WAS SHE GUILTY?

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 968, 10 May 1930, Page 15

WAS SHE GUILTY?

“THE TRIAL OF MARY DUGAN” EXCITING REGENT TALKIE Was Edgar Rice, a millionaire, killed by his mistress, Mary Dugan? That was the question put to and .debated before an excited Regent audience last evening when “The Trial of Mary Dugan” was screened. It was not easy to answer. The facts disclosed by the counsel for the prosecution in a film trial, conspicuous alike for its highly dramatic qualities and the extraordinary insight it gave into the radical methods of American High Court procedure, were comparatively simple. Rice maintained Mary Dugan in a luxurious apartment. He visited her frequently and, on the night of his death, was proved to have been alone with her. According to the liftman, both entered and neither left the building. Some time later the police were called by Mary Dugan. They found her in a condition of hysteria, and seated near Rice’s body. Her garment, a nightdress, was smothered in blood. A knife, bearing her fingerprints, lay on the floor. Obviously a difficult task faced the counsel for the defence. The circumstantial evidence was strong, and the nature of accused’s life, as revealed unded cross-examination, told against her. Yet, was she guilty? Could she be saved by her counsel who, through a trick of fate, was her brother —the man, she had helped to success by secretly leading an immoral life? Last evening’s audience shifted impatiently forward to the edges of the Regent's seats, and the word-play, the bitter courtroom duelling went on. Had there been any doubt as to the success of the Auckland season of “The Trial of Mary Dugan,” it would have been dispelled completely by the tenseness of the atmosphere created among the members of that audience. The picture gripped from the beginning, and its hold on one's imagination did not relax until the trial had ended and the murderer proved to have been but that would be giving away a secret. Complete success has attended the transferring from stage to screen of this, an outstanding modern mystery thriller. In most respects the screen version of “The Trial of Mary Dugan” is identical with the play staged in Auckland a year or so ago. In many ways, indeed, the film is better, for the talking screen provides scope for productions of this kind that is beyond the limits of the stage. Norma Shearei*, who plays Mary Dugan, has never done better work than in this Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer picture. Her acting is restrained but effective in every mood. H. B. Warner’s study of the prosecuting counsel is a perfect piece of characterisation—the outstanding histrionic feature of the film —and Raymond Hackett is excellent as the counsel for the defence. Admirable acting is offered also by Lewis Stone as Mary’s first counsel, Lilyan Tashman as a chorus girl, Olive Fell as the wife of the murdered man, and Dewitt Jennings, as the police inspector. There are many others, all well chosen. In every respect “The Trial of Mary Dugan” is a talkie of high merit —clear in sound, and produced with a directness that compels attention. It is a show well worth seeing. The Regent programme includes a newsy Hearst sound gazette, a clever song film, and a number of attractive items by Mr. J. Whiteford Waugh’s orchestra, including an “amplified” solo by Mr* Jack Davey,