DENNY’S DILEMMA

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 363, 25 May 1928, Page 15

DENNY’S DILEMMA

PRINCESS AND TIVOLI The old assertion that one prevarication will require a hatful to support it is uppermost in the tangled skein of events which Reginald Denny weaves for himself in “That’s My Daddy,” screened for the first time last evening at the Princess and Tivoli Theatres. The embarrassing situations in which he finds himself because of the persistent belief of a little girl that he is her father might well make any bachelor in a similar position wish he had never been born. An innocent fib told in order that he would not destroy the child’s happy confidence brings him endless trouble in his love affairs, culminating in the breaking of a false romance, and the creation of another of true love. Humorous incidents abound and Reginald Denny proves himself master of awkward situations in his own inimitable style. His interpretation of the woes of a misjudged bachelor is highly diverting, but he ends his multitude of troubles by falling in love with the sister of the Irish policeman, whose relentless pursuit of facts did not at all help the unhappy bachelor whom the child insisted on dubbing “Daddy.” Opposite Denny, Barbara Kent plays excellently, and the supporting artists include Lillian Rich, Tom O’Brien, Armand Kaliz, Charles Coleman, Wilson Benge and Art Currier. Jane la Verne, in the role of the child, gives a remarkable characterisation. The frozen wastes are pictured in graphic manner in “ ’Neath Arctic Skies,” with awe-inspiring beauty. The wild grandeur of a rugged and desolate landscape, the great spectacle of the break-up of the Yukon River in Alaska, and the scenic glories of a comparatively unexplored and remote region are enchanting. The great white mystery land of Alaska is traversed to the Behring Sea, and the scenes move through the edge of Northern Siberia, returning to show the isolated stretches of land and sea to Hodiak Island. The “Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes.” treacherous quicksands, the shooting of rapids in rudely constructed rafts and canoes, as well as the unique spectacle of bears and dogs “fishing” for salmon as they make their migration to the spawning grounds, are arresting features. The camera has caught remarkable pictures of animal life. A striking picture is the appearance of the midnight sun in the Actic Circle. The musical selections played by the Princess Theatre orchestra were:— “Moonrise” (Gustave Lind), “The Rise of Rose O’Reilly” (Cohan), “A La Fiancee” (H. Ferrier), “The Cabaret Girl” (J. Kern), “Les Precieuses” (G. Marie), “The Whirl of the World” (T. Chappelle), “Les Feuilles Tombent” (Ferrier), “Amour d’An tan” (E. Chansson).