WATERFRONT DRAMA.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXIV, Issue 935, 4 December 1933, Page 3

WATERFRONT DRAMA.

Thrilling Plot in Big Film at Theatre Royal. I The stirring adventures of an Araeri- ! can newspaper reporter assigned to keep a ciose eye on tne teeming me ot a Pacific coast watcnroiiL provide an unusual background lor the thrilling wnicli opened at the Theatre Royal on Saturday before capacity auuiences. Strange things happen among men who go down to the sea in snips, and the world drama which nearly spells death tor him. However, late is o.i nis swu and this perilous situation brings him romance, love and success in ms profession. One of the strongest xeaiures of the film is the scenes on the water iron t ana at sea. Tne exciting ” shots ” of shark fishing, lor instance, are a revelation of the dangers of this precarious industry. Some of the scenes of the harbour, particularly those taken under the lignt of the moon or at dusk, are splendid examples of the power of the camera to transfer scenic beauty to the screen. But all this is only secondary—the keynote of the picture is action witn a judicious dash of love interest. The central character is a rascally old fisherman, who smuggles Chinese into the Unitou states because he finds it more profitable than fishing. He dodges tne revenue cutters by weignting his living freight with chains and tnrowing it overboard to drown when there is fear of an inspection. The newspaper reporter, avid for sensations to satisfy the demands of his editor, has his suspicions of the seemingly innocent fisherman. Baulked in his several attempts to surprise the smuggler, he decides to go to work in a more subtle manner and carries the war into the enemy's camp by making love to the old man’s daughter. By this dubious means he gains the information he is after and catches his quarry—but the pleasure is gone from his triumph for he has lallen in love with the girl and she regards him as a traitor. The situation looks hopeless for anything approaching a happy ending when the tangled threads of the story are unwoven in a startling climax. The personal triumph of the picture goes to a man who, unfortunately, is no longer able to receive it—the late Ernest Torrence, as Eli Kirk, the smuggler. His is a superb piece of character acting, combining dramatic force with a dash of unobtrusive tut clever comedy. Fascinating Claudette Colbert plays the old man's daughter and her performance is full of fire and action. The part of the enterprising newspaper reporter, hoist with his own petard, is in the capable hands of Ben Lyon, who also relieves the tensionwith a spice of clever comedy. An unusual feature of the supporting programme is an attractive display on the stage of the latest in bathing costumes and beach costumes. in addition, there is a delightful Lauiel and Hardy comedy, “Any Old Port,” a Mickey Mouse cartoon and a Fa the Gazette.