AMUSEMENTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22432, 29 November 1934, Page 12

AMUSEMENTS

REGENT THEATRE "Don Quixote" and "Emperor Jones," which are. being shown on alternate evenings at the Regent Theatre .this' week, are both_ pictures of •'; unusual worth. "Don Quixote" is a triumph' for allconcerned, but mainly for Feodor Chaliapine in the title role. The famous Russian operatic star bids fair to win the title of the screen's finest actor, for his living portrait of the crazy, idealist of chivalry has the appearance and gestures. that sprang right from Cervantes's brain. He is magnificent, dominating and incomparable. The film is taken from Cervantes's classic story by Paul Morand, the . French writer. Special -music has been written for Chaliapine's three songs. This courageous, beautiful, and successful attempt to film Cervantes's classic story, coupled with inspired, direction by the great German director, Pabst, give the film a strong appeal to theatregoers in search of " something different." "Emperor Jones" deals with Harlem love intrigues and voodoo-infested Haiti, and is once again available to theatregoers, as a talking picture, produced by John Krimsky and '.Clifford Cochran. Filling the same role he played in the revival of the stage play is Paul Robeson, a famous negro actor and singer, who fills every requirement of the exacting, title part in- a. magnificent manner. The box plans are at the theatre and the D.I.C. " THE HOUSE OF ROTHSCHILD." "The House of Rothschild," George Arliss's latest picture, which has enjoyed sensational seasons wherever it has been screened, will commence its Dunedin season at the Regent to-morrow. In don, when the film opened at the Tivoli Theatre, it took £92QO on the first night, a record for a premiere in any country. Despite the sweltering heat at the time, it ran for months, maintaining the sensational pace set at the opening. Practi 4 eally every member of the English Royal ■Family, society, the diplomatic corps and visiting notables saw it. It is reported from New York that at the end of 11 weeks at the Astor Theatre " The House of Rothschild" had played to 250,000 people,. and was still running. In the States it stimulated more discussion and comment than any film in recent years. Among the many famous characters in the film are the Duke of Wellington, Prince Regent of England, Metternich of Austria, Talleyrand of France, as well as the whole Rothschild family. Loretta Young plays the leading feminine role, with Robert Young (who played in "The Kid From Spain") opposite her. Boris Karloff, Alan Mowbray, Helen Westley, Florence Arliss, Reginald Owen, C. Aubrey Smith, Lumaden Hare, Oscar Apfel, George Renavent, and Murray Kinnell are others prominently featured. George Arliss himself, for the first time, plays two roles. He portrays both Mayer Rothschild, the patriach who founded the Rothschild fortunes, and Nathan, hir, eldest son. Plans are at the D.T.C. and theatre. STATE THEATRE ".lack Alioy," featuring the popular English comedian, Jack Hulbert;, continues to attract large audiences to the State Theatre. A rollicking story of the navy, with Hulbert as a singularly irrepressible gentleman rating, whose ancestor was a rear-admiral who fought at Trafalgar, "Jack Ahoy" is one of Hulbcrt's iiiost entertaining pictures. He is shown as a member of the crew of 11.M.5. Stupendous, on patrol duty in the China sea. He has the temerity to fall in love with the admiral's, daughter, and is mixed up in a series' of exciting and ludicrous episodes when Chinese pirates steal first of all a British submarine, and later the admiral and his daughter as well. Hulbert does not enjoy very great favour with the admiral, and this is hardly to be wondered at considering the highly un-> orthodox methods used by Hulbert in an attempt to gain promotion. Nevertheless, in heroic spirit, and with a melancholy comrade, he sets out to the rescue of beauty in distress. Into the bandit's camp he dashes with breezy nonchalance, but applauding the leader at the wrong moment,. he finds himself again in his customary state of unpopularity. He succeeds in running away with the admiral, his daughter, and last,- but not least, the submarine, and it is on hoard this vessel the navigation of which is a closed book to Hulbert that some of (he funniest episodes of the story are eunele i. There is an entertaining supporting programme, Thp box plans are at the theatre and Besc's. "SERVANTS' ENTRANCE." Reunited for the first time since their initial co-starring venture made "State

