken by Flora Robson, others in the large cast being Raymond Massey, Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier, and Leslie Banks, ‘ GREEN LIGHT.’ The success of ‘ Green Light,’ the fine dramatic film coming to the Regent to-morrow, in the northern centres should be a sufficient recommendation for local patrons. It is high recommendation for the picture that the story is by the author of ‘ Magnificent Obsession.’ The underlying philosophical and ethical theme of the earlier picture is again to be found, but treated in a very different manner and through a story that has perhaps even more appeal to human sensibilities. The acting is extraordinarily good; the players seem to be conscious that they have each been given the opportunity of taking exceptional roles, and their interpretations are marked by outstanding realism and sincerity. There is a confidence about the whole production that makes it impossible for any audience not to respond to its appeal, and not only enjoy it as a piece of drama, but be convinced by the soundness of the ideals that it upholds. The story is mainly concerned with a problem of medical ethics, a theme which always offers interesting material for drama. Errol Flynn plays the part of Dr Paige, a young surgeon who is blamed for the failure of an operation through the fault of another doctor. The subtlety of the plot lies in the manner in which the courageous faith of the woman who died under the operation remains to remedy the wrong that has been done and turn the tragedy into a lasting triumph. EMPIRE * Born to Dance,’ the eagerlyawaited musical successor to ‘ Broadway Melody of 1936,’ with Eleanor Powell, “ Queen of Taps,” in the stellar role, surrounded by practically all the stars and the executive, production and technical crew of the earlier hit, is at the Empire as one of the outstanding pictures on the new Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer schedule. Two favourites not seen in the previous musical are featured in ‘ Born to Dance ’ in the persons of the jaunty James Stewart, who plays Eleanor Powell's leading man, and lovely Virginia Bruce, making her first appearance since her success in ‘ The Great Ziegfeld.’ Familiar faces from ‘ Broadway Melody ’ who sing and dance their way through ‘ Born to Dance ’ include Una Merkel and Sid Silvers, now recognised as one of the screen’s most hilarious comedy teams. Frances Langford, of radio fame, and the long-legged Buddy Ebsen. Also featured are Raymond Walburn, Alan Dinehart, Juanita Quigley (whose dancing and singing have earned her the title of the “ Baby Eleanor Powell ”), the brilliant dance teams of Georges and Jalna, Reginald Gardiner (monologue star), Barrett Parker, and the singing and dancing foursome composed of J. Marshall Smith, L. Dwight Synder, Jay Johnson, and Del Porter. ‘ Born to Dance ’ was directed by Roy del Ruth, who directed ‘ Broadway Melody,’ and who is known in.the picture industry as the maker of the fastest-moving musicals because ho shoots every scene with a moving camera either on a boom or on a track. He was responsible for ‘ Kid Millions,’ ‘ Gold Diggers of Broadway,’ ‘ Thanks a Million,’ and a score -of other musical smashes. The excellent song hits featured in ‘ Born to Dance ’ were the work of the brilliant American musician, Cole Porter, whose name has long been the guarantee of a song’s j success.

STATE An attractive comedy romance entitled ‘ Smartest Girl in Town,’ a production of the RKO-Radio Company, is to conclude to-night at the State. Gene Raymond appears iu the leading male role, while east opposite him in the role of a model employed in a photographic studio is the talented actress, Ann Sothern, whose previous appearances with this actor have all been outstanding successes. This film has been placed among the 10 best pictures produced in 1030. ‘THAT GIRL FROM PARIS.’ What is described as a novelty in musical pictures, with a story as a thread on which the world’s foremost coloratura soprano strings her pear.s of song, is offered to picturegoers in ‘ That Girl From Paris,’ which brings to-morrow to the screen of the State a strong cast—Lily Pons, Jack Oakie, and Gene Raymond. Breaking away from the customary type of musical comedy, the new offering is said to be a gay laugh feast from start to finish, with a notable cast aiding the tiny prima donna in her mirthful endeavours. The story begins in Pans, where Miss Pons meets a happy-go-lucky American saxophonist a moment after she leaves her franco at the altar. The little singer follows her new friend to America, much to his consternation, and on eluding tho immigration authorities, she makes hersolf at home with him and his musical associates. Fearful of implications with the officials, tho boys face the problem of keeping her out of sight in a series of entertaining situations, complicated by various jealousies as_ the plot develops, The climax is said to bo hilarious in the extreme. Interspersed through the story are Miss Pons’s renditions of Strauss’s ‘ Blue Danube,’ ‘ Una Voce Poco Fa,’ from * The Barher of Seville,’ by Rossini, Panofka’s ‘ Tarantella,’ and three modern numbers by Arthur Schwartz and Edward Heyman— ‘ Call to Arms,’ ‘My Nephew From Nice,’ and ‘ Seal It With a Kiss ’ —all of which promise to achieve new and greater fame everywhere. Miss Pons herself is as brilliant an actress and comedienne as she is a singer. Gene Raymond turns in perhaps the best work of his career as the romantic saxophonist. ST. JAMES From the multitude of much-vaunted modern film productions, ‘ San Francisco,’ Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s picture now at the St. James, stands out almost as a classic. Depicting with a vivid realism tho terrors of the San Francisco earthquakes of April, 1906, and the wave of sensuous pleasureseeking that preceded it, ‘ San Francisco ’ creates a powerful impression upon the audience, and it is not likely to be forgotten. Three stars —Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, and Jeanette MacDonald—help to make it the success it is. •MAD HOLIDAY.