THE CHAMP

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 390, 26 November 1932, Page 7

THE CHAMP

WALLACE BEERY AND JACKIE COOGAN OFFER STIRRING PORTRAYALS. MEXICAN BORDER LIFE. > The hero of "The Big House" plays the father of "Skippy" in a combination that is really an event of the sereen season. Wallace Beery and Jackie Coogan appear as two stars in, a single picture in "The Champ," | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's dramatic romance of sporting life and the human angle behind it, which is to open at the Majestic Theatre on Saturday, November 26. Primarily it is a mighty drama of the love of a father and his son. There is a gripping element of human sacrifice. Surrounding this is comedy galore and the thrills of a Mexican border town, with its gambling, racing and prize fighting. Much of it was aetually filmed in Mexico. Beery is seen as a defeated fight champion, who has taken his small son to a border resort where he tries

to achieve a comeback.) To all others he is a "has-been," but to the boy h'e is the greatest man on earth. And, when the time comes, the old fighter makes a sacrifice for the boy's future that proves him the best man of them all. Pathos and Laughs. King Vidor directed the picture, and his delicate human touches, intimate glimpses into real life and whimsical comedy handling are outstanding. Beery and Jackie both have some of the most dramatic scenes in their eareers in the amazing medley of thrills, pathos and laughs. A notable cast appears. Irene Rich plays the divorced wife of the fighter and Rosco Ates and Edward Brophy form a comedy team as the fight trainer and manager. Hale Hamilton, Jesse Scott and Marcia Mae Jones also seore. The dramatic gaol episode, the fight with the Mexican police, the prize fight, the thrilling race at Caliente, are among the highlights of the production and inside glimpses of a Mexican border town give it an authenticity that adds glamour.