ENTERTAINMENTS

Southland Times, Issue 25312, 15 June 1935, Page 4

ENTERTAINMENTS

MAJESTIC ’ THEATRE

“MURDER IN THE CLAUDS”

The Invercargill season of “Murder in the Clouds” will open at the Majestic with three sessions to-day, morning, afternoon and evening. This is .one of the most absorbing pictures ever made. There have been numerous thrillers in the past, all with different settings—thrillers in musical shows, thrillers among gangsters, thrillers in weighty society, and now in this Warner Brothers’ production picturegoers are taken into the clouds, where a murder is ingeniously carried out, and the audience is left guessing as to how the murderer himself can come out' alive, seeing that the aeroplane is blown in two. This is but one of the many tense situations developed in “Murder in the Clouds,” which opens at an airport where volatile Lyle Talbot is undoubtedly the best, if most daring, pilot in the place, playing the part of “Three Star” Bob Halsey. The stunts he performs are certainly most exciting, and he bursts into the picture like a rocket. In the ace’s hands the “three-star” aeroplane becomes an almost , living, thing, and no small part of the excellent entertainment provided by this film is the marvellous way he handles this plane in the-air. Nose-diving and spinning are only a couple of the feats he perfbrms. It is not surprising, therefore, that his skill is turned to use when Government officials ask for an aeroplane for the transport of an 'important invention of explosive, and thus “Three Star,” the best man in the force, is entrusted with its safety. As co-pilot he has with him Tom Wagner, brother of the girl he loves. International crooks involve “Three Star” in a hard fight and knock him out, so that he is unable to take the aeroplane up at the scheduled time, his place being taken by George Wesley (Gordon Westcott), who is really in league with the gang which is trying to steal the explosive. The gang is fiendishly clever, and to the dismay of the airport officials they learn that their aeroplane has been blown in two, murder committed in the clouds, the formula of the explosive stolen, and the crooks well on their way to success. They had not reckoned on the wits of Judy Wagner, a particularly courageous girl, who, when she is held prisoner, manages to attract the attention of her lover in the air in a surprisingly clever manner. When “Three Star” comes down a misunderstanding arises with his co-pilot (who, incidentally, provides much of the humour of the film by his droll performance), and the latter, when he hears revolver shots, takes the machine up and leaves “Three Star” and Judy to be captured by the gang. Judy is taken by Wexley in the machine which carries the formula, but “Three Star” is released on the arrival of Federal airmen, and wastes no time in pursuing the other plane. There ensues a remarkable series of manoeuvres in the air, in which “Three Star” eventually compels the thief to make a landing, and in an unusual climax the plans are recovered and the girl rescued. The part of the girl is played by Ann Dvorak, who is excellent in her role, the scenes with Lyle Talbot being of a high standard. A special film will also be shown of the Royal Jubilee Celebrations in London. This shows the Royal processions and many other incidents of the London festivities. An unusual newsreel, cartoon and a “Believe it or Not” series will further supplement the bill. THE REGENT. “MRS WIGGS OF THE CABBAGE PATCH.” DELIGHTFUL ENTERTAINMENT. In recent months Invercargill audiences have been privileged to see i brought to the screen, the stories of ' many old favourite books. Now "Mrs Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch,” which commenced a season at the Regent Theatre yesterday, is added to an excellent succession of outstanding entertainments. This picture loses nothing in comparison with its predecessors, and the producer, David Zukor, has everything to be proud of in the result of his labours. “Mrs Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch” did not present him with many opportunities for striking photo-, ,graphy or tense and dramatic situations, yet last night’s audience was not slow to realize the general effect of this entertaining film. It relies on sheer allround merit for its success. Alice Hegan Rice wrote her novel of the life of a poor American family more than 30 years ago, and since that time thousands of men, women and children in English-speaking countries have had Mrs Wiggs for a familiar and cheerfull heroine. Those who see this film cannot fail to appreciate the way in which the facts of the struggling existence of the Wiggs family have been kept without undue emphasis being laid on scenes that would have overweighted the production with sentimentality. It is a well-balanced picture with plenty of simple humour against the inevitable tragedy of Cabbage Patch life. Although the story was written many years ago, its presentation on the screen reveals that its appeal is fresh in all ages and in-all countries, for it is a story of fortitude and even .happiness in the face of dire poverty. The part of Mrs Wiggs herself, the hard-working -woman who took in washing in a desperate attempt to keep her children alive, is admirably played by Pauline Lord, better known on the stage than the screen. Her interpretation of the part is sympathetic and lively; she does not monopolize the picture, but yet is the chief and most necessary character. To all the other characters she is the mother who encourages or the friend who helps. Hope was the only thing that kept Mrs Wiggs going—the hope that one of her sons. Jimmy, would be restored to health, that her husband would return from the goldfields, and that her friend and neighbour, Miss Hazy, would some day secure a husband for herself. Her sense of humour is extremely simple, and she has no sense of the ridiculous. She has an unshakable belief in the rightness of the established order of things, and her philosophy of life is a veritable tonic. Zasu Pitts is highly amusing as the wistful neighbour, Miss Hazjj. She is suitably- agitated in contrast to Mrs Wiggs, who is always, or nearly always, calm. W. C. Fjelds, as C. Ellsworth Stubbins, the man who eventually marries Miss Hazy, is excellently cast, while Evelyn Venables, as Lucy, the fairy godmother to the Wiggs family, and Kent Taylor, as her lover, give admirable support. The Wiggs’s children, ingeniously named after various continents, are all naively charming, George Breakston, as one of the boys, being particularly good. The supporting programme is of an unusually high standard, and includes 'Poor Cinderella,” a Betty ‘Boop cartoon in technicolour, a Paramount British News reel, Paramount Variety and Paramount’s official record of the King’s Jubilee celebrations, a most interesting film showing in very full and close detail the processions, their Majesties and the members of the Royal Family. Box plans are at H. and J. Smith’s and the - theatre.