* While a Chinese dragon writhes his way across the stage, blood drips from a theatre box in San Francisco’s Chinatown, and thus murder finds its setting in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s mystery thriller, ‘ Mad Holiday,’ which opens at the St. James to-morrow, with Edmund Lowe and Elissa Landi in the leading roles. For Miss Landi this is her first picture under her new longterm contract with M.G.M. With four successful novels to her credit, and a fifth, ‘ To-day the Rebels,’ ready for publication, she plays a writer of detective fiction for the first time. She returned only recently to Hollywood after an absence of nearly a year, during which she made ‘ The Amateur Gentleman ’ with Douglas Fairbanks, jun., in England, and the French and English version of 1 Konigsmark ’ in Paris. Since these she has appeared on Broadway in ‘ Tapestry in Gray.’ Edmund Lowe, who has played detective characters in many previous films, among them Philo Vance in ‘The Garden Murder Case,’ comes near impersonating himself in ‘ Mad Holiday.’ He plays a motion picture star who specialises in detective roles, and who is called upon to solve an actual murder. Lowe, like Miss Landi, has recently returned from England. Others in featured roles include Zasu Pitts, Ted Healy, Edmund Gwenn, who will be remembered for his masterly performances in ‘ The Good Companions’ and ‘Laburnum Grove,’ Edgar Kennedy, Soo Yong, Walter Kingsford, Herbert Rawlinson, Raymond Hatton, Rafaela Ottiano, Harlan Briggs, and Gustav von Seyfferitz. STRAND Richard Dix, Chester Morris, and Dolores Del Rio have the leading roles in 1 Devil’s Playground,’ a thrilling drama of the navy, which heads tho programme concluding to-night at the Strand. The associate feature is ‘Fugitive Sheriff,’ with Ken Maynard in the principal role. Stories built on the theme of a dog’s devotion to his master have been many on the screen, but those that have gone have merely served to pave the way for ‘ The Mighty Treve,’ which is the main attraction on the _ new doublefeature programme opening to-morrow at the Strand. In ‘ The Mighty Treve,’ the dog, accused of sheep-killing, is about to be executed when new evidence turns the animal into a hero rather than a villain. Proof of his courage and devotion is also shown iu the fact that he had earlier saved a man from being killed by a cougar. The human viewpoint of the story is enacted by Noah Beery, jun., Barbara Read, Alma Kruger, Samuel S. Hinds, and Hobart Cavanaugh. The story was photographed in outdoor .settings of unusual natural beauty. Rolling hills and giant trees provide a background for the dramatic action and swift-flowing romance. The exciting adventures of a race-track sleuth, one of those hardy,_ hard-bitten track detectives whose job it is to keep the sport of kings out of the hands of the underworld lords, provides the theme and action of Columbia’s ‘ The Frame-up,’ the second feature. Tho atorv tells of the events preceding the running of the Granville Sweepstakes. With a number of gangsters and bookies overrunning the town on the eve of the big race, Paul Kelly, in the leading role of Mark MacArthur, chief of State Racing Commission detectives, decides to investigate the cause of the sudden influx of gangsters.

OCTAGON A light aud refreshing _ story of honeymoon entanglements is told in • Where’s Sally?’ which concludes tonight at the Octagon. The fun. led by two well-known comedians in Gene Gcrrard and Claude Hulhert. The second film is ‘ Land Beyond the Law,’ a stirring drama of the West in which the leading role is taken by Dick Foran The heartaches of lovers, torn apart by their devotion to their respective countries, are damatlcally brought to the screen iu Paramount’s ‘ Till We Meet Again,’ which will bo commenced to-morrow at the Octagon. ‘ Till We Meet Again ’ shows two happy lovers, stars of the theatre in London, Herbert Marshall and his Viennese sweetheart, Gertrude Michael, whose wedding plans are wrecked by the declaration of war. Marshall, as a loyal Englishman, joins his colours, and Miss Michael, who, unknown to her sweetheart, is a member of the German Secret Service, places herself under the orders of her commanding officer. ‘Go West, Young Man,’ the associate feature, is the story of a highly-sophisticated and bored movie queen, played by Mae West, who falls in love with Randolph Scott, a farm boy. Warren William, her Press agent, is paid to see to it that she engages in no romance, and his efforts to break up the blooming love affair make up much of tho hilarity of the film. Like many another who meddled with the heart affairs of others, ho becomes hopelessly enmeshed in romance himself, BAYFAII Janet Gaynor, Loretta Young, and Constance Bennett are _ starred , and Simone Simon featured in the second film, ‘ Ladies in Love,’ a fascinating story of four lonesome young ladies looking for a love that will last forever, which is now at the Mayfair. So romantic about love, so practical about lovers, the picture is a bittersweet romance of the adventures and heartaches of the four in, search of the men they love. Don Amechc, Paul Lukas, Tyrone Power, jun., and Alan Mowbray are also featured in the sup porting cast in ‘ Ladies in_ Love.’ Boasting one of the outstanding performances of the year in the seriocomic characterisation by Edward Q. Robinson, ‘ Passport to Fame,’ which supports, is a robust, exciting, and hilarious comedy-drama. The story concerns the hilarious adventures of an inoffensive, frightened little clerk who is mistaken for the c6Untry’s < most sought-after gangster. He is given a “passport” by the authorities to identify him at all times. His gangster counterpart, however, frightens tho cleric into hiding at nights while he uses tho “ passport ” to carry on his criminal activities. Jones, the clerk, finally develops an under-nourished courage when his dream-love, the beautiful Jean Arthur, is kidnapped by the gangster. In a startling and sensational climax he captures the criminal, wins the girl, and discovers to his own satisfaction that he’s a man’s man.