INFLUENCE OF THE CINEMA.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 November 1934, Page 6

INFLUENCE OF THE CINEMA.

Speaking at Belfast, Mr. John Drinkwater, poet, playwright and critic, is reported as having described the discovery of the cinema as an “unmitigated curse to mankind.” One can understand the strength of Mr. DrinktSrater’s feelings on the matter, for he belongs to the class of people who, both artistically and materially, have suffered most as the result of the invention of the cinema. Yet is is doubtful whether this renowned critic is very correct. The cinema, like the radio, has swept the world by storm. For the humble shilling the world may see and hear the mass production of what only a few years ago was the privilege of only a few. The world’s prettiest actresses and finest music have been mechanically perpetuated and can be poured out in a never-ending stream to appreciative millions. All the beauty, all the romance, all the humour and spice of life present themselves daily in thousands of theatres. It is little wonder that the cinema, having been brought within the reach of the popular purse, has captured the popular fancy. Yet both the cinema and the radio, like the people who patronise.them, are passing through a phase.' Both have their definite place in the community, and both have come to stay, but it is likely that they will undergo considerable change both, in development and in status. Human, art in its highest form must be intimately associated with human personality, and already there are signs of a public demand for the personality that was to a large extent lost when theatre orchestras went out of business. There is also the human urge towards self-expression, be it ever so modestly, rather than relying entirely on other people’s art for one’s aesthetic satisfaction. If trends are any indication it may be predicted that “legitimate” art, the loss of which Mr. Drinkwater so keenly deplores, will revive and flourish again.