PLAZA

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 751, 26 August 1929, Page 15

PLAZA

“THE MIDNIGHT TAXI” “The Midnight Taxi,” a Warner Brothers’ Vitaphone production, is continuing at the Plaza Theatre again this week. Adapted from the story by Gregory Rogers, the film is interpreted by a large cast, headed by Antonio Moreno and Helene Costello, Other players included are Myrna Loy, William Russell, Robert Agnew, Tommy Dugan, Pat Hartigan and Jack Santoro. The story deals with the career of a young man whose desire for a life of adventure leads him to become a bootlegger. While engaged on a particularly involved deal he becomes suspicious of one of the men concerned. The man pays, however, but the cash is found to have been stolen, and tlfe young man is accused of theft. He is tracked by a girl detective and amusing complications occur when the couple fall in love. The supporting programme of shorter all-talking pictures includes iteiiis by O'Neill and Vermont, the rioted vaudeville artists, songs by Alan Prior, the Australian tenor, a comedy sketch by Daphne Pollard, and other bright features. A contract calling for the greatest footage of natural colour film ever made for a single motion picture was arranged tor Richard Dix’s latest screen masterpiece, “Redskin,” which will be shown at the Plaza Theatre as a part-talkie from next Wednesday. Callahan, speaking for the Technicolour Corporation, which has been conducting intricate experiments with the reproduction of colour on the screen, predicted that “Redskin” will establish motion picture history. New-ly-improved natural colour photographic processes were employed which give true colour value to all shades of red, something seldom accomplished on the screen previously. Practically the entire picture was filmed against the natural backgrounds of the Pacific South-west, within the great “scenic circle” around Gallup, New Mexico. Two location camps, the first near the mouth of the famous Canyon du Chelly. the second near the Enchanted Mesa, south of Gallup, were established. More than 300 people were employed on these locations. Farrell MacDonald, who will play an important character role in the new Fox picture, “Masquerade,” has found that his stage training has served him in good stead. When the

silent pictures disappeared beyond the horizon MacDonald still stood in the foreground, for many years he had been a stage actor before going to the screen.