Crime Both Sides Of The Atlantic

Radio Record, Volume XII, Issue 33, 27 January 1939, Page 14

Crime Both Sides Of The Atlantic

i‘Mr. Reeder tn Room 13." B-E.F. Directed by Norman Lee. With: Gibb McLaughlin. Release date indefinite.] {Tenth Avenue Kid." Repubtic. Directed by Bernard Varhaus. With Tommy Ryan, Bruce Cabot, Beverley Roberts. Release date indefinite.] PREVIEWED last week one after the other, the English exploits of ‘‘Mr. Reeder In Room 18" and the American adventures of the ‘‘Tenth Avenue Kid’’ supplied a rather illuminating study of the treatment of crime in film. studios on both. sides of the Atlantic. At the risk of appearing unpatriotic again, I must confess that the Americans seem to have forgotten more about the subject than the English have ever learnt. Neither picture is pretentious; but Mr. Reeder, in spite of being created by Edgar Wallace, is a rather boring old fossil, whereas the Tenth Avenue Kid was entertaining enough to keep us all sitting waiting in the theatrette during a power breakdown, even though we knew by then exactly how the picture was going to end. It’s all a matter of treatment. "Vr. Reeder in Room. 13" could have been just as exciting a story as "Tenth Avenue Kid," but by comparison it moves about as fast as a hearse trying to keep up with Sir Malcolm Campbell,

Cops ‘n Robbers F{OWEVER, as you may be interested, I had better explain that Mr. Reeder (Gibb McLaughlin) is a peculiar Scotland Yard man who arranges for the husky hero to serve a gaol sentence in order ta get the low-down on a gang, of forgers. Then, about six red herrings later, Mr. Reeder steps in again to clear up the mess and watch the villains bite the dust. "Tenth Avenue Kid," on the other hand, is an exceedingly campetent little melodrama, with an attention to minor details of production and acting. that should be (but isn’t) the despair of British studios, and with a debut performance that | suppose should be described as "sensational" f rf om young

Tommy Ryan. If there’s ever @ vacancy in the "Dead End" gang, this lad can fill it. According to the story, he’s only 11 years old. I have my doubts, because in one scene he takes off his shirt and I could almost swear I saw hair on his‘ chest. But that doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that Master Ryan is a very clever little acter; and he gives conviction to this enjoyably blocdbespattered tale of ceps.n’ robbers, Virtue Rewarded MASTER RYAN is-seen as a little tough guy whose gangster father is shot, in line. of duty, by Detective Bruce Cabot. Since the boy knows the whereabouts of the rest of the gang and the booty from a bank robbery, the detective secures temporary guardianship of hn ou. a) _-.

him and attempts to worm out the information with a mixture of kindness and coercion. Kindness pays in the long run, the lad becomes a miniature hero, and helps to bring the bad men to book. For his reward, the Tenth Avenue Kid is sent where all good little boys seem to go on the screen these days-tc military school. It’s not my idea of a reward, but then, tastes differ.