AMUSEMENTS.

Hokitika Guardian, 17 April 1929, Page 3

AMUSEMENTS.

EVERYBODYB PICTUREB.

“OLD SAN FRANCISCO”

-TO-NIGHT

Kipling’s “ Take me somewhere East of Suez, where the best is lift' the worst, where there ain’t no Ten Commandments, and a man can raise a th'rst.” might well have been sung of old San Francisco’s Chinatown and Barbary Coast,- and it is these regions that Warner Bros, recreate 'for us in the thrilling and uncannily realistic “ Old San Francisco,” starring Dolores Costello and featuring Warner OJand. Alan Crosland, who won such high acclaim for his direction of “ Don Juan ” and “ When A Man Loves ” has added materially to his reputation in “ Old San Francisco.” The story is that a half-caste boss of the underworld, who, coveting the lands and the fair granddaughter df a Spanish grandee, hounds the old man to his death. The girl on the ancient sword of her family, pledges vengeance and having discovered the fact that the boss is a yellow man, hriwks the news about the underworld, aided and abetted by a young man, who, with vherself, is kidnapped and secreted in a Chinese den. The boss tries to make the girl retract her statement by threatening to torture her lover. A crowd of Chinamen, who hate their “white boss,” force their way into the place and capture him while the girl is spirited away to a secret chamber by a Chinese girl. The boss, escaping (from his captors, recaptures the girl and drags her to a deeper cell. Just then comes the terrific upheaval which is known as “ The Great Fire.” Lightning flashes through rents in the walls, the boss is crushed under a flying beam, the girl is rescued by her lover arid out of the ruins of the old San Fraricisc'o they flee to happiness in the new. This is a bare outline of a story which flames with passionate reality, and with terror and bear''’. . Th« photography is marvellous and the impression, one takes away fro»~ Hie theatre, is that of havin'* last days o'f San Francisco’s vanished underworld.

A topical, scenic and comedy will also be shown to-night. On Friday next Hoot Gibson will be seen in “The Flying Cowboy” and also the last chapter of “ Blake of Scotland Yard.”