When we showed the complete 10-reel version of this film some four years ago, it aroused no great enthusiasm, and it is indeed a rather stodgy and unimaginative, if handsomely mounted, film. It was of course a big success in its day, and, good film or not, was vastly preferable to MGM's recent remake. Barrymore was great however, and his final mad-house scene not only one of the beat things he has ever done on the screen, but also particularly typical of his love for the bizarre. It is this sequence - the last reel of the picture - that we are showing. First-rate in its own right, it also makes an interesting comparison with the smooth and less nightmarish playing of the versatile Barrymore some eight years later in our feature, STATE'S ATTORNEY.

(RKO, 1932, 8 reels) Directed by George Archainbaud; written by Gene Fowler and Rowland Brown from a story by Louis Stevens; edited by Charles Kimball and William Hamilton; cameraman - Leo Tover; recording engineer - George Ellis.

Starring JOHN BARRYMORE with Jill Esmond, Helen Twelvetrees, William Boyd, Mary Duncan, Oscar Apfel, Raoul Roulien, Ralph Ince, Frederick Burton, Ethel Sutherland, Leon Waycoff ( Ames) C. Henry Gordon, Nat Pendleton, Lloyd Ingraham.

It is frequently astonishing how basically similar films from the same year fare so differently with the passing of the years. Barrymore's Counsellor at Law, made the same year, likewise based on a stage play, but directed by William Wyler, remains a much more vital, and certainly more cinematic, piece of work than does State's Attorney, which frankly has many of the faults of the early talkies. It smacks more of the theatre than the screen, and looks somewhat older than its mere 25 years.

But forget all that. It's Barrymore material at its best - almost hand-tailored for him by his friend Gene Fowler. Based on the story of the famous lawyer Fallon (also well played by Warren William in The Mouthpiece, and by George Brent and Edward G. Robinson in subsequent remakes) it gives Barrymore full rein for deliberate theatrics (as in the several dynamic court-room episodes), for wry comedy (a delightful drunken scene for example) and for those moments of almost unbearably affecting pathos which nobody could do as well as Barrymore. (The sequence wherein Barrymore, with genuine remorse, tells his mistress that he has just married, is a beautifully acted episode). In every gesture and in every scene, Barrymore is just great, completely transcending the somewhat dated aspect of the rest of the film. Perhaps his completely undated performance merely serves to emphasise the somewhat old-hat film-making methods of the rest of the film.

Not that the non-Barrymore aspect of the film is dull. The dialogue sizzles with lines and situations that would never pass muster today. Ralph Ince, C. Henry Gordon and William Boyd make a formidable trio of underworld hoods. The gangster era and prohibition lend their own delightful flavor to the proceedings. And of course Helen Twelvetrees remains as appealing as always. Perhaps the film's gravest fault is in its direction by George Archainbaud, a man who is just fine on melodrama (The Lost Squadron) and action (he made some of the best Hopalong Cassidy westerns, as well as films like The Kansan, and such earlier silent melos as Selznick's Handcuffs or Kisses) but who seems a little non-plussed when dealing with non-action material.

In any event, STATE'S ATTORNEY is something to see, and this is its first NY showing in many years. The print is a brand new one, but presumably the original negative had deteriorated, since this print is obviously made from a new negative which in turn was made from a print rather than a fine grain. Accordingly, it is a little soft, and probably below the standards required for tv. Thus, while we're not using this as a "come-on", it seems very possible that STATE'S ATTORNEY will not be shown on television.

This is one of the best of the films made by a Griffith protege, Tony O'Sullivan, who also acted in many of the Biographs. (Some of his films, such as The Telephone Girl and the Lady, were a little untidy, if exciting; but this one is beautifully conceived and photographed, and shows a remarkable fidelity to the teachings of D.W.).

Smugglers, and a well cut chase at sea; this is a fast moving little melodrama with some strong plot elements. Although otherwise complete, the print is lacking titles, and thus the meaning of the title is not readily apparent unless explained here. The crooked captain, basically a decent fellow (and allowed to escape scot free) has only one bullet left when the crew mutinies. Shall he use it on Blanche, and save her from a dreadful fate -- or shall he use it on himself! He decides to do the noble thing, and use it on Blanche. Luckily, the coastguard arrive in time. Apart from one slip in continuity -following a lengthy sea chase, the captain manages to swim ashore in a matter of moments - The Lesser Evil is a darned good, and beautifully photographed, thriller. Mae Marsh is little more than an extra in early scenes.

With BERT LYTELL, MARION NIXON
George Siegmann (Limehouse Dan); Cyril Chadwick, Charles Delaney, Paulette Duval, Oliver Eckhard, Ted (Kid) Lewis; and Myrna Loy and Arthur Lake as extras.

It is discoveries like this that make life worth living in the Cinemascopic age - a beautiful toned original print, absolutely complete (except for a five second jump in a fight scene), and a perfect example of the real style and production value that went into pictures quite unjustly forgotten. Based on an English stage success, it has the leisurely and civilized tempo of the English, but handles its melodrama - particularly the fights and the Limehouse rooftop chase - in roaring style. The sets are great and lavish in the extreme. When Tourneur wanted to spend money, he spent it. One cannot help wondering what effort went into the simple shot of doves flying past the young lovers, outside a cottage set, at just the right moment. Too, the Derby climax - though padded with newsreel footage - is staged on a very large scale. Wanting to suggest that his players were there, and not just playing to newsreel scenes, Tourneur obtained a London bus, literally hundreds of extras, dressed them all in the latest English fashions, and obtained a truly spectacular shot -- just for about ten seconds! Although the subject doesn't offer the same opportunities for pictorial design as did another Tourneur that we ran recently, Lorna Doone, there's no doubt about the fact that it is a Tourneur production in every sense of the word. The compositions are right out of his top drawer! (Tourneur had also made the subject earlier, for Paramount in 1918, so evidently had a real fondness for it). The Hollywood reconstruction of English atmosphere is remarkably good, the California hills excepted, and the characters have a real English theatrical turn-of- the-century flavor to them. Bert Lytell, about whom a title tells us "He always played it square", is fine, while Cyril Chadwick (The Iron Horse, Peter Pan, Happiness) and Siegmann make a great pair of heavies. The opening musical numbers are a delight, Myrna Loy is readily visible in the crowds, and altogether we're most enthused about this re-discovery.