ENTERTAINMENTS

Southland Times, Issue 20659, 15 April 1929, Page 4

ENTERTAINMENTS

MAJESTIC.

ENTERTAINMENT DE LUXE.

THREE STAR PROGRAMME FEATURING "THE COLLEGE BOOB,” "ODDS ON" AND “THE COLLEGIANS.”

With its bright, breezy atmosphere of the Australian turf—the suggestion of thudding hoofs and flashing silken jackets, “Odds On,” a new Australian film screened for the first time at the Majestic Theatre on Saturday night to a packed house, met with splendid success. Apart from its well-con-trived lot and romantic love story, the film is remarkable for its clever producing and its well sustained continuity. The action of the theme leads up to a thrilling climax in which horses and finance figure. Phyllis Gibbs and Arthur Tauchert are featured as headliners in an all-Australian cast. The film was produced by Mr Arthur E. Higgins. Football fans have the chance of seeing one of the best, players the game has ever known—Lefty Flynn of Yale—in a screamingly funny and vividly realistic picture of college life, “The College Boob,” which also had its premiere at this theatre on Saturday. The former gridiron star re-lives many of the thrilling episodes of his college career in the football sequences of the film, and the campus atmosphere is graphically portrayed. Plenty of comedy scenes are built around the personality of the “hick” freshman who wants to be a veterinary, and in every way the picture is excellent entertainment. Jean Arthur, Jimmy Anderson, Bob Bradbury, Cecil Ogden, and Raymond Turner are included in the cast. Harry Garson directed. Lively, wholesome and exhilarating is the two reel Junior Jewel production, “The Collegians.” which also opened on Saturday at the Majestic. Brilliant and flashing with the light cares and joys of the students in a co-educational college, the picture makes the oldsters tingle with memories and the youngsters with hopeful bliss. The Majestic “De Luxe” Orchestra was responsible for a - programme of excellent music. This programme will be repeated for two more nights only. THE REGENT. A SPLENDID PROGRAMME. Consisting of The Regent Review of World events, a New Zealand Scenic of Mount Cook, and two star pictures plus of course the ever delightful music of the Regent Orchestra, the current programme at this theatre is exceedingly well balanced and enjoyable. “Honour Above All” is an admirably-directed film, with a delightfully romantic atmosphere and remarkably gorgeous settings. Whether interiors or exteriors, these are artistic and beautiful to an extraordinarily high degree. Reports of its excellence in this and, indeed, in all directions, were in no detail exaggerated. The. acting of the whole cast, but, notably that of Leatricc Joy, Joseph Schildkraut and Nils Ast her, is extremely clever. Miss Joy has never been seen to greater advantage, while Mr Schildkraut gives a characterization of great power—a superb study of a vindictive hunchback. Acting like this is always a pleasure to watch, no matter what the theme of the picture may be. Large audiences enjoyed this colourful romance of Austrian life —the picture tells a story of the Danube Valley, in which the heir to a barony falls in love with a peasant girl. A hunchback violin-maker is also enamoured of her, and is instrumental in keeping them apart, by treachery, until circumstances enable him to realize his ambition to marry her himself. However, in a climax which is both powerful and surprising, the true lovers are made happy. Interest is kept alive throughout the whole production by a strong element of suspense, which greatly enhances the dramatic qualities of the story. All lovers of screen art in any shape or form should see “Honour Above All,” for it is undoubtedly entitled to rank among the really big pictures of the year. Four graduates of the Mark Sennett custard pie school were brought together again when “Beau Broadway,” now' showing at the Regent Theatre, was filmed at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio, as the first, of a new series of Lew Cody-Aileen Pringle sophisticated comedy-dramas. Mai St. Clair, the author and director of the sparkling production, was a Keystone “cop,” property man, scenarist and director on the old Sennett lot. Lew Cody “heavied” in the old bathing girl pictures and provided a constant “menace” to many Sennett beauties who since have risen to stardom in dramatic productions. Heinie Conklin, who plays a delightful blackface role, used to hide behind a walrus moustache in the Keystone comedies and probably has tasted more custard pic than any living actor. George O’Hara, more recently a fighting series star and who prepared the continuity for “Beau Broadway,” was a Keystone juvenile, film cutter and “gag” man. Also in the cast are such well-known names as Aileen Pringle, Sue Carol and Jim Jeffries, exchampion heavyweight of the world. The picture is a highly enjoyable comedy drama that gave general satisfaction. Mention must be made of the entrance, a medley of popular airs played on the xylophone which was heartily received. CIVIC PICTURES. LAST NIGHT OF NORMAN KERRY, MARION NIXON, PAULINE STARKE IN “MAN, WOMAN AND WIFE” AND JOHNNY HARRON IN “ONCE AND FOREVER.” “Man, Woman and Wife” is the leading feature on the programme, which is being shown for the last time to-night at the Civic. The story begins with the departure of an American, Ralph Brandon, for the war. When he reaches the front, the incessant machine-gun fire wrecked his nerves, and caused him to desert. His parents and wife were informed that he had been killed in action. After the war he becomes a drifter in the underworld of New York. Here he meets Rita, a girl who was formerly in love with him, and who is living with Rogers, a power in the underworld. She deserts him and goes with Brandon. He comes home one night to read in the paper that his wife, who, of course, believes him dead, is marrying his best friend. He dashes out to the church and watches the ceremony, but has not the courage to intervene. On this is a most powerful scene. He then returns to Rita, but Rogers has tricked the pair, and overhears the conversation. Realizing that be has a fine chance for blackmail, he attempts to get in touch with the bride. Then the thrills come fast, and the ending is a most unusual one. An equally good picture is the Tiffany production, “Once and Forever,” starring Patsy Ruth Miller and John Harron. The performance of Miss Patsy Ruth Miller adds new laurels to that young lady’s rapid rise to featured roles and her naturalness and beauty gave her performance of a little French girl a genuine charm and pathos that is unforgettable. The story tells of the love of a winsome miss for that of the nephew of a harsh and stern French Governor of a French possession who frowns upon the suit of his handsome nephew for the poor orphan and the meddling into their love affair by two gossips who do all but ruin the happiness of the lovers. The scene in which the young man returns from the war blinded and his longing for his sweetheart is finely portrayed and the unexpected denouement near the finish is a fine piece of dramatic construction. "SUNRISE.” BIG FOX SPECIAL—AT THE CIVIC TO-MORROW. Selecting a theme from one of the novels of Herman Sundermann, Fred W. Murnau, the director, has in “Sunrise” told in his inimitable fashion a simple story which he calls “the song of two humans.” Striking a tragic note for his opening, the director proceeds to play upon the emotions of his audience, increasing the tempo, gradually at first, and then faster, as the hearts of his characters grow lighter; suddenly indulging in an orgy of gaiety, and winding up in a delightful ending. With a

