TWO GOOD DRAMAS.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 660, 13 January 1933, Page 3

TWO GOOD DRAMAS.

“ Downstairs ” and “ WeekEnd Marriage.” "Igloo” and “The Mouthpiece” will be shown at the Liberty Theatre for the last time to-night. Two good dramas—“ Downstairs " (John Gilbert and Virginia Bruce) and “ Week-end Marriage ” (Loretta Young and Norman Foster) will comprise the new programme at the Liberty Theatre to-morrow. Judged by its cast alone, “ Week-end Marriage,” which tells the story of a young married couple who find themselves at odds because the husband earns less than his wife, offers o nt o rf,inmn n t and fine performances. The team of -oretta Young and lorman Foster, havng won such splenlid success in the ecent production of ' Play Girl,” are nan and wife again n “ Week-end Mar■iage.” Loretta foung has been dimbing steadily in he past few months n such pictures as ‘ Taxi ” and “ The Ratchet Man.” Nornan Foster will be emembered for his

~ Eight«n,” “ Young *'( a, i of Manhattan ’ and “Alias the Doctor.” Heart thrills are well pro- ' med for. George Brent is just as heart damaging as in “So Big,” “Miss Pinkerton’* and “The Rich Are Always " lth J- Farrell MacDonald, by an odd coincidence, plays Roretta’s father again, just as In “ Play Girl “ in which Norman Foster was also her husband. John Gilbert turns author and villain at the same time in “Downstairs,” his latest starring picture. As an author he has furnished one of the strangest and most gripping plots the screen has seen in some time. As an actor he F l ' eg the screen il debonair, unscrupuV i. ",’ ho makes up in audacity what he lacks in morals. Gilbert proves that villains can be not onlv mteresting but glamorous in his vivid portrayal of the astonishing character " h " f nt * rs a castle "downstairs" through the servants’ hall as a chauffeur and spreads a web of intrigue that enmeshes cook and countess, butler and baion alike. There is a terrific dramatic climax and light comedy moments the . villain gaily hoodwinks royalty and servants alike. Xo weakils this— but real, solid drama. Gilbert is the Gilbert of old again in this offerng. Box plans at The Bristol.