Fair " memorable, Janet Gaynor and Lew Ay res will be seen as the "gay young sweethearts of " Servants' Entrance, when this latest important Fox picture opens to-morrow' at the State Theatre. Unlike .anything in which they have appeared before, the story of " Servants' Entrance" will afford spectators the opportunity to laugh at the troubles as they thrill to the romance of the madcap lovers whose young lives it depicts. For while " State Fair" bordered on the heavy drama in places, " Servants' Entrance " is mostly in the . romantic 1 comedy class; In their latest .roles Janet portrays a merry; million-heiress, of an automobile manufacturer who goes from riches to poverty and back again, while v Lew is a chauffeur who goes from poverty to riches. Starting from opposite rungs of the social ladder, they meet at the bottom. The climb upward is fraught with . humorous and - fascinating ad'uentures. Janet's descent to poverty is motivated by a desire to become a useful woman—to learn to cook, sew, bake a cake, and take care of babies. So she disappears through the front door of her own palatial home, and makes her way to the servants' entrance- of another, masquerading as a maid. It is thus that she meets Lew, a chauffeur with an inventive turn of mind whose passion is a new type of motorboat. To win his love, and to, make him capitalise his invention without revealing her identity, becomes Janet's amusing problems. The story was adapted for the screen by Samson Raphaelson from the story by Sigrid 800, and was directed by Frank Lloyd, who won the last academy award for his marvellous handling of " Cavalcade." In addition to Janet Gaynor and Lew Ayres, the cast includes Ned Sparks, Walter Connolly, Louise Dresser, G. P. Huntley, jun., Astrid Allwyn, Siegfried Rumann, John Qualen, and many others. OCTAGON THEATRE The final showings of a double-feature pi-ogramme, which has been attracting audiences to the Octagon Theatre during the past week, will take place to-day. The first film of this all-British programme js " Britannia of Billingsgate," and the fact that the famous fish market of that name is the background for the greater part of the production is an added attraction. The film is an adaptation of a well-known stage play by Christina Jope Slade and Sewell Stokes, and in keeping with the setting, all the characters are unmistakably English types. Gordon Harker and Violent Lorraine have the leading roles and they are responsible for outstanding performances. The story concerns the rise of a fish-shop proprietress who becomes a famous stage figure owing to her splendid voice. The results of this sudden affluence on the family affords material for some splendid comedy. The singing of Violet Lorraine is a feature of the production. The second film portrays the virile and popular Victor M'Laglen in a costume drama such as he has not attempted before. He is seen as Dick Turpin, the famous highwaymen, and the oustandimr features of the romantic robber's life supply good material for the action. The box plans are at the theatre, M'Crackcn and Walls's, Bcgg's, and the D.I.C. "WALTZES FROM VIENNA." Recently played at His Majesty's Theatre by the talented J. C. Williamson Dubarry Company. "Waltzes from Vienna " hog been transferred in all its charm and magnificence to the screen, and it will commence a season at the Octagon Theatres to-morrow. "Waltzes from Vienna," played against a background of glorious music and mounted with almost breath-taking beauty, makes film fare of the most acceptable kind. It would be impossible not to react in the happiest fashion to such admirable and attractive entertainment. Strauss, as a musician, may not be entirely without reproach, but that is nlso said of the gentle Schubert. His music makes no very extravagant demand on the listener, but it possesses a haunting beauty that has won for it prominence that will never be achieved by the cheap jingles that are spun for the popular fancy in our times. In the leading roles are Jessie Matthews and Edmund Gwcnn, remembered for their fine work together in J. B. Priestlev's " Good Companions." and later in "Friday the 1.1 th." Miss Matthews also played successfully in "The Midshipmaid," "The .Man from Toronto," and "There Goes the Bride," whilst Edmund Gwenn will always be remembered for his powerful role in the Galsworthy drama'. "The Skin Game." to say nothing of his subsequent successful parts in such popular films as" Tell Me To-night" aud i •* Warn London."

