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A GLOWING STAR MAKES A NEW HIT PICTURE.inmatdtfilistitaPiaumj ( w i€ blt;mclAb'ir%«lt;*fr+:%AwwBtmhtaa:slt;tlsftadP1cadIfiieI ^»vl#Joan Crawford never seemed a better actress or provided more genuine entertainment for moviegoers than ihe does in - I Live My Life,” at the Midland this week. Brian Aherne plays capitally opposite her and the o carry the flim to a conclusion that is literally roaring.vAnf(nnti■Lets Gothe Moviesv;rawford at Her Best! Watcli the Crowds!f9av . • Crawford ........ ... . ...... Brian Aherne.. Frank Morgan,..............Aline MacMahonlove. . •••§*»«••#•*•••**• Fr*c Blore Fred Keatingr Ga^ . . ........Jessie Ralphjajhjp ...........Arthur Treacher6vm s Mother ..........Hcdda Hopper ................Frank Conroyofessor............Etienne Girardotit................Edward Brophyii,, ........... .Sterling Hollowayliss Morrison..........Hilda Vaughnita.............. Vince Barnettfaffitz........ Lionel Stander‘ncie Carl............Hale HamiltonOAN CRAWFORD is at the Midland theater this week in “I Live My Life,” which means, if you know Miss Crawford’s vogue the photoplay world today, thats at the Midland will form early the morning and should last until at night. They will be deservedin this case because “I Live My ’ is sincere and worthwhile en-ainment from first reel to last, has much to be said in its favor, h nothing to detract, he smart soul in the Metro-Gold-■Mayer studios who titled this n “I Live My Life” should get a pry rm e on the company pay roll doubtless has. He killed the fol-mg birds with one stone:Chose a name that was shortp catchy.■ Chose one that definitely ap'd to the content of the picture.• Chose one that implied a slight ness to the flaming youth” groupYork trip, meets Joan there, and the action in the film then grows rapid-fire. The boy and girl decide they love each other. Then they decidethat they don't! Then they do again!Then they don't! At last they are married, but what a marriage! If you can hear the dialogue through the last two or three reels of this picture, you’ll love it. But the actual worry of John McManus, Midland manager, is to tune his sound apparatus up loud enough to get the words across over the laughter of thecrowded houses that are bound to belaughing.This reviewer saw I Live My Life at a preview attended by exactly eight case-hardened souls who look at pictures morning, noon and night and are as hard to make smile as the Sphinx is. Nevertheless, to their intense surprise and for the first time in months, they laughed so hard that they lost many good lines in the film. Multiply those eight persons by, approximately, 200, and you will see the difficulty that Mr. McManus 111 face about six times a day this week. He is a gentleman who is really in a spot.We never have seen Joan Crawford so good as she is in I Live My Life.” We never have seen her so much of an actress. She seems to have submerged some of her looks into a real desire to play a part, with the result that plenty of attractiveness remains but you admire the girl for her brains and her ability as well as for her beauty. This is a grown-up Joan Crawford, a mature Joan Crawford, a Joan Crawford that can play opposite Brian Aherne in a manner that can afford him no opportunity to say, After all, I used to be Katharine Cornell’s leadingLife.” One wonders now whether the praise was merited. On reading over our typed review of the photoplay, we find that wre have spoken of it three times as I Live My Live,” once as I Life My Live,” and three times ar I Life My Life.” And alliterative confusion such as that should not be).A Corking Film of the of Life Is ‘•Shipmatesat the Mainstrect.Navy amiForever,”101FRichard John Melville III....Dick PowellJune Blackburn............Ruby KeelerAdmiral Melville............Lewis StoneSparks ........Ross Alexandersfim ...................Eddie AcuffGifford ...Richard ForanCoxswain ............ John ArledgeTed Sterling..............Robert LightCommander Douglin........Joseph KingAdmiral Graves........Frederick BurtonThe Doctor...............Henry KolkerSpike .......... Joseph CrehanSlims Girl........ Mary TreenSparks's Girl............Martha MerrillSecond Classman.........Carlyle MooreHarry ................Harry Seymourftman.We don’t mean to insinuate that Mr. Aherne would say such a thing at all, but he might think it. He is so good looking and right in the leading masculine role in I Live My Life” that he seems destined to take a well-earned chair alongside of Clark Gable and Bob Montgomery amongMOTION pictures, as the entire photoplay-going world knows, run in series. You have the “G-Men” group, the gang group, the western” group, the aviation group, the Army group, and, at present, the Navy group. It seems to be the fad these days to picture Annapolis and the cadets of the United States Naval academy on the screen, the latest release in that regard being Shipmates Forever,” atthe Mainstreet this week.“Shipmates Forever” follows hard upon “Annapolis Farewell,” another Navy picture recently viewed, and we like “Shipmates” the better of the two films. It has its tragic note, as “Annapolis Farewell” did. but does not end on that tragedy. Instead it ends with Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler getting married, which would be a tragedy to A1 Jolson, at that.The start of the picture finds Powell as a New York jazz band leader and crooner who is a conceited pup and boasts proudly that he is makins? two or three times the salary.. i ...I—THE LIGHT THAT LfES IN WOMEN’S EYES.oi - »• . - ..... ... ■ *. ■ jflfiy,.. . .....w ■- V • . v,V.■ ■. .v • .v/Cv/.. v.• v. v.'.v. 4*. v ■ v-.w.yv.NyA .■ ■• ••.•.. .•:•vy v ; v.v •.v^/vv.v • ■, , . 4 *. . .... ...” . . - , . * ., * - * . .. . . . . * , , • • ■• \v/.v.v• 'v.-.yv. ■2If3(«i 1l1IifIiI\1there is any light in Gail Patrick’s eyes in this scene with Kent Taylor in “Smart Girl,” at the Tower, [*#Uy *s l)'ing, because Miss Patrick is unfaithful to Taylor, her husband, for a good half of the film. The C Ure moves Jast and holds the audience's interest throughout....film u Crawf°rd’s fans, whereasIch Mrc Sn t a sln8le scene at ■he G?ndy would cavil.Uve My Llfe in* trine J ,Crawfor(1 ^ * rich girl ■the mfather in his yachtlor? or ^ r?anean Sea* She ^oes £ me-te n ,recian is5and one dayIlan Ahrrnp- a youngMs V fascinates her. She* econd riav tvith A u____:two ki.l a day with Aherne.k bark °^P or twice- then Joanlove affai York’ consideringt .« olt; the mo-se things ialso makesthe screen’s leading young masculine stars. The argument that Aherne and Miss Crawford go though in her boudoir in this film is a classic. Thefeeble contributions of Frank Morgan, as an upset father who witnesses the battle, add much to it,Fred Keating, Aline MacMahon. Jessie Ralph and those two grand butlers—Eric Blore and Arthur Treacher—also contribute immeasurably to I Uve My Life.” You w.ll like this picture. You cant help it!(Editor'si Note: Commendation inthe above far tide has been passed to the unkmmvn peraon who titled theCrawford-IUieroe feature aI Live Myiof his father, who is superintendent of the Naval Academy.“Be a sailor? I should say not! Dick scoffs. “What if my father and grandfather were? I’m a smart guy, I am!”He meets Ruby Keeler and gets a little more interested in Annapolis when he finds that she lives there. Then he bets his father he can pass the entrance examinations to the school, and does so. Then he finds himself a middle before he knows it— and what a working-over he gets!The discipline at both West Point and Annapolis is notoriously strictand Powell soon gets fed up with the
Newspaper Details
Kansas City Star
Kansas City, Missouri, US
Sun, Oct 13, 1935
Page 56
Full Page
Clipped by
Rotten T.
USA 13 Jul 2020
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