"BELOVED ENEMY"

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23220, 18 June 1937, Page 7

"BELOVED ENEMY"

Dublin during the dark days of 1921 —a Dublin of "Black and Tans." ' Up the Rebels," armoured cars, machine gun ambushes and house-to-house raids and skirmishes, is the background for the dramatic story unfolded in "Beloved Enemy," which will be commenced at the Regent Theatre to-day. Such a film calls essentially for convincing portrayals—acting that will make audiences, as it were, part of the story, and the producers have been quite successful in this respect. The picture is really splendid entertainment and should enjoy a well-patron-ised season. The leading players, Brian Aherne, as Dennis Riordan, and. Merle Oberon. as Lady Helen, are indeed happily cast. Aherne is at his best as the Irish rebel leader, whose "Scarlet Pimpernel" ability, organising capacity and command of men cause so much anxietv and loss of soldiers and ammunition to the British occupation forces. Devoted as he is to the causle of Irish f reedom—in the opening of the story his " mother, wife and sister Riordan is not proof against the charms of Ladv Helen. Aherne has thus to take opposing roles, the leader of the cause, brooking no failure, and a man of Ireland who dreams, after the restoration of peace, of a farm in Galway with the woman of his choice by nis. side. Similarly Miss Oberon must be both the natural enemy of Riordan and the woman to whom no sacrifice is too great for true love. Acquitting themselves well, they are fortunate in having a strong supporting cast, including Karen Morley as the widow of one of Riordan's former henchmen, Henry Stephenson, as the father, of Lady Helen and a Whitehall emissary and Jerome Cowan as Riordan's companion in adventure. A point of special interest is that one of the minor roles is taken by the New Zealand boy Ra Hould. He gives a very pleasing portrayal of the part, that of an Irishi boy whose father has been killed fighting for the cause. The supporting programme covers a variety of topics. Recent events abroad, which have figured orominently in the cablegram news, are dealt with in two newsreels. Theie is a "Mickev Mouse" cartoon entitled "Mickey's Rival." Another comic "short" introduces "hill-billy" songs. An interesting film, in view of. the stens being taken to link the Dominion with the United States and England by air services, is " Over the Andes, another of the Mazing of the Lindbergh trail series. The photography in this film showing the highest Points of the Andes, is remarkable. The . second series of Coronation pictures will be screened on this programme. This film denicts in fraphic manner the scene* in Westminster ADhPv th" Coronation ceremony with ?n its crandpur. Plans are at the D.I.C «•«* **» tWrp