Judge — July 16, 1927 — page 27: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

JUDGE DGING. ‘be MOVIES» ty Pare Loremt, should return to fashion, that the Democrats will win the next election, that America won the war, then go to see “Old San Francisco.” If you believe that any cultured Chinese gentleman would prefer a young American girl to a hundred of old China’s fairest, that all Chinamen smoke opium and quote Confucius, that all Irishmen sing tenor and are quick-witted, that Jonah lived in the belly of the whale, that if you break a mirror it will bring vou seven years of bad luck, then you'll enjoy “Old San Francisco.” Warner Brothers’ latest epic is a Spanish potboiler garnished with Irish stew and chow mein. It starts with the Spanish inva- sion, includes the gold rush, old Chinatown, the naughty nineties, the famous earthquake and a blood-and-thunder plot of ethno- logical avarice and white slavery. Through all this excitement Miss Dolores Costello appeared very charming and but mildly agitated. s I you believe that hoop-skirts Movies as Usual “Camille —You wouldn't know the old girl. “Casey at the Bat"—The Gay Nineties rather “Craie Snafchers""—How did you like the Sny- der trial! "ia Clothes"—Mr. Menjou, ladies and a “Batng Tore"—A good actress positively el plese. “The General" —Buster Keaton and funny. “The Heart of Salome”—As bad as it sounds. “I¢"—Aunte Glyn, laddies. mae” King of Kings"—The life of Christ by De “Knock-Out Reilly" —Robust Richard Dix prize-fighting again. “Long Pante"—A good Harry Langdon picture. “Lowe's ureatest Mistate"—And how are you? “Lovers! —Surprisingly good under the circum- stances. Million Bid"—Highly overestimated. “Mr. Wu"—Slow and tiresome. “Naughty but Nice”—Neither. “The Potters”—W. C. Fields is always worth seeing. Resurrection" —The story but not the charac- ter of the novel. + “The Rough Riders''—Hurrah for Roosevelt! i Wild"—Good only because Fields is “The Unknown" —If you like creepy movies. “When a Man Loves''—If, when and as Mr. Barrymore does. “The Whirlwind of Youth"—Dumb. “White Gold!"—Fairly good. “Wolf's Clothing’—Overdone but well worth seeing. —And Unusual bs ne Beloved Rogue'—Barrymore does real well y Vil “Changi'—Excellent and thrilling. “Metropolis” —See all means. “Secrets of a Soul'—Freudian theme wonder- fully managed, “Stark Lowe ”'—It really is both. * nes of the Soil” oa fashioned but very good. Taxi-Driver—What! No tip? oy. She probably knew all along that things were going to come out all right. However, there is one element that makes “Old San Francisco” especially sickening. It is re- ligion. The God of the movies may use spotlights instead of handwriting on the wall, but he is still the Old Testament Jehovah; he may use camera angles to show that virtue «will out instead of a thunderous voice; but the God of the movies is still as Semitic as he ever was in Palestine. He may use Catholic and Protestant symbols for the sake of the box office, but he is still the God who destroyed the enemies of the Chosen People of Israel. In “Old San Francisco” he triumphs over the heathen God of the Chinese. In fact, the heroine is being sold to a white slaver when she repeats the Lord’s Prayer; result: the San Francisco earthquake. (Which is at least a (Continued on page 26) 21 comicbooks.com