THEATRE ROYAL SHOWS MAGNIFICENT PICTURE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19269, 5 January 1931, Page 4

THEATRE ROYAL SHOWS MAGNIFICENT PICTURE.

So great is the success of “ Africa Speaks,” the amazing picture of animal and native life in th-e heart, of the great African continent, now showing at the Theatre Royal, that one wonders how the makers of pictures have for so long left almost untouched such a vast quantity of intensely interesting material. With few exceptions, the marvels of tropical animal and vegetable life have been merely inconspicuous , local

colour in a screen story, and more often than not only too obviously a cNever piece of faking with the Californian countryside in the background. There can be no mistake about the genuineness of “Africa Speaks,” and the announcer’s assurance that absolutely nothing is faked is quite superfluous. The picture was made by the Colorado Expedition, under Paul L. Heifler, which set out on a 11,000-mile journey through the leastknown parts of Central Africa, equipped with film cameras and sound recording apparatus to record for tire eyes and ears of the world everything of note that was to be seen and heard in that wonderland. As the picture shows, the expedite n was successful beyond its leader's wildest dreams. Not only did they get to close quarters with almost every great animal in that continent where strange and weird creatures live in hundreds of thousands, but the wild creatures allowed the cameras to catch them in attitudes and acts that few human lives, let alonte sound cameras, have hitherto recorded. For instance, the expedition wanted to photograph the King of Beasts in his own haunts. Not only did they find lions, but they

actually photographed one great beast in the act of striking down and killing one of tlve black boys who travelled with the expedition. The second camera was then able to take up the story and show the lion turning on the two men at the other camera, and pursuing them until they »were fortunate enough to despatch him with their revolvers. The fatality and the subsequent danger to were caused by their venfrom the thorn s h e I tv?rs”w 1 1 ere tlieir rifles were. This incident is one of the most vivid in the picture. Following the native boy’s dgath, the brave Masaii warriors professional lion hunters, set out to take revenge on the great beasts, and the cameramen were permitted to accompany them on solemnly promising not to use their rifles. The result was another notable addition to the valuable pictures already' secured. Films were taken of the queerly-dressed huntsmen gradually forming the “ ring of death ” round their quarry, a lion-ess. Finally sue rushed at the nearest man and at once met death from many ’ slender spears. Suddenly the lioness’s mate apt!333@33333!3®33J13E]®33®

peared, and before he could be similarly dealt with one of the warriors lay stretched upon the ground. Another example of the expedition’s good fortune was the unique opportunity given it of obtaining pictures of a visitation of, and the destruction brought about by a plague of locusts. Through speciallyconstructed windows the cameramen were aUlo to work from the protection of their tent. A good record was made

of the swiftly-advancing cloud of locusts in almost unbelievable numbers. They literally darkened the sky, terrifying the great herds of animals in their path. The expedition was camped amidst the area chosen by the locusts for a rest and a meal, and when they moved on t’ e next morning, not a blade of grass, net a green leaf, not even a shred of bark on the trees was left. The famous Ifi tribe of pygmies also posed for rhe cameras. Their complaisance was bought with a few bags of salt, the most precious thfng in the world to these little people. Even the young king with his two wives came out of his jungle lastness to a clearing where the light was better suited to photography.