PALMERSTON PICTURE PROGRAMMES

Manawatu Times, Volume LV, Issue 6764, 23 January 1932, Page 3

PALMERSTON PICTURE PROGRAMMES

AT THE REGENT

WILLIAM HAINES AS GENIAL CROOK William Haines, that young man of many surprises on the screen, blossoms forth at tho Regent matineo to-day as a genial crook in "New Adventures of Get-Rich-Quick Wallingford,” Mctro-Goklwyn-Maycr’s picturisation of the famous George Randolph Chester story. 110 appears as a young adventurer whoso object is to get rich quickly by promoting shady business deals. Tho story shows how .T. Rufus Wallingford, a ciever confidence man, is returning from Europe after a trip paid for by tho ill-gotten gains of an oil deal. On the boat ho meets Blackio Daw, who tries to cheat him at cards. Tho two become partners. Arrived at New York, the pair hoodwink one Tuttlo and get £SOOO from him. But lie has paid in the form of a certified cheque. They know that the moment they endorse it they will bo liablo to arrest. McGonigle, a detective, is watching them. In the meantime, Dorothy, a telephone girl in tho hotel where the schemers arc living, is discharged. She confides to Wallingford that her parents own a clay hill at Helton, a small town, and that the local banker is trying to buy it at. a low rate. Wallingford goes to Helton with her. confronts the banker, forms a clay products company, starts camouflage operations and begins to sell stock. The banker gets nervous about it. and tries to buy them out. Wallingford has put up his £SOOO cheque with Dorothy’s parents as a mark of good faith, and against his judgment he has signed it. Tho fnthep thinks it will be safer in the bank and deposits

it. Thus tho detective traces, Wallingford. Wallingford has fallen in: love with Dorothy. Ho resolves to give back tho money to tho stock buyers and givo her parents the proceeds of the sale of the property to the banker. Blackic Daw tries to take all tho blame and lets tho detective arrest him, but Wallingford finds it out. . Then tlitf chauffeur, aided perhaps by tho kindly detective, solves Wallingford’s problem and opens the road to his reform —and Dorothy.

PALACE THEATRE

MYSTERY THAT WILL GRIP

"Tho Perfect Alibi,” which will be seen to-day at the Palace theatre, is in the first rank of mystery melodramas and is certainly one of tho most .suspenseful and shrewdly placed mystery plays of the season. Made in England by Basil Deane for Radio Pictures, with an English cast, A. A. Milne’s well-; known drama comes out, from start, to finish a gem of direction in tho building up of climactic incidents mounting to ono powerful and arresting scene at the close. The test of success in mystery films is the sustaining of strong interest, tho interspersing of adequate thrills and the logical conclusion of an exciting drama. "Tho Perfect Alibi” has all these in goodly measure. Not onlj' is Milne’s mystery a clever affair in dialogue and plot, but it is played expertly by a fine cast. Mr. Dean has directed with shrewd understanding of the trick in making thrillers. He has taken his people through the story and .made them realistic in .a melodramatic story. The cast includes Warwick Ward, G. Aubrey Smith, Robert Loraine. Dorothy Boyd and Frank Lawton, known on both American and English screens. "The Perfect Alibi,” which incidentally ran for two Reasons as a play on Broadway, tells the story of a murder so carefully planned that

tho murderers (tlioro are two of them) feel that they have concocted tiro perfect alibi. Tho novel trick of the picture is the fact that the audience knows Who the murderers are, but is kept in suspenso by what is going to happen. How discovery is brought about is tho secret of tho picture, and it would bo unfair hero to divulge the full story.

KOSY THEATRE -HUCKLEBERRY FINN" Four distinguished child actors and a distinguished cast of adults bring enjoyable entertainment to the Ivosy thcaatro, where Paramount’s "Huckleberry Finn,” tho second of the Mark Twain classics to come to the screen, is now showing. Young Jackie Coogan is again ca.st in the rolo of Tom Sawyer, in which he made such a hit in the moving picture of that name. Junior Durkin continues his portrayal of Huck Finn, whilo Mitzi Green and Jackie Scarl aro just as enjoyable in "Huckleberry Finn” as they were in "Tom Sawyer." Fat arid jolly Eugene Paliette heads tho cast, of adults. Ho portray?) one ol : the pair of desperadoes who lead Tom and Huck into mischief. Oscar Apfel is the other bad man. Clara Blandwick is again seen in the rolo of the worried Aunt Polly, and Jane Harwell portrays tho role of Widow Douglas. "Huckleberry Finn” carries on tho adventures of the real boys Mark Twain wrote about, in "Toni Sawyer.” Huck runs away from home to escape his father, and in the search that follows Tom Sawyer finds him. Together 'tlso boys plan a runaway, fall in with two funny rascals, rescue two innocent girls from the wicked designs of the bad men, and win more honour and renown. The direction of this picture is credited to Norman Taurog, who made such a success of his first two kid-fea-turing moving pictures, "Skippy” and "Forbidden Adventure, 1 ’ More than 200 youngsters of all ages add zest to the rollicking romance. The juvenile east, of “Huckleberry Finn” is larger even than that of "Tom Sawyer” or "Skippy,” and the picture is one of the most entertaining pictures, for youngsters of all ages, the screen has ever presented.