Picture Show Annual (1941)
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
S; yVivvwy U^vV-XC* VwvV*!Lt *Lov<- ^Wi , JCCC -3«c. i c^L*rO. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/pictureshowannua00amal_14 im&m Robert Young and Helen Gilbert in “ Florian. On the Cover : Bette Davis and Errol Flynn in “ The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex." r think most cinemagoers favour the idea of the revival of favourite films, for to those who saw the originals there are the memories of the past and also comparisons between the old produc- tions and the new, particularly in respect to those that have been made both as a silent and a talkie. To the newer generation of the cinema public there is interest in comparing the old-time screen stones with the modem ones. “ ” To be technically correct, revival is not the right word, for the old favourites are re-made, but in the majority of cases the original film is not altered to any great extent so far as the story is concerned, though the introduction of spoken dialogue must necessarily be more expensive them that recorded by the printed sub-title of the silent picture. On the whole, the re-making of popular pictures is done so well that it is deserving of the highest praise, but there is one criticism I have to make. I think it is a great mistake to alter the original title. Take a person who saw the original film passing by a cinema which is showing a revival under a new title. There is nothing to indicate that this is a new version of an old favourite, and such a person might well walk on to another cinema, missing what would have been a real treat. Again, very often the new title is not more catching to the eye than the old one, and in most cases it has not the same literary merit. Take, for instance, the old and new titles of the first film in this “ article. The original title,— One Way Passage,” is, to my mind, far superior to the new one “ Till We Meet Again.” Those who saw the original will remember that it was a really beautiful love-story, though it was doomed to end in tragedy. A man and a woman meet on a liner. The man is in custody of a detective, who is taking him back to be tried for murder with — Centre left : One Way Passage Bottom left : The Thief Of Bagdad William Powell and Kay Fronds ; —Douglas Fairbanks and Jularme “ ”) now remade under title — Till We Johnston ; new version (with h Meet Again, with Merle Oberon and The Thief Of Baghdad—John Justin George Brent (above). and Mary Morris. the certainty that he will be convicted. The woman is equally doomed to die an early death from incurable consumption. They fall in love, each knowing there can be no future, though they keep their secret till the parting. “ " There is only One Way Passage for them. The other title suggests they may meet again, though doubtless it was meant that the meeting could only be on the Other Side, which brings in a theological argument. In the case of “ 20,000 Years in Sing Sing,” “ 1 prefer this title (the original one) to Years Without Days,” which might mean anything. In any case, the general conception of life in a prison is exactly opposite to this title. Most prisoners feel that a day is a week, a week a month, and a month a year. Again, there is the alteration of the title “The Front Page" to “His Girl Friday.” The former indicates a daily newspaper, the latter is taken from a phrase first used by a noted American columnist, and is not even original, while judged from a newspaper stand- point it is totally inadequate, for real front- page news is the most important feature in any newspaper. A great newspaper could carry a poor columnist, but the greatest ” columnist in the world could not carry a poor “ A Bill of Divorcement —the top newspaper. picture shows the players in the latest version, left to right. Fay When it comes to comparing the acting in the original films and the revivals, we find Bainter, Maureen O'Hara, Dame Menjou. ourselves on very delicate ground, and for my May Whitty and Adolphe On the right are scenes from two part I do not find the task a pleasant one. In versions, the upper one show- praising the present, we must necessarily be a earlier ing Henry Stephenson, John Barry- little against the past. Not in any way belittling the original, mind you, but in every comparison more and Katharine Hepburn, the there must be criticism. lower one Malcolm Keen and Constance Birmey. ” “ The Thief of Bagdad was filmed in the silent days with the late Douglas Fairbanks as the Thief, and a very great