WONDERFUL TALKIE.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 145, 20 June 1931, Page 27 (Supplement)

WONDERFUL TALKIE.

“ Hell’s Angels ” Is a wonderful film. For some time past It has been the subject of enthusiastic reference in every paper In every centre in which it has appeared, but the audience at the Theatre Royal last evening found that it was every bit as good as it had been claimed to be. The film represents the art of the American talking picture producer at its highest—a story replete with romance and drama, played and photographed so realistically that the audience lived through every minute of it, and came away impressed net only with the magnificence of the spectacle presented, but with the wonderful spirit of the men whose actions are portrayed —the pioneers of the present generation, who took frail aeroplanes up into the sky and did deeds with them that the modern pilot can do no more than emulate. Some of these ventures are shown in the film, the pilots being a collection of 137- ex-war aces and stunt airmen, whose daring deeds won them the admiration of all America. There are no “ fake ” scenes. Cables not so very long ago recorded the tragic deaths of three airmen during the filming of the picture, and since that time nearly every member of the squadron has lost his life attempting some daring feat. The film, it is stated, took three years to produce, and cost nearly a million pounds. This is not difficult to believe, as the settings are ifiagnificent. In all, eighty-seven ’planes were used, and one scene shows fifty of them in action at the one time. Last night the theatre was filled with the rush and zoom of the machines, and the staccato rattle of machine guns, a realistic scene which brought gasps from the spectators, carried away to those now far off war days.

Probably the most spectacular scene Is that depicting the attack on a Zeppelin during an air • raid over London. Wasplike alongside the giant dirigible, the British ’planes seem but, after most of them have been forced down, one of the pilots solves the difficulty in a stirring manner. Out of ammunition, he soars up above the huge airship, and from there crashes down into it with the result that the huge bag bursts Into flames and falls to earth.

These are only the highlights of the film. It is not only a thrilling drama, but also a simple tale of devotion to friends and to duty in the face of fear in its most ghastly form. In accord with modern ideas, the picture does net

gloss over the facts of war. The author and director have not looked for frightfulness in their presentation, but in its very disregard for life, its instances of what “ duty ” may mean it takes its place among the greatest arguments against war so far produced. The story is told of two brothers, played by Ben Lyon and James Hall, and their reactions to the circumstances in which they find themselves. Both parts are excellently played, as indeed is every role in the cast. Jean Harlow has a rather difficult role to play, and she makes of it a really wonderful characterisation. Taken all round it is one of the most magnificent pictures yet screened here. The supporting programme is good.