"HOLIDAY " IS REGENT'S FEATURE PRODUCTION.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 62, 14 March 1931, Page 21 (Supplement)

"HOLIDAY " IS REGENT'S FEATURE PRODUCTION.

Of late there have been several pictures presented in Christchurch which, by reason of their production, their acting, or their dialogue have achieved distinction, but rarely have these three attributes been so perfectly blended as in “Holiday,” the Bathe talkie, which will open to-day at the Regent. In the first place the picture is built round a well-defined plot, which develops in a perfectly logical manner. Throughout, the dialogue is crisp, witty and sparkling, and in the hands of the sinall but extremely capable cast it becomes a sheer delight. What one is compelled to realise immediately is the extraordinary realism with which the vari-

ous characters are drawn, and a-s the play goes on the fact that one is watching a. screen production becomes less and less apparent. In entrusting Ann Harding with the leading role, the producers made a fortunate and happy choice, for there can be no question that as the wealthy young girl, the daughter of a family whose only god is wealth, she scores a veritable triumph. She has to portray a very natural modern girl with all a modern girl’s whims and fancies, who is at heart a rebel against society, and who is not afraid to let the world know it. So

completely has Miss Harding identified herself with her part, that it is almost impossible not to forget that she is acting. Not for many a day has such a perfect and finished piece of character acting been presented. Of course, Miss Harding stands supreme in the cast, but the characterisations of the remainder of the players are none the less arresting-. There is, for instance, that inimitable fun-maker, Edward Everard Horton, whose puck-like humour and gay mock cynicism flash like a golden thread through the fabric of the story. Monroe Owsley and Robert Ames also draw two accurate and very lifelike portraits as the father and the prospective son-in-law respectively, and William Holden is a complete success as the somewhat weak-willed but entirely lovable son. Mary Astor is well cast as Ames’s fiancee, and makes an admirable fell to Ann Harding. To recapitulate the theme of the picture would be useless; it is one of those altogether intriguing productions that must be seen to be appreciated. “ Holiday ” is decidedly one of the film features of the year, and it is one of those exceedingly rare pictures which one could witness a second time.