EMPIRE THEATRE _ Roy ''Rene, who Was one of the vaudeville's most popular artists under the name of "Mo," has the .leading role in " Strike' Me Lucky," which is now being, screened at the Empire Theatre. Plenty of _scope is provided for " Mo" to exploit his particular talents, more scope, in fact, than the stage ever offered. One laughed to see■'■ him as the blundering handyrrfari in ■ the second-hand clothing shop of Lowenstein, as the "tough" man in a speakeasy, as the stunting, aviator, i gold,prospector, lover (hard to imagine), ! and conqueror of a gang of robbers (also hard to, imagine). And one sympathised with him when he was deprived of his ill-gotten gains, and when he was turned out on the street because he had overlooked a matter of a few months' rent. For " Mo" has a wdy of getting under the skin, as it were, and making the audience live his life with him. While most of the plums must inevitably go to " Mo," credit is due to every member of the cast, for they assisted him wonderfully to make '" Strike Me- Lucky" an undoubted success. Beautiful ' girls are not lacking in this film, and there is even a" replica of a famous Hollywood star. She is called June East, but she has the contours, vojee, and looks of Mae West. Good fare is also contained in the featurettes. The box plans are at the theatre and the D.I.C. "GAMBLING LADY." Barbara Stanwyck has the leading role in " Gambling Lady," which comes to the Empire Theatre to-morrow. _ Miss Stanwyck, as the chance-loving heroiiie of this story, pursues Lady Luck half around the world. During her travels she watches the roulette wheel spin both at Monte Carlo and in New York. For the former spot, one of the studio stages provided the background. Miss Stanwyck, Pat O'Brien, and the other principals in the Monte Carlo sequences stood at central tables in the " general rooms" of the casino. Two expert croupiers presided over two roulette tables. Some 25 extras, recruited from the "foreign type" lists of Hollywood, stood to right and left of Miss Stanwyck or hovered in the backI ground. Through tall French . windows could be seen a balcony, and beyond it, in the distance, the waves of the Mediterranean breaking on the beach. Those waves, photographed on the spot, could break in all their south European reality across the *screen. Next came the " fashionable Park avenue establishment." This required a large set.- Roulette tables were needed, but many props were on the list as well. Twenty-one tables—all of them supplied by a certain firm in Los Angeles and dealers to Hollywood's biggest gambling spots. Several of these are said to be running at the- present time, and Archie Mayo, director of "Gambling Lady," was at some pains to secure from one of them the name of the firm which supplied their materials —-from chuck-a-luek dice to the operators of the cages themselves. In the midst of all this Barbara Stanwyck', Joel M'Crea, and C. Aubrey Smith played their several scenes. Then the three big rooms were struck. The " fashionable Park avenue establishment " was ready to close its doors after one afternoon of life. , ST. JAMES THEATRE " Female," Ruth Chatterton's latest starring vehicle, will receive its final presentation at the St. Jomes Theatre this evening. Miss Chatterton is .seen as a young woman who is a master of men not only in the large business which she controls, but also in night club life. The spectacle of a woman in a position of leadership in a great industry is still snfliei-'iitly novel to arouse interest, but it also has humorous possibilities, and of these Miss Chatterton takes full advantage. Hers is a highly entertaining performance, both as a business woman.who insists on speed and efficiency among her employees, and also as the female Don Juan who continues iier masterful career in social life. She meets her match in George Brent, however, and this young man takes upon himself the responsibility of leading her back to the paths of orthodox womanhood, a task which is not made any the easier by the imperious will of the young woman, who has been accustomed to the instant obedience of men to her slightest wi.-h. The supporting programme is a varied and int'-restimj one. The hr.x plans are at the theatre, Jacobs's, M'Crackcn and Walls's, and the D.I.C. l

"THE SCOTLAND YARD MYSTERY."