CIVIC THEATRE. WHFIFJ.ER AND WOOLSEY. x “KENTUCKY KERNELS.” The hearty laughter with- which a large audience responded to the antics of Wheeler and Woolsey in their latest comedy, “Kentucky Kernels,” (says a Dunedin critic) was a certain indication of the appreciation of those present of the new attraction. If these two comedians do not individually rise to the heights reached by some of the greatest American comedy players, they have had no peers in their demonstration of the value of team work, and the films in which they have appeared have invariably told a firstclass story full of unexpected happenings. The story of their new picture fully maintains their good record, and the events which take place, as well as being amusing in the extreme, also rouse excitement to the highest pitch. No factor, however, has contributed more greatly to the success of the <film as light entertainment than the inclusion in the cast of “Spanky” McFarland, an extraordinarily gifted child who is familiar to moving picture audiences as the mischievous imp who has been mainly responsible for the popularity of the “Our Gang” comedies. Mary Carlisle is also given an attractive role, and another member of the cast is Noah Beery, who surprises the audience by revealing that he is a vocalist of some skill. He is heard, as are the other principals; ' including Spanky, in the song “One Little Kiss,” round which some notable scenes are built. “Kentucky Kernels” gives' the comedians a first-class opportunity of carrying out their usual policy of telling the story in a racy, breezy fashion, keeping the audience '.in a continual state of expectancy. They are cast as two vaudeville “magicians” who are out of luck, but they are soon started on a series of hilarious adventures when, as a result of one of their absurd experiments, they save the life of a young man who has tried to take a speedy way out of his troubles after he has been crossed in love.. They suggest to him that he should adopt a child to relieve his mind of his greater troubles, but, when the young man’s fortunes suddenly change, they firid that the boy whom he has adopted has become their \ own responsibility. Spanky’s uncontrollable desire to break glass whenever he sees it provides the audience with some of the most laughable episodes in the picture, but it creates a situation so serious for the two entertainers that they feel that he must return to the orphan’s home. At this stage, however, lawyers make an appearance to announce that the child is the lost heir to a valuable Kentucky estate, and his guardians set off to instal him among his rightful possessions. They are not aware until their arrival that the Milford family, to which the boy belongs, and the Wekefields, their neighbours are bitter enemies, and that guns are inevitably produced when they meet. After a series of amusing incidents the comedians succeed in patching up the quarrel, but Spanky’s bent for mischief starts the feud all over again, and the concluding scenes deal with a battle between the families that is as entertaining as it is furious. The supports which are shown are a judicious mixture of tile amusing and the informative and include “Break 90 At Croquet,” comedy “Along came a Duck,” cartoon, “Red Republic,” travelogue, Bathe News and an Australian Fox Gazette showing how the Indian hockey players overwhelmed Victoria. GORE REGENT THEATRE. Two outstanding films are on the week-end programme for the Gore Regent Theatre. “Two Hearts in Waltz Time” is Britain’s overshadowing musical comedy romance acknowledged to be the greatest achievement in the musical film field. The cast includes Carl Brisson, Francis Day, Oscar Asche and many others. Also on the programme is “Manhattan Melodrama” with Clark Gable, William Powell and Myrna Loy. MATAURA REGENT THEATRE. Yielding to an insistent clamour Fox Films have reunited the screen’s most famous and adorable lovers, Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell, jn an entirely new and utterly different production, ‘“Change of Heart,” which comes to the Mataura Regent Theatre to-night. With them are two other favourites, James Dunn and Ginger Rogers, and all four are seen at their best in a story of modem youth defying life. EMPIRE THEATRE, RIVERTON. “OPERATOR 13.” “Operator J 3,” to be shown at the Empire Theatre, Riverton, is a gripping love story for which the Civil War serves only as a background. It is the story of an all-powerful love affair involving a beautiful woman spy of the Union army and a gallant spy of the Confederate forces. As Gail Loveless, the federal spy who is sent into the southern lines to destroy the most dangerous spy of the Confederacy, Miss Davies contributes her finest dramatic performance of her eventful screen career. Gary Cooper, the Southern spy, equally surpasses all his former screen roles as the man whom Miss Davies sets out to destroy—and with whom she falls in love. The masterful direction of the picture was conducted by Richard Boleslavsky, former noted director and actor of the Moscow Art Theatre who has been responsible for such entertaining pictures as “Rasputin and the Empress” and “Men in White.”