“THE BELOVED ROGUE”

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 114, 4 August 1927, Page 17

“THE BELOVED ROGUE”

AT MAJESTIC TO-MORROW A game of wits, with death as the penalty for failure, and liberty the reward for success, is indulged in by John Barrymore in one of the most entertaining scenes of his first United Artists picture, “The Beloved Rogue.” The film is based on the life of France’s famous vagabond poet, Francois Villon. Villon, banished from Paris after a long series of escapades ranging from petty thievery to a public insult to the powerful Duke of Burgundy, courts the noose by returning to Paris. Captured, he is taken before King Louis XI to receive the death sentence. Louis, the half-mad monarch, a man of many

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superstitions, taunts Villon from the throne, suggesting that, since he is such a brilliant rhymester and a man of rare intellect, he may be able to foretell the time of his death. The scapegrace poet, with scant hope of success, but relying on his knowledge that the king, though arrogant and cruel, is many times swayed by superstitious beliefs, answers: “Yes, Majesty, I can.” The king, taken back for a moment, bids the poet reveal the time at which he expects to die, whereupon Villon, quite, meek and humble, says: “Majesty, it is written in the stars, my death occurs just twenty-four hours before your own.” The king, flabbergasted for a moment, looks quizzically toward the poet, trying to read in his eyes whether he speaks the truth or is playing a joke. He is torn between his impulse to disregard the poet’s intimation, and the fearful influence of his superstitions. The outcome of this odd situation, where a poet of the people, on the point of being sentenced to death, dares to match his wits against the strange mentality of a half-mad king, is one of the most surprising highlights in “The Beloved Rogue.” This Barrymore screen triumph, in which the noted star is supported by Conrad Veidt, Marceline Day and a strong cast, is coming to the Majestic Theatre to-morrow with the prospect of setting new records, judging by th< reception it has been given by critics and public abroad wherever it has been shown.