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The Critichuman being In cither raw he would not be Eddie QuiUan. The argument *UU stands.Bat sins* there is no one in the movies willing to make a real college picture, for the reason there is no one there with that much education, one must acknowledge The Sophomore to be a fair piece of hokum assuch pieces go Your reaction will depend on how you like Eddie, There are two opinions cm Eddie and theyseem to enjoy about an equal number of adherents. To one group he is cute and to the other he is poison. We belong in the poison group. In#Rojal—“Jealousy.**fact, we are oneof the Old OuardYvonnePierre.......... ry/rifnc MarciiRptiflid, . , ..HoUwfU HofeU............. .Rlnnrhe Lr CiairClement. ..............Hcnrv DanielCharlotte............. •.»*ida MooreROM a standpoint of intellectuality, Jealousy” is thebest picture in Kansas City this week. That is not saying a great deal. The other screen offerings arc of such pattern-made and hokum-laden variety that one original idea is all a rival, needs to triumph over them. “Jealousy” has a serious thought behind it, although that thought happens to he not jealousy, but perfidy, or perhaps cowardice. The locale of the story is Paris.One must relate something of the at cry to describe the merits of the plav. Yvonne, a poor girl, became a mannekin in the establishment of the. rich Regaud, and when he fell in love with her she was advanced to the position of manager. Although she is Regaud’s mistress, she feels a sincere love for a young painter, Pierre. She Is so in love with Pierre she decides to marry him and to fight for true happiness. But she hasneither the honesty to tell Pierre what her relations with Regaud have beennor the moral courage to face poverty on the Income of her artist husband, She accepts the shop as a giftfrom Regaud and so is unable to 6hake off a sort of proprietary authority he holds over her. This intolerable position is maintained by n fabric of lies that every day becomesor Standpat members of the “Eddie QuiUan Is I ous * party. All fellow members will understand how we feel. They need be told no more about thepicture.For the benefit of those readers ! who are affiliated with the Eddie i QuiUan Is Cute” group, we will go on with the review and mention that Eddie does some more cf his show-off mugging. It is as good as any of it, so we guess twe can only guess) it is up to his usual standard of cutcness. In addition to this, there arc several genuinely funny sequences. One of these Is where Eddie impersonates the leading woman in the school play. This is a howl-! ing comedy of errors. Then there I is a toot ball game, which is Just so ! much more hooey, but it is more than redeemed by the burlesque of Graham McNamee. It is the funniest piece of screen satire we have seen in months. The name of the actor who decs this is omitted from the cast, butto us he was the biggest laugh in thepicture.Although opinion may be divided asto Eddie, there can be little dispute as to the merits of Sally O'Neil. Miss O Neil's voice as heard via the movietone has all the melody and charm of j a cat being thrown through a screen door, or a flower pot going through the roof of a greenhouse.“The Sophomore” is fair entertainment if you still believe in the “Rover Bovs.” in justice to the other half of its audiences, the Mainstreet should have a University week whenthere would be a picture about real I undergraduates and when no pen--11a;i rI r (vI1tsdotilaoKLASSY KOLLEGE KAPERS IN KLEVER KOLWhat all the shouting is about at the Mainstreet. Eddie Quillan is Just tlt; ; just too wordy to be cute in “The Sophomore, about which * College Week** . - ... - - ... — ..—...I. liM .’Ire impossible to keep intact. Final- nants would be in the lobby and no ,] the woman’s actions so arouse the lads from Brooklyn would ue danc- -alousy of her husband that he mur- ing the Collegiate Drag ' in the stage ]»rs Regaud. Desperately seeks to maintain what has been so dearly purchased. Another man is suspected of the crime and she urges her husband to let this unfortunate go to the guillotine in his place. His conscience forbids his doing this and he gives himself up to the police.Here is a story with strong dramatic possibilities and with serious intent. However, Jean De Limur. although he provides the piece with an accurate French investiture, has net handled the picture with any rare amount of artistry. The same mistaken emphasis that is evident in the choice of a title is evident in his handling of the story. M. de Limur evidently labored under the misapprehension this was the husband's *UI story. In reality It is that of the wife. The* husband is merely the victim of the meshes woven by a moral coward in an effort to avoid facts. The picture closes with the husband givinghimself up.This is what the French dramatistslove: a punch ending. But we felt the story had not been brought to a full close, having seen this woman, blindly, but not without sympathy, pursue a course that evolved everyone j in ruin, we were curious as to how she would be affected when the drama had run its course. What was her reaction? When her husbandwent to his death was she still unable to face realities and poverty?Had she learned a bitter lesson, or was she unchanged? The picture ;does not say. IMuch to our surprise, Hollwell Hobbs, an actor we never have noticed before, surpasses both Frederic March and Jeanne Eagels, He plays the role of Renaud in what may be considered perfect talkie acting. Everything he doe , is apparently casual, but really theatrically effective.It is a thoroughgoing characterization. Mr. March’s work as the husband is harmed by two obvious pieces of technique. In one of than the ghost voice of his wife is heard prodding him to jealousy and in the other he launches into an artificial] sounding soliloquy just before giving himself up. Miss Eagels once more demonstrates she is .an efficient actress, although that much appreciatedhusky tone of hers has, “That's the best we have, madame. All right, madame, go on over to Taylor's, ringto it, reminiscent of the clays when she was a salesgirl at Peck s.show. Such an experiment might be , widely patronized by the thousands of (alumni in Kansas City who have] some recollection of what college was , like.Itilobe—“College Love.”George Wilson............ George Lewis••Flash Thomas..........Eddie PhillipsD roi-.v Mav..........Dorothy GulliverJimmie H‘-d. ....... ..Churchill RoseCot, a Jot.es ....Hayden StevensonFat ...............Summer GetcbelliQ VCE more Colfcrd triumphs over‘our ancient rivals,” once more the needed touchdown is made in the | last five split-seconds of play, once more the hero says to the villain “we must bury our differences and fight for old Alma Mater,” once more the 1HOOiltrr - —— »ainstreet—the Sophomore.t!* Coil ms ■ ............EdsdallvQ0*NeUIm^Weck istanlev smithLW,;,:.' .. .... . .Jeanette Loffrbam Laaae ••••;* Russell Glea on £ rollin'* ’ *' ........ -Sarah pad denmstrona ‘ Brooks BenedictFan . • • Spec O Donnell* •HE SOPHOMORE” is a collegepicture designed for and created people who never have been to »ge. That rnuch is obvious. By r stretch of the imagination one tit conceive Eddie Quillan lasting day on the campus of either the•ersity of Missouri or Kansas. Atend of that time there would not in unbroken paddle left ih the re school. Mr. Quillan would be crted either into a corpse or a*• 1 ■. , VUMtniMWIJosephine
Newspaper Details
Kansas City Star
Kansas City, Missouri, US
Sun, Sep 15, 1929
Page 57
Full Page
Clipped by
Rotten T.
USA 22 Jun 2020
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