ENTERTAINMENTS

Southland Times, Issue 22999, 19 September 1936, Page 12

ENTERTAINMENTS

MAJESTIC THEATRE “THREE LIVE GHOSTS” A succession of laughs will undoubtedly be raised by “The Three Live Ghosts,” the gay-comedy drama which proved such a sensation both on the stage and the screen several years ago and which makes a return to figure as the main feature on the programme at the Majestic Theatre to-night. Presented with all the brilliance and understanding that, marks Metro-Gold-wyn-Mayer’s 1936 film successes, the production is an entirely new film-re-enacted and enhanced with the mastery of direction and vastly improved filming of modern day M.-G.-M. presentations. The story blends _ pathos, drama and comedy very happily, and the dialogue throughout is humorous and sincere. Three British troops have escaped from a German prison camp and they return to London when the Armistice celebrations are at their height. They have been reported “dead,” and when they present themselves at the pay office they find they cannot be paid. They are at first nonplussed by this attitude of the powers that be, but finally decide to exploit their plight. The trio is a quaint one—a Cockney, an American and “Spoofy,” who is suffering from loss of memory. “Spoofy” has a failing that causes his friends considerable consternation, but the audience an even greater quantity of amusement. The shell shocked Tommy cannot stop from stealing things, and his actions are the cause of a continuous stream of amusing situations. Certainly there are numerous complications in this story of the War, but there is also a wealth of human emotion. Claude Allister, who proved such a great success in the first film version of “Three Live Ghosts,” again plays the part of “Spoofy,” and Beryl Mercer again appears as the Cockney’s mother in the film. Richard Arlen gives a brilliant characterization as the American and Charles McNaughton is admirably suited to the role of the Cockney. Also in the cast are Cecilia Parker, Nydia Westman, Dudley Digges, Jonathan Hale, Lilliam Cooper and Robert Greig. “Three Live Ghosts” is indeed an outstanding film—outstanding for its original theme, its clever acting, and its excellent production. The associate programme is a notable one, and includes an “Our Gang” comedy, a coloured musical, “La Fiesta de Santa Barbara,” an instructive novelty film, “Table Tennis,” and newreels.

STATE THEATRE. SHIRLEY TEMPLE IN “CAPTAIN JANUARY.” The heart-warming story of a dimpled tot and a sweet old man—both of whom had found “the right somebody to love”—is delightfully told in the new Shirley Temple picture, “Captain January,” which has broken all previous Shirley Temple records everywhere, and which opens a season at the State Theatre to-day. Adapted from the beloved tale by Laura E. Richards, the new picture has a genuinely hearttugging dramatic story underlying the song, dance, and comedy delight of this new story, in which Shirley plays the part of the orphaned daughter of an opera singer, lost in a wreck off the rocky Maine coast, where Shirley, who was washed ashore when a baby, is given a home by Guy Kibbee, a lighthouse keeper. As a merry, lighthearted child of six, she is the old ; man’s sole light and joy in his old age. Slim Summerville, as the captain’s companion, aids in the upbringing of the child, “Star,” as she is known. The dramatic episodes surround the efforts of a truant officer (a typical Sarah Haden part) to take “Star” away from Kibbee and place her in a school, and the subsequent loss by Kibbee of his job as lighthouse tender. The climax is a perfectly-timed one. One has almost given up hope for “Star” in the hands of the truant officer when a delightful turn of events leads to her rescue, and the end could not have been more delightful, although it differs here from the book. Shirley performs a series of tinkling new steps, including a delightful novelty called “The Multiplication Table Dance,” and sings three grand new songs. The hit of the three, all with music by Lew Pollack, is “The Right Somebody to Love” Buddy Ebsen, of “Broadway Melody” fame, is Shirley’s new dancing partner, and together with June Lang, he supplies the romantic element. Two uproarious comedy scenes are those in which the two old sailors attempt to coach the little girl for her school examination; and in which the same three give a rendition of the sextette from “Lucia di Lammermoor.” The supporting pro-

gramme is a varied and interesting one, and embodies an excellent selection of topical and novelty short subjects. REGENT THEATRE. “THE AMATEUR GENTLEMAN.” TAP-DANCING DEMONSTRATION. The swashbucking days of the Regency, with all their glamour and romance, provide the colourful background for “The Amateur Gentleman, a screen version of Jeffery- Famol’s popular novel, which opened its Invercargill season yesterday at the Regent Theatre. The fine spirit of this richly romantic story has been admirably caught by the film, and the engrossing tale of an innkeeper’s son who uses his wits and his fists to break into the gilded society of the period and so save his unjustly accused father from the gallows is told with breeziness and humour. The picture is notable in that it marks the entry of Douglas Fairbanks, jun., into the field of film production, and, although it is his first attempt in this direction, its outstanding quality affords ample evidence that he is equally competent as an actor and a producer. The scenes, manners, and atmosphere of the spacious days when Beau Brummell flourished have been reproduced with a meticulous attention to detail, so that not only is the picture a particularly attractive piece of screen entertainment, but also a vivid pageant of London, Bath, and the English countryside in a period that was replete with glamour and life. To recapitulate the theme in full would be fair neither to the producers nor to those who wish to witness the picture, but, briefly, the narrative deals with the adventures which befall young Barnabas Barty, son of John Barty, formerly heavyweight champion of England, and, later, the keeper of a country inn, when he fares forth to discover the whereabouts of a famous string of pearls. The jewels have mysteriously disappeared, and through a peculiar chain of circumstantial evidence, Barty senior is convicted of having stolen them, and sentenced to be hung. Barnabas sets out to clear his father’s name, and while he is doing it the audience is shown a remarkable metamorphosis, from a raw but shrewd country lad, to a dashing society favourite who is qualified by looks, wit, and attire to become a leader in the coterie which dictates what London shall and shall not do. At various stages he is the hero of a bareknuckle fight, the instigator of a gaolbreaking episode, and the quarry of the Bow Street runners, but finally he wins through, and has the satisfaction of seeing his father exonerated. Throughout the film the directors have rightly realized the importance of action, and from the opening scene the story is unfolded in an atmosphere of increasing excitement. Fairbanks is perfectly cast as the hero, and his virile and dynamic acting and natural ease of bearing and speech make him exactly “The Amateur Gentleman” as portrayed by the author. His part is one which bristles-, with difficulties, but he surmounts them all with the poise and efficiency of a veteran actor, and at no time does he succumb to the ever-pre-sent temptation to over-act. Elissa Landi’s sketch of the proud and lovely Lady Cleone, with whom Barnabas falls in love, is a fine piece of character acting. Basil Sydney plays the suavely villainous Chichester with all his accustomed skill. As might be imagined, Gordon Harker and Esme Percy are very much at home in parts that give them ample opportunity to exploit the type of humour they have made peculiarly their own. An unusually entertaining supporting series of short subjects includes a fascinating Disney Silly Symphony in colour. And on the stage, the master and pupils of the School of American Tap-dancing present a very pleasant interlude, demonstrating “Modem Rhythm.” EMPIRE PICTURES, RIVERTON. “A Notorious Gentleman,” co-starring Charles Bickford and Helen Vinson, will be screened at Riverton to-night. This surprising drama has as its theme outraged and scorned love carried to the most desperate extreme of revenge. In this picture Bickford is seen as a clever lawyer who so manoeuvres the defence of murders that his clients are invariably acquitted.