Life, 1927-02-03 · page 26 of 35
Life — February 3, 1927 — page 26: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page reviews contemporary silent films, primarily focusing on romantic comedies and melodramas popular in the 1920s. The reviews discuss stars like Adolphe Menjou, Ben Lyon, and Leatrice Joy in films such as "Blonde or Brunette" and "Nobody's Widow." The humor is primarily **plot-based satire** rather than political commentary. The magazine mocks the formulaic nature of 1920s cinema—particularly the frivolous romantic plots and predictable character types. For example, "Nobody's Widow" is described as a "frivolous" farce about a woman who marries and immediately abandons a duke, then pretends otherwise. The "Bulletin" section humorously critiques the absurdity of duel scenes in American films, where heroes shoot straight at villains (rather than honorably shooting into the air) yet somehow miss, allowing the villain's bullet to fatally strike them instead. The cartoons at the bottom appear decorative rather than satirical. This is primarily **entertainment criticism** reflecting Jazz Age attitudes toward cinema as lightweight escapism.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“Blonde or Brunette” “TER oa rather | sorry journ in’ Michael Arlen’s Mayfair, Adolphe Menjou is back in Paris, where he belongs, and is up to his old tricks. “Blonde Brunette” is a perfect Menjou pic- ture—light, fluffy, gay and nimble. It is the story of a gentleman whose preferences are not firmly es- tablished, even in his own mind, He skips from thet Nordic Greta Nissen to the Arlette Marcel so- al, and ’ ng this final leap because Miss Nissen hap- pens to be the good girl, and Miss Marchal the naughty one. ‘They form an extremely happy trio, $londe or Brunette” was directed by Richard Rosson, a comparatively new director who is more than adept in the application of the popular Lubitseh touch. “The Perfect Sap” BEN LYON is at his best in “The Perfect Sap" —and if you choose Valencia. “In my dreams it always seems..." Oh, shut up! Bardelys the Magnificent. Super- Sabatini, involving the active John Gil- bert. Twinkletoes. dancing girl of very good, too. The Winning of Barbara Worth. Melodrama and love in the great, unre- claimed desert, with Ronald Colman, a bursting dam and Vilma Banky. Faust. Emil Jannings as Mephisto in a somewhat silly rendition of the famous story. Tell It to the Marines. One of Lon Chaney's greatest performances. Colleen Moore as a Limehouse—and she's ~ to take that as faint praise, it cer- tainly is no fault of mine. He has much the same type of aS Was his in “Blucbeard’s Wives” (his best previous picture), and he handles it well. “The Perfect Sap” is a detective melodrama, with plenty of kidding throughout, and with Pauline Starke to lend both animation and orna- ‘There are dull moments, plenty of hearty Seven mentation. but there laughs. Most important of all—Ben Lyon is not permitted to suffer visibly, nor does he have the opportunit i dulge in much strenuous love: ing; which is just exactly as well. are “Nobody’s Widow” H ERE is another light one which, somehow or other, manages to carry weight. »body’s. Widow” is a frivolous Avery Hopwood farce about a girl who marries a duke, leaves him after the ceremony, then pretends that he has been gath- Recent Development Hotel Imperial. Effective camera 's, Pola Negri and a pretty stupid attempt to sweeten a sordid subject. We're in the Navy Now. Wallace Beery and Raymond Hatton do their stuff. Tin Hats. Another rollicking comedy of the doughboys which might have been quite funny several years age The Sorrows of Satan. cenes to inspire you with awe, and scenes to upset your stomach—all contrived by D. W. Griffith, The Canadian. Thomas Meighan in the dreary wheatfields P*ILENT OBAMA ant 5% Oe rk ah Ig ered to his fathers. Of course he pursues her to ifornia and, after the necessary hemming and hawing, resume married life right where y had left off. Leatrice Joy gives a vivid and ex- citing performance as the Duchess, and Charles Ray, handsomely’ at tired in clothes from Bond Street (Los Angeles), is thoroughly pleas- ant as His Grace. Bulletin HERE. is to be a duel scene be tween the hero and the the great American Movie. The here will not shoot into the air, but will aim straight at the villain. Being a poor shot, he will miss; the vik lain’s bullet, on the other hand, will travel straight to the mark, and the licro will not) recover from the wound. = This episode will occur early first reel, and the pic ture will end right there. nthe equently . BE. Sherwood. Flesh and the Devil. John Gilbert and Greta Garbo shoot the — romantk works in a not-so-terribly-interesting se drama. The Better ‘Ole. Syd Chaplin thor eughly at home in the guise of Old Bill the eternal Tommy, Ben-Hur. Biblical backgrounds repro- duced in minutest detail and at vast e pense for those who care to see them Don Juan. amorous indeed, What Price Glory, The Scarlet Let ter, The Fire Brigade, Old Ironsides Beau Geste and The Big Parade These are the leading attractions # present. John Barrymore is vey comicbooks.com