breath-taking sweep “Sunrise” swings from a scene wherein a man is on the point of murdering his wife, to another scene of carefree joy in which the same couple are convulsed at the spectacle of a drunken pig in an amusement park. Just as amazingly -—and logically—it swings back again, rushing to a climax of remarkable feeling and power. The age-old triangle situation—a peasant, his wife and a city woman—is here set forth once more, but with a touch that renders it all quite new and which makes ' “Sunrise” the outstanding picture of the year. In all of his scenes Mr Murnau has studiously avoided suggesting any particular locality. His theme is universal and the events of his picture might happen anywhere. To this end he employs in the course of the film what might be termed an international city, built for this production in Hollywood. It is a splendid notion, though quite certain to set a number of geographically-minded persons stewing over locations on the map. The three chief characters are played with intelligence and an entire lack of theatricalism by George O’Brien, Janet Gaynor and Margaret Livingston, with occasional portraits by other competent Fox artists. George O’Brien has hitherto been known as a handsome and athletic leading man, but here he makes the countryman a real figure, while Miss Gaynor—she who burst into prominence in "that earlier Fox picture, ‘7th Heaven” —adds to the prevailing impression that an actress of real talent has joined the small grpup of the ilk in Hollywood. Even people who pay no attention to the movies cannot afford to miss the picture. On the same programme will be Paramount’s “Someone to Love,” featuring Charles Rogers and Mary Brian.