sensation he made Below : Fred MacMurray, Richard with the magical effects of the flying horse on Greene and Alice Faye, the co-stars “ — which he rode the clouds. The new version of Little Old New York” and, in has the advantage of the big strides that have circle, a scene from the early silent been made in screen photography, and the film which starred Marion Davies, addition of colour in this Eastern story. who is seen with Harrison Ford, her leading man holding her arm. Ian Hay’s naval comedy, “ The Middle Watch,' was recently made again, starring Jack Buchanan, who is seen in the picture on the left with David Hutcheson, Marlita Hunt, Jean Gillie. Fred Emney and Greta Gynt. In the circle we see the 1931 version, with Jack Raine, Owen Nares. Jacqueline Logan and Frederick Volpe. " A Bill of Divorcement ” brought Katharine Hepburn a film-starring contract—she was already a big success on the stage. Little Old New York as a silent picture gave Marion Davies a big screen success. That very successful stage comedy, “ The Middle Watch," has been equally successful on the screen, the latest starring Jack Buchanan. I don't know how many times “ Raffles " has been played on stage and screen, but 1 remember thinking how well-cast Ronald Colman was in the early film, and in the latest version, David Niven, another British actor, was very good indeed. That popular story of Kipling’s, “ The Light That Failed, made a very fine stage play with Forbes Robertson as the ill-fated Dick Haidar. The first screen version of the play was a silent and starred Percy Marmont. The last film of this story saw The three pictures at the bottom of the page are of the three versions of that famous ” farce “ Charley’s Aunt —in the centre, the latest, modernised Aunt—Arthur Askey. At the left the Aunt is Syd Chaplin, and at the right the Aunt is Charlie Ruggles, with Hugh Williams and June Collyer. " The two “ Raffles —the upper one showing, left to right, E. E. Clive, Douglas Walton, Lionel Pape, David Niven and Olivia de Havilland, the lower one showing Kay Francis, Ronald Colman and Bramwell Fletcher. Ronald Colman as Dick, with Walter Huston and Ida Lupino in the important roles of Dick's friend and the little Cockney girl who destroyed Dick’s finest painting. I he three versions o) l he " Chinese Bungalow all British. It would take a statistician to say how many — made the times “Charley’s Aunt” has been played. There Matheson Lang, who starred in the have been several screen versions, the latest having play famous, also Qj circle shows - Arthur Askey as the “ aunt." “ The Chinese first two versions. The Bungalow ” was another very successful stage him in the first version, a silent Townsend play with Matheson Lang in the leading role. one, with Genevieve Compton. At the He afterwards made both a silent and a talkie of and Juliette right he is seen with Anna Neagle this, and now the play reaches the screen again. “ second version, which was Paul Lukas leads in the latest screen version. The in the Above is scene Way of All Flesh,” the film that brought Emil a talkie. a Jannings so much braise, has been filmed again from the latest version, in the with Akim Tamiroff as the elderly schoolmaster. which Paul Lukas took “ New Moon," the musical play which was filmed Matheson Lang part, with Below: The old and new IValsh with Grace Moore and Lawrence Tibbett as the Jane Baxter and Kay versions of “ The Light the sisters. stars, has been made again with Jeanette MacDonald as that Failed,” showing ’’ and Nelson Eddy in the leading roles. The Sea Ronald Colman and ” Hawk was made by Milton Sills, years ago, and a Walter Huston in the very fine picture it was. It has been made again 1940 film, and Percy with Errol Flynn as the star, a very good choice for Marmont {in the left- this thrilling story. “ Earthbound,” the psychical hand picture) in the film which dealt with life after death, made in the earlier film. silent days, has been re- made with Lynn Bari and Warner Baxter in the principal roles. If we go all out in praising the revivals as being superior to the originals, we are not being just to the past. This is particularly so when the picture was first made as a silent. In modern pictures spoken dialogue gives the audience a greater idea of the character, the cause of the actions of the players, than could ever be shown by the sub-tities of silent pictures. Therefore, the actors and actresses in talking pictures have a big advantage over those who played the same roles in the silent versions of the films.