AMUSEMENTS.

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 316, 23 December 1936, Page 2

AMUSEMENTS.

Plaza Theatre.

The Universal romantic comedy “My Man Godfrey,” which will be shown at the Stratford Plaza Theatre to-night, has the charming, talented Carole Lombard co-saried with William Powell in the screen offering, which was taken from Eric Hatch’s sparkling, mirth-stirring novel of the same name. The situations .mount rapidly’ to a pilch of gay humour, which keeps climbing the scale until the contagious fun has reach-d an epidemic of laughter. The most earthbound pessimist will he a. mirthbound optimist after seeing the film. Among the screen’s outstanding stars, Powell brings to “My Man Godfrey” the smooth, polished acting, which has won acclaim for him in numerous screen offerings such as “Ex-Mrs Bradford,” “The Thin Man” aud “The Great Ziegfeld.”

King’s Theatre. There have been five or six really great backstage musicals made since 1927 —some of them had great stars, some had outstanding song hits, but none of them have had a story like “Song and Dance Man,” the new Fox picture which shows at the King’s Theatre finally to-night. When George M. Cohan wrote the story he took the very' heart of Broadway and put it into a play. Now, the screen version enhanced with new songs, laughs and pathos is even more entertaining than the stage play was years ago. The story of “Song and Dance Man” reveals the drama of the quiet self-sacrifice of a poor ham-and-egg song and dance man whose girl had a chance to make the big time if he stepped down and out. The girl, however, refuses to take advantage of the opportunity offered to her by a wealthy playboy because of Jier

loyalty to the man who had taught ' her all she knew. All of the tense excitement, the glamour of outdoor action; the ’ tenderness of romance and the crashing drama that can be crammed into eight reels of film are yours for the ' asking at the King’s Theatre, when ■ ; George O’Brien’s 'thrilling new Fox ’ I picture, "O'Malley of the Mounted,” 1 I shows finally to-night at the King’s j Theatre. I Biding, lighting and loving f< ar- '; les.sly again, O’Brien is a gallant ■ red-coated "mount ie” in this adapt a-j 1 • lion of a story by William S. Hart. ’ l two-gun hero of the silent screen era.