ENTERTAINMENTS

Southland Times, Issue 23142, 8 March 1937, Page 9

ENTERTAINMENTS

STATE THEATRE RALPH LYNN IN “IN THE SOUP” A BRILLIANT COMEDY Those obsessed by the idea, however true it is, that “life is real, life is earnest,” could do no better than pay a visit to the State Theatre to see Ralph Lynn’s latest picture, “In The Soup.” This picture successfully demonstrates that life is a crazy affair, a jest perpetrated by madcaps and thriving on laughter. While this may not be true, it is an extremely agreeable illusion and for some two hours Ralph Lynn and his partners in lunacy keep this illusion very much alive. The story is slight, but is sufficiently strong to give continuity to a succession of hilarious episodes. The first, and probably the most humorous, shows Lynn as a lawyer, who. in the hy s ” terical excitement of obtaining his first brief, gets into the wrong court ana proceeds to defend a case of reckless driving, only to find that, in reality, he has been defending an undefended breach of promise action! Not unnaturally Lynn’s career as a pillar ot the law ends suddenly and ms only means of sustenance is to let his fiat, and' live on the proceeds. After considerable difficulty he manages to secure some tenants, and then finds that his wife has let the flat to someone else. To cap it all, his servants walk out, and there is nothing for it but for Horace Gillibrand (Ralph Lynn) to act as butler, and his wife as housekeeper to two families who must be kept in ignorance of each others presence. From this moment the. fun becomes even faster and more, furious, and the story ends with a positive hurricane of mistaken identity ana mirth. Judy Gunn is delightful as the wife, and a fine supporting cast includes Morton Selten, Nelson Keys and Bertha Belmore. Of outstanding interest on the supporting programme is a continuation of the series ‘Teimis and How It Is Played.” Dorothy Round is featured in this film and everyone, whether a tennis player or not, cannot fail to be interested by the insight given into the fundamentals of the game.

MAJESTIC THEATRE “DEVIL DOLL” AN UNUSUAL DRAMA For those who like the unusual in screen entertainment, “The Devil Doll, which opened a season at the Majestic Theatre on Saturday, should be a thoroughly satisfying film. An atmosphere charged now with wonder, now with a touch of horror, combines with many tense situations to produce a film which grips the attention from first to last. The leading roles are taken by three popular stars, Lionel Barrymore, Maureen O’Sullivan, and Frank Lawton. The story concerns a scientist and his wife, obsessed with an amazing discovery which enables, them to reduce living things to one-sixth their normal size, when they can be motivated only by the will of some other person. A banker, escaping from Devil’s Island, uses the discovery to carry out his one wish, to revenge himself on his. partners, who had him unjustly imprisoned. The weird scenes in the . amazing laboratory, where human beings, are reduced to Lilliputian size are relieved by the quaint and amusing antics of the tiny creatures, in incidents that call for some brilliant trick photography. In the guise of an old woman, Lavond, the escaped convict, opens a doll shop in Paris and waits his time. A moral twist is given to the eerie story by the emphasis placed on Lavond’s motive for revenge. He wants to clear the family name for his daughter, Lorraine, so that she may marry her taxi-driver sweetheart, Toto. Lionel Barrymore, in whom the acting tradition of the theatre is more deeply imbued than in any other screen actor, brings consummate artistry to his task, both as the banker and in his disguise as an Ola doll seller. Maureen O’Sullivan and Frank Lawton are well cast in the chief romantic roles and Henry B. Walthall and Rafaela Ottiano give compelling performances as the crazed scientist and his wife. Grace Ford and Arthur Hohl are two of those who appear first as normal human beings, and then as the “devil dolls.” In essentials, however, the spectator’s interest is centred on the “old lady” of .Montmartre anrl her “dolls.” There is also a splendid supporting programme.

REGENT THEATRE “THE MAN WHO COULD WORK MIRACLES” Humour and versatility make the screen version of H. G. Wells’s fantasy. “The Man Who Could Work Miracles,” one of the most outstanding productions which have yet been, produced by Alexander Korda. With the novelist’s collaboration, a film which follows the book form faithfully has been evolved. The opening scene depicts three deities discussing the puny creatures who live on a far away planet. They decide to invest the power of having his every wish granted in one human being. The chosen man is George McWhirter Fotheringay, a draper’s assistant. During an argument in the local bar, George discourses upon miracles, and in order to elucidate a point in his argument, he orders the kerosene lamp hanging from the roof to turn upside down and continue to burn. To the amazement of everyone present thp lamp does so, but George’s will power is not strong enough to hold up the lamp and it falls to the floor. The irate hotelkeeper throws this worker of miracles out, but George is so elated with his discovery that he does not bear any malice at all. On his arrival home he experiments and finds that the power he has is real. His imagination lands him into several awkward situations, but with the aid of his gift he manages to escape any serious consequence. Finally he meets the men in whose hands lie the power of making wars, great financiers and judges. He commands them to make the world a better place to live in, on pain of death if they do not obey him. The climax comes when he orders the sun not to set. Of course, this causes the world to cease revolving and in the resulting chaos George McWhirter Fotheringay realizes what he has done and orders everything to be as it was before he told the lamp in the bar of the Long Dragon to turn upside down. The role of the draper's assistant is convincingly played by Roland Young, who gives an excellent portrayal as a humble Cockney endowed with miraculous powers. He is supported by Joan Gardiner and Ernest Thesiger. The excellent supporting programme shows a travel serial, depicting scenes on the South America air trail, a well-pro-duced nature study, “The Life of the Gannets,” showing intimate close-ups of gannets off the Welsh coast, a short comedy, “Radio Rascals,” and a Paramount news reel. The box plans for the season are at H. and J. Smith’s, Rice’s Regent shop and the theatre.