- The.great hrt of Sir Gerald Du Maurier whose recent death is regretted throughout the English-speaking world, has been perpetuated by several splendid British films,. the last arid by ho. means the.least of these being " The. Scotland .'Yard My?-.. tery', w ' which gomes to the. St, v James Theatre to-morrow. In this':•. splendid thriller Sir Gerald is starred.in the-role. of Chief Inspector Stanton, of Scotland Yard. , Although ' Sir Gerald's fame -was acquired mainly through the theatre, Dunedin picturegoers will remember his.' out-, standing performances in ";Lord__Cam-, ber'sLadies," "Escape," and "I Was a Spy/' "The Scotland Yard Mystery" is an exciting drama of a crook who swindles an'insurance firm by the use of a serum. that promotes temporary "death in hired "corpses." Ostensibly a' police physician, lie makes, huge profits by insuring various men,' injecting them with a serum which produces a state of _catalepsy, and collecting on the policies. .Later the "bodies" are revived by an antitoxin and sent abroad to start life anew with a share of the. ill-gotten gains. Sir Gerald Du Maurier gives an excellent performance as Chief Inspector Stanton, who solves the mystery after a grim struggle in a battle of wits with the master crook. The latter role is played by George Curzon, whilst other members of the cast who give'valuable assistance are Grete Natzle'r, Bejfe Chrystall, Leslie Perrins Walter Patch, Henry Victor, Herbert Cameron, and Frederick Peisley. . The supporting programme is in keeping with the feature and include Pathe Pictorials, Pathe Weekly News, Travelogues, etc. STRAND THEATRE ■ \ "I've Got Your Number," which has being supplying agreeable entertainment at the Strand Theatre during the past few days, will be presented for its final showings to-day. Pat O'Brien ha s . the leadrole, and he has the assistance ' or Glenda Farrell and Joan Blondell at the head of a capable cast. The'.story concerns Terry. Riley, a romanticallyminded telephone linesman, who finds his roving commission affords many opportunities for combining business with pleasure. His popularity, however, brings him a rival who is also an employee of the Telephone Company. One of Terry's lady friends becomes the tool of a gang of criminals and she loses her job. Eventually she is captured and held as a hostage for her silence. Terry set out to find her. and succeeds in getting . kidnapped himself. The incidents are of a thrilling nature and the is concerned in their solution, which is arrived at in an entirely satisfactory manner. There is a good supporting programme. The box plans are at the theatre and the D.I.C. "TURN BACK THE CLOCK." Lee Tracy is starred in one of the fastest moving pictures of his career in "Turn Back the Clock," which opens tomorrow at the Strand Theatre. The new film drama, based on an original story by Edgar Selwyn and Ben Hecht, is an ex. traordinary story of a man who 'is allowed to relive his life through stirring events of the past decade. Iracy plays the owner of a small cigar store in New York, married and barely able to make ends meet. By an ingenious twist in the tale, he is given an opportunity to relive his life, and things turn our far different than he had anticipated. Mae Clarke plavs Tracy's wife, and the cast also includes Otto Knigcr. George Barbier, Peggv Shannon, C. Henry Gordon, and Clara 'Blandick.' On Saturday at 11 a.m. and 2.15 p.m. special Mickey Mouse Birtndav matinees will be held. The programme, arranged particularly for children, will include a Western comedy " Under Montana Skies," featuring Slim Summerville, a Laurel and ■ Hardy comedy, three cartoons, and the foprth episode in the serial, "The Perils of Pauline." A special five-tier birthday cake has been made for the occasion and will be distributed to the children. GRAND THEATRE "All Men are Enemies" is the new attraction at the Grand Theatre, and audiences which viewed it at He first screenings yesterday were obviously impressed by it« special quality and merit. It is an unusual film, very unusually presented, even if the story in not a very new one. As a story of idyllic devotion through the changes and chances of a modern world it ranks with the most impressive presentations of the screen. It develops a common theme in an uncommon manner. Two women and a man are the pawns in a game governed by a relentlrsH fate, and although an unwise marriage is contracted by one of the parties to the romance, the beauty and genuineness of an abiding attachment is

