Deanna Durbin at Her Best

Manawatu Times, Volume 63, Issue 81, 6 April 1938, Page 11

Deanna Durbin at Her Best

THIRD SUCCESS, "MAD ABOUT MUSIC”

(Regent: Coming Soon.) Deanna Durbin’s latc-c _ Icture is always an event. ‘ ‘ Three Smart Girls” was a surprise, bringing to the screen a fresh, sparkling and lovable little star. “100 Men and

a Girl” was a revelation of the tre-

mendous singing abilities of this amazing youngster, and “Mad Abcut Music” is an astounding

display of both acting and singing. The producers of "Mad About Music" have boldly thrown Deanna into a story that demands the utmost in acting talent. And 15-year-old Deanna handles the difficult assignment with ease and assurance. As entertainment,

"Mad About Music" excels either of her previous pictures, although it departs entirely in theme and structure from "Three Smart Girls" and "100 Men and a Girl." Her new production is almost entirely comedy-drama, but with a ..tory that lends itself to several highly emotional passages, heartgripping in their intensity, bringing tears in their wake much as did the finale of "100 Men and a Girl." Tho tears are immediately followed by comedy sequences, forcing smiles. It is this procession of smiles and tears which makes "Mad About Music" a great picture. It’s a Universal film. Deanna is cast as a fatherless girl, attending a private school in .Switzerland. Her mother is an American screen star, famous for her ingenue roles. Her manager has convinced the star that her future on the screen would be ruined if the public knew she was a mother hence she can not write to Deanna, nor can the child admit who her mother is. The child keenly feels her plight as the other children boast of their parents, and, to make herself appear equal to them, she has invented a fictitious hunter-adventurer-father from whom she receives letters (written by herself) which she proudly shows to the other students. But finally she is forced to produce a father. She selects

Herbert Marshall as her male parent and then the complications follow thick and fast. Gail Patrick is cast as the screen-star-mother, with William Frawley as the business manager. Arthur Treacher comes in for his share of the comedy work as the secretary-valet to Marshall. Christian Rub is Deanna’s confident, friend, and accessory in her deception. Elizabeth Risdon and Nana Bryant are the sisters who keep the school in Switzerland. “Love Walked In,” one of George Gershwin’s last songs, written for his score for Samuel Goldwyn’s 11 The Goldwyn Follies,” will be sung by Kenny Baker, who is one of the featured players in this picture.