“THE FOUR FEATHERS"

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 846, 14 December 1929, Page 20

“THE FOUR FEATHERS"

BRITISH COURAGE IN THE SUDAN PLAZA’S GREAT PICTURE A glorious page of Britain’s i mDM4 , history, the conquest of the sud* 1 was shown to the large the Plaza Theatre last evening in --tv l Four Feathers.” This film is one of the most notahi ever shown in Auckland, because t! includes some extraordinary vi actually taken in the Sudan of t h primitive natives and wild animal ll? 6 The film is not a talkie, it is tru but its exceptional nature and won derful treatment make it such an out standing production that, even in th* days of talkies, it should command record audiences. * uia In the story, young Lieutenant p ev ersham celebrated his promotion with an engagement to the girl of his bov hood days. A few nights later in company with three brother officer* Durrance, Trench and Castleton h receives a telegram foretelling war in the Sudan. He throws the telegrair in the grate where Trench, seeing w name on the crumpled pap?r, picks i up, and when they leave Feversham who has signified his intention of re ’ sign'ng, tells the others. The thrw officers send a package to Feversham' He is at his betrothed’s place whei it arrives, and to each of their card! is attached a white feather. cannot understand why Harry should be a coward, and when he persist! that he will not go to the war sh® drops a piece of the quill from a nen to the others, making four feather? The scene changes to the Sudan where Feversham has followed his old regiment and has been instrumental in saving Trench from certain death. Trench and Feversham make good their escape, and when hope seems gone they are rescued by an outpost Trench takes back his feather, and

Feversham sets out to bring hope to Durrance ancl his garrison, and keep the post till relief arrives. When he breaks through the lines he finds Durrance helpless, and the garrison on the point of mutiny. He manages to quell this, and keep the native soldiers in hopes till the relief column under Castleton is in sight Seeing the flag still flying, and no sign of natives, Castleton decides to enter the fort with a flourish, and order* the bagpipes to play. They are attacked, and only sL sortie by the aoldiers from the fort under Feversham saves the day. Feversham is reinstated, and decorated for bravery, and, back in pe«.ceful England, finds Esthne waiting for him. Many of the scenes were actually photographed in the Sudan by Mr. Merian Cooper and Mr. Ernest Schoedsack, who, a couple of years ago, startled the film world with their wonderful production, “Chang.” Scenes taken in the studio have been worked into the story later. One of the marvellous scenes is an army of baboons crossing a bridge when it suddenly breaks and throwa them into the water, where they fight in panic; another shows a herd of hippopotami rushing over a bank, and the huge animals fall on top of one another into the water. The studio scenes are equally well produced, especially that which shows a British square standing up to the attack or infuriated tribesmen. Indeed, at times it is difficult to pick where Hollywood begins and Messrs. Cooper and Schoedsack leave off. Some of the best actors in Hollywood appear in this picture, including Richard Arlen, as Feversham, Willi*® Powell and Clive Brook, as hi 3 brother officers, Fay Wray as his sweetheart and Noah Beery as a brutal desert slave trader. An entertaining collection of sb®2 talkie features was also shown evening. They include a Paramount Sound Gazette, an “Oswald the R&bbtt" cartoon, a silent comedy, “The Naughty Nurse”; Hawaiian songs and tunes by a group of natives; and, best of an* a sketch by Elsie Janus, of London and New York, "wherein she &vv**x* as a singer and entertainer behino the lines in France.