AMUSEMENTS KING'S THEATRE

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20012, 10 August 1939, Page 3

AMUSEMENTS

KING'S THEATRE

MR MOTO IN "DANGER ISLAND" AND "DARK RAPTURE." In 20th Century-Fox's "Danger Island." which finishes at the King's Theatre to-night, Peter Lorre, is starred as the famous detective, Mr. Moto. The scene is Uncle Sam's island possession in the West Indies, Porto Rico. The detective is embroiled in a diamond smuggling case and a stririfj of ruthless murders. The associate feature, "Dark Rapture," is an authentic .jungle film depicting the loves, dangers, and secret rituals of the Belgian Congo. —"Stagecoach," Exciting Drama of the West: To-morrow. — Across a vast panorama of. primitive splendour, several thousand feei above sea level under a burning sun. a solitary stagecoach careens and rocks behind six galloping horses Every mile brings the coach and its odd assortment of passengers closer to a waiting band of murderous Apaches, led by Geronimo. fiercest of them all. This is the tense and thrilling background of Walter Waiter's "Stagecoach," a United States frontier drama of the 1880's when Indians still roamed the sagebrush. which opens at the King's Theatre tomorrow. With Claire Trevor and John Wayne playing top roles. "Stagecoach," unfolds a gripping story of pioneer courage—of the brilliant heritage that lias descended to young Americans from men who fought and hewed a nation out of a wilderness. It is a saga of brave women wno went with them to bring comfort and love to lonely outposts. It'was filmed before a backdrop .that took sun, wind and rain thousands of years to build and colour—Monument Valley. 180 miles from the nearest Arizona railroad. Louise Piatt. George Bancroft, John Carradine, Andy Devine, Thomas Mitchell, Tim Holt, Donald Meek, and Berton Churchill, featured in support of the stars, portray the strange group of passengers thrown together in the coach as it proceeds from Tonto, Arizona, to Lordsburg, New Mexico. John Wayne portrays the role of Kid Ringo, who has been driven to outlawry by perjurers and is determined to kill them. Claire Trevor impersonates Dallas, a woman of easy virtue who has been forced out of town by the self-righteous citizenry. Among the others arc a Virginia-born expecant mother, a mysterious gambler, a dipsomaniacdoctor, a blustering bank absconder, a timid whisky drummer. While ihe pounding hoofs carry them closer and closer to shrieking war cries and blood-hungry tomahawks, these incongruous individuals are absorbed with the purposes and hales that have propelled them into the hazardous journey. Each knew that Geronimo was on the war path. Each knew this meant torture or death if the coach was attacked —yet they went. Finally, as thexStage is crossing a plateau, it is attacked by a ferocious band of savage Apaches. This scene of ihe Indian attack, which furnishes the climax of the film, is one of the most thrilling sequences to be seen on the screen for many seasons.