“THE ADORABLE OUTCAST’’

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 532, 8 December 1928, Page 15

“THE ADORABLE OUTCAST’’

ROMANCE AT THE MAJESTIC Through her veins ran the blood of two races. Her skin was kissed by the hot sun of the tropics, her hair blown into long tresses of silk by a gentle South Pacific breeze. Y r et she had enemies both white and brown, male and female, and her battle for the man she loved was beset with many trials. She was* “The Adorable Outcast.” - - . A tender yet thrilling romance, enacted in one of the most beautiful settings that the world can offer, headed the new programme screened at the Majestic last evening. It was supported by several excellent films, including beautiful views of Flanders battlefields and a lively comedy. For several reasons “The Adorable Outcast” is a picture that should not be missed. In the first place it is quite the most ambitious and entertaining production yet adapted from a novel by that popular South Sea Islands romanticist, Beatrice Grimshaw. “Conn of the Southern Seas” is one of her best stories. \ ; Secondly, it is the best and most accurate film produced in the Islands by a specially imported, company. This has been tried before, but the measure of success has never been encouraging to either exhibitors or the public. Jt has remained for producer Norman Dawn and his Australasian Films Co. to show what can be achieved with an adequate supply of the three “C.'s” of successful mo-tion-picture making—Capital, Cast* and Care. The sequences showing native life and Island scenes are admirable, while the photography throughout is equal to the best modern camera work. Apart altogether from the story, the picture creates a clear and appealing Pacific Island atmosphere. The plot concerns the love of Conn, a wealthy Island dweller, for Luya, a supposedly half-caste girl, who is hated by her less beautiful white sisters and sought after by other men, both good and bad. To save a white E>irl from disgrace, she claims a newborn baby as her own, but in doing so loses the faith of Conn. Fursey, an unscrupulous blackbirder and leader of a villainous gang, perceives an opportunity of forcing his attentions on Luya. He abducts her and by the torture of compelling her to dance for hours at a time attempts to learn the secret of Conn’s wealth. In the meantime Conn discovers the truth about the child and, incidentally, about Luya’s white parentage. He pursues the abducters, who have visited a cannibal village, and arrives in time to rescue the girl. careJessl y this story would be little more than crude melodrama. As ti l e action merges perfectly into the background of every sequence and is treated with just the right amount of emphasis. In the leading role is Edith Roberts, who is bound to become better known m screenland. As “the outcast” she captivates her audience from the outset, and her dancing is one of the features of the picture. She is supported by a strong cast, including Walter Long, Jack Gavin, Jessica Harcourt and Arthur McLaglen. The new Majestic programme opens brightly with a thoroughly cosmopolitan news reel, and presents also “Wartime Memories,” a picture which transports the onlookers to Flanders and its poignant fields of white crosses. “Eve’s Review” is another good film, and the bill is completed with “With Love and Hisses,” an hilarious comedy. The Majestic orchestra is at its best in a series of pleasing musical numbers, including the overture, “Mejre Kati.”