TWO GOOD FILMS

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 963, 5 May 1930, Page 15

TWO GOOD FILMS

COMEDY AND ROMANCE AT REGENT BEBE DANIELS’S LATEST When a young man sets out to teach his girl friends the art of successful husband-hunting, is he safe from the boomerang of his own advice? This question is answered divertlngly in “The Dove Doctor,” Richard Dix’s latest Auckland release. The film, a Paramount farce-comedy, was screened at the Regent on Saturday evening together with “Dove Comes Along,” a colourful romance with a South African setting.. “The Dove Doctor” is pure farce, sa?is, theme songs, cabaret sequences, and the like, and all the more enjoyable by reason of its simplicity. Kichard Dix has not had a better part since talkies began. An enthusiastic young medico, a painfully empty waiting-room, three love-sick young people seeking to win unresponsive members of the opposite sex—thus one of the most effective laughter films of the year opens. Business being dull, Dix turns to the diagnosis of love. His prescription is, first, make ’em jealous; secondly, keep ’em guessing; thirdlj r , don’t be too attentive. All very wise. But one of the doctor’s most charming acquaintances tries the plan on him, and, for the remaining reels, one revels in the joys of the man-hunt plus a dozen hilarious complications. Opposite Dix, who acts well and displays again an excellent microphone voice, is June Collyer, who heads a supporting company of bx'ight young people. “Dove Comes Along” is a glamorous romance on musical comedy lines, with action, singing, dancing, colour, more action, and Bebe Daniels. This picture, distinctly reminiscent of “Kio Rita,” in both plot and setting, exploits the piquant star’s really attractive soprano voice to the fullest. She sings a group of three charming numbers including a melodious theme song that recurs throughout the show. “Dove Comes Along” is the story of a husky sailor who drops in at one of those obscure little Datin -American towns—seemingly made for musical comedy purposes. He falls in love with a cabaret girl who is desired by the local despot, and wins her after exciting adventures among the villainous inhabitants. Bebe Daniels acts excellently, as is her wont, and particularly in the cabaret sequence is exceedingly easy to look at. Lloyd Hughes plays her seaman lover, and Montague Dove is thoroughly detestable and. therefore, comI letely successful as the heavy side of the triangle. An enjoyable evening is still further improved by a Hearst sound news budget and the playing of the Regent Orchestra, which presents two attractive solo items.