ENTERTAINMENTS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 53, 31 January 1938, Page 3

ENTERTAINMENTS

KOSY THEATRE. “OUTLAWS OF THE ORIENT.” “Outlaws of the Orient,” now showing at the Kosy Theatre, stars Jack Holt in a superb performance. Mae Clark in the leading, feminine role, contributes dash and beauty, and, of course, a capable interpretation of her role. Harold Huber as a war lord is as menacing and villainous a character as the screen has ever contributed. Holt is an American oil company foreman. Two days before his approaching marriage to Bernice Roberts he must rush back to China. He hopes to return at once. Instead, he finds that ho must remain indefinitely because his brother, played by James Bush, is drinksodden and unfit to carry on the work. The husky Holt plunges into his job, only to have a rival oil company hire r lartar tribesmen to harass him at every turn. Ho “buys off” the tribesmen himself. inis forces him to pad his payroll, to conceal the expense. Then, when Miss Clarke, who portrays a book-keeper at the homo office, is unable to balance llolt‘s ao counts, she is fired. Seeking redress she goes to the oilfield. When Holt’s coolies desert -him during a Tartar attack, Miss Clarke remains as company cook. Sho falls in love with the younger brother. 110, mistaking Holt’s interest in her, deserts to a nearby settlement. Holt follows and rescues him from tribesmen, but thereby . provokes a siege that threatens to destroy the whole oil field. He and his few loyal workers barricade themselves in. From that point the # story moves through a series of . surprising pulsetingling scenes, culminating in a- smash climax. “MARRY THE GIRL.” Every so often along comes a movie so amusing that no one can help laughing at it from beginning to end. And into such a catGgory falls “Marry the Girl, the Warner Bros. farce-comedy now showing at the Kosy Theatre, lo begin with, the story itself is funny. Then look at the cait of laugh-getters that portrays it—Frank McHugh, Hugh Herbert, Mary Boland, Carol Hughes, Mischa Auer, the Gorilla Man, Allen Jenkins, Olin Holland, Hugh o‘Connell, Alan Mowbry, and leddy Hart, among others. “Marry the Girl has a novel setting —the offices of a great newspaper syndicate. This is presided over by Hugh Herbert, who is obviously a nut, and his sister, Mies Boland, who is the brains of the outfit. Frank McHugh ia general handyman of the organisation. He has three jobs to do as the picture opens—he has to get Hugh O’Connell, the syndicate’s best cartoonist, on the water wagon and back to work; he must induce Alan Mowbray, an eccentric writer on psychiary, to sign a new contract; and—most important of all—he must prevent the marriage of Carol Hughes (whom lie himself loves) to Mischa Auer. All hands wind up in the crazy psychiatrist s samtorium before McHugh is halfway through with his triple task. But it ail works out smoothly, with Frank winning the girl, the syndicate restored to businesslike order, and everyone happy. REGENT THEATRE. “SOULS AT SEA.” “Souls at Sea” screening at the Regent Theatre to-night, is the motion picture treatment of the famous trial of “Nuggin” Taylor, sea captain of the ’4o’s, who assumed command of tlio brig William Brown when that ship caught lire in midAtlantic shortly after her master died. Taylor is played by Gary Cooper, who hardly performed as well in any of his long string of credible adventure stories —possibly because he was re-enacting a story from history’s pages for the tirst time. The William Brown was equipped with only two lifeboats and Taylor realised. that lie could never bring the entire ship’s company to safety in the frail craft. He ordered a trial to determine who should be permitted to go aboard the lifeboats and who should be ordered at pistol, point—to remain aboard and go to the botom with the ill-fated vessel. Ho included himself among the survivors not because he wanted to save his life, he later told an Admiralty Court, but because he knew he was the only man who could bring the lifeboats safely through to land. There followed a trial which is now epic among sea trials. Taylor was accused of manslaughter on the high seas not only by the survivors, but what hurt most, by his sweetheart, played by beautiful Frances Bee. This powerful Paramount picture lists in its cast George Raft, who Is superb as the hard-boiled mate of the vessel who would steal a kernel of corn from a hen but would follow his captain to the grave; Henry Wilcoxon, Harry Carey, Olyinpe Bradna, Robert Cummings, Porter Hall and a roster of supporting players culled from Hollywood a most noted feature players. STATE THEATRE. “HEIDI.” Shirley Temple as “Heidi!” Millions 'the world over have been enthralled by the warmth, the tenderness the charming beauty of Jolianna Spyri’s beloved storv of Heidi and all the colourful folk who lived and laughed and loved high up in the Swiss Alps, just beneath the stars. Translated into all languages and read everywhere, it is a story that had to wait for its star before it could be brought to the screen. The Twentieth Ccnturv-Fox production of. “Heidi.” starring Shirley Temple, screening at the State Theatre to-night, is the for which she’ll be remembered always. “Heidi” brings Shirley Temple more glorious than has ever been known, in tlio picture she was asked to make by thousands of fans who wrote to the Twentieth CcnturyEox studios. Bringing love to hearts filled with hate, and twinkle to eyes filled with tears, “Heidi” tells of an qmbitterod mountain-top exile, brilliantly portrayed by Jean Hersholt, reclaimed from his fierce hatred of the world, of a young girl who finds the strength and courage to walk again, and of the little heroine who brings everyone new zest for life. Arthur Treacher and Helen AVcstley play prominent roles in the story, and Pauline Moore, Thomas Bock, Mary Nash, Sidney Blackmer, Madv Christians, and Sig Rumann are also featured in the cast. AA ritton into the faithfully transcribed screen play by AValter Ferris and Julicn Joscphson are two dance sequences that present the first star of the screen at her greatest. “In Our Little AA 7 ooden Shoes. the specially composed song by Lew Pollack and Sidney D. Mitchell, gives Shirley a gay and charming, interlude m the "'t”’ l ' l ' fv dramatic story. It was m AA ee AVillio AVinkie” that she made her first attempt at a straight dramatic role, an attempt so successful that Darryl F. Zanuck, Twentieth Ccntury.-Fox production chief, decided to make “Heidi” in the big-tnc-bc rtained in the picture. Heidi has Remaining unspoiled in the midst of it all Shirley was wide-eyed with elation wlicn she was assigned the role and wanted to be assured that all the things that made “Heidi” so colourful to iler ,would he retained in the picture. Hcicli has sold millions of copies and is on the piescribed reading list of schools all over th • world. Ideally cast and gloriously played, it makes a picture that its many readers long have hoped to see. Raymond Griffith served as associate producer and the special dance sequences were staged by Sammy Lee.