REGENT THEATRE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 October 1939, Page 2

REGENT THEATRE

“FRA DIAVOLO.” Laurel and Hardy, conceded to be the most popular comedians on the American screen, make their latest appearance in a feature-length comedy in “Fra Diavolo,” a story of a pair of rollicking bandits, based on Auber’s famous comic opera, “Fra Diavolo, which will commence a return season at the Regent Theatre tonight. The picture is reported to be the most ambitious yet undertaken by the noted laugh pair of “Pardon Us” and “Pack Up Your Troubles,” its cast including such outstanding names as Dennis King, the noted singer and stage star, and Thelma Todd, who has contributed to the humour of a long list of screen productions. There is deceiving simplicity in the title of the picture, “Suzy,” the associate feature. Under any other name Jean Harlow, in the title role, would typify the women, who, through their love and courage, build empires, cause wars and sometimes, avert them. Franchot Tone and Cary Grant appear in the unique narrative as the two husbands of an American show girl stranded in London just before the war. The first husband appears and his life is more deeply involved than ever, because he was her real love and still is. While the war serves as a background for the plot, it is the sensitive, emotional girl who holds the stage as she solves her bewildering problem of love and intrigue.