BATTLES OF THE CLOUDS

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 418, 1 September 1928, Page 14

BATTLES OF THE CLOUDS

WAR PICTURE AT REGENT Probably the greatest war picture ever shown in New Zealand is “Wings,” now beginning its second week of presentation fit the Regent Theatre. The extraordinary vividness of the battles in the air, which constitute the most thrilling scenes of the picture, and the terrible dive to earth of the beaten planes, spouting corkscrews of flame as thej' fall, leaves a fearful picture on the imagination. The spectator almost suffers the tortures of the pilot as he feels his machine going out of control and, looking back over his shoulder, sees a torrent of fire and smoke jetting out behind him. Amazing, too, are the pictures of jthe advance in the last great Allied offensive which ended the war. The infantry, supported by lumbering tanks, charge from the trenches and down over their heads the fighting planes swoop, their machine-guns sweeping down the enemy. The plot of the picture, if a little sensational, is excellent in its way, and shows an effort on the part of the producer to get away from the traditional Hollywood atmosphere. American producers always used to be accused, and with good reason, of having laid down the maxim that a happy ending is essential to a successful picture. Lately, however, there seems to have been a movement in the opposite direction, and realism is rapidly becoming their chief aim. So In “Wings,” instead of the hackneyed “happy ending,” the picture finishes on a subdued note, laying stress on the horrors of warfare, rather than on the ultimate fate of the characters who have served to demonstrate these horrors. The spectator is left with the impression that the picture was less about people than about war incarnate. Certainly, actors and actresses were necessary as mediums through which this might be demonstrated, but over every scene hangs the curiously indefinite horror of the brooding war spirit. “Wings” was preceded by “Knights of the Air,” a remarkable film tracing the history of aviation. The big picture was accompanied by a special musical programme, admirably handled by Air. Ataurice Guttridge and his orchestra. Realistic effects were also introduced. ROYAL SHOWS “ON YOUR TOES” Reginald Denny’s latest picture. “On Your Toes,” will be shown at the Royal Theatre, Kingsland, this evening. Denny is seen first as the effeminate son of an old heavy-weight champion. He teaches dancing and is regarded as a joke by his father's old manager Sullivan. He opened a dancing school in New York, but Sullivan’s daughter Mary shames him into getting a man’s job, and he starts out as a taxi driver. As a taxi driver,- Elliott gets in a traffic jam and knocks out Sullivan’s protege, so Elliott decides to become a fighter at Mary’s urging. He is defeated in his first fight, but goes on, letting his grandmother think he is teaching dancing. Finally- he is matched with the champion. Unfortunately his grandmother arrives for a visit on the day of the fight. “Midnight Rose,” a story of a cabaret girl, starring Lya de Putti, is the second attraction.