never lost. ; t .No. more fitting .enyjppn; ment for the development of a tender theme could:, be wished "for.--than"-that.-provided by the Mediterranean "Isle- of Capri, -in -which landscape. an<J combine" to -I give : "a.- setttirig'i>eyiond 'the ordinary. ia done/this-aspect-by superb ■ph6tography v ahd much as one may be engrossed*' with, the story, unique camera,' effects'remain "'a „pr6minent ; feature. .The'acting is.on a: worthy'plane. Helen Twelvetrees has a captivating, rola-• as. the youthful Viennese .girl'who falia, in love with . a '■ young' architect: only to be separated from Win •through : >the harsh ' exigencies of: wai:. A .thoroughly. artlSr tic performance marks her- as-' an act* ress of high rank. Hugh alreadv .noted on, stage; and screen in England, is the architect 1 "who. rebels against the mundane ;rCund of- his profession and seeks the beautiful/ places.ot the earth for solace. "( He will be reniembered for his excellent portrayal ;in "Journey's End," a characterisation -. which is equalled by hiaihterpretation . in this instance. ; Mon'a.'B.arrie, a«; the girl who could' wiri the hero only by subterfuge, invests the role with, appropriate qualities, and vies with Miss -Twelvetrees for premier honours. 1 Splendid comedy is supplied by the'■■wellrknbwn Herbert Mundin and-Una O'Connor, and there is an unusually strong supporting cast, including Eonr.y. Stepheneon, Walter Byron, arid Halliweil Hobbs; "All-Men Are Enemies" ■is based upon Richard Aldington's novel of that.name.'.;:. It retraces the oft-told, story of the•• lovers who are torn from ■■ each others arms by the outbreak'of. war,- because they,- ate on opposite sides, and. who are reunited after peace returns. ; Two or three sensitive character studies and the;care, with , which some of the backgrourid'geenes ana , peoples have been presented, lift this, film above the general level of films made according to this design. For-an Amen- • can picture the English scenes are ■ ad- . mirably authentic: If; -they have a -defect it is that they are-tod" emphatically English, there being v superabundance of side-levers, of archaic clothing, and of-rernarke about what je : and what is not "good form." A film drama of this design is. inevitably" interrupted' spm* where about its middle by a tornado ot-battle-front scenes. - The treatment •ot these wartime .interludes . has developed into a hard-and-fast formula. < - Staccato eliinpsea are. given of guns -going, ott, . Soldiers charging, boots treading in mud, and agonised faces. The; method <r always the same, as though producers ordered such scenes at so much a toot regardless of the mood of the etoty in hand. It miist be admitted, however, that in "AH Men Are Enemies the war sequences Me particularly good. ■ .-Hugo Williams suggest* the artistic, fastidious character of the young Englishman, who is the central figure in the story. witb t a sensitive touch, and manages evep, to navigate his way through a number.ot over-poetical speeches without mishap. Mona Barrie (bette? known to Australians as Mona Barlee) is; a -feminine yet mannishly determined and • resourceful? person, with an underlying trait of hardness, even of cruelty. Miss Barrie makes this girl a. more vital character than the heroine, who is presented bv Helen Twelvetrees as a plaintive creature too frail and tearful for credence. There is an excellent supporting programme of short subject* covering a wide range of interesting and topical subjects, . and combining with: the main attraction to make a programmejjf exceptional interest and quality. The short subject* are all in keeping with the special character of the featured film, and the box plans for the searou will be found at the theatre and at Messrs Chas. Begg and Co/a. • ' . .