The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-15
Otis Skinner in
"Kismet' Is Grand
Opera of Movies
Edward KnoblOck's Oriental
Drama Produced With Lavish
Detail at Strand.

"Kismet' is the grand opera OF the
movies. At the Strana an Oriental
overture and the Incidental music to this
picture. marking The film debut OF Otis
Sklnner-almost fhe last OF TIE old
guard OF Legitimate actors who abstSincd
from the scr 5en--cs les che to feel that
with little more Verdi added TO the
| performance, the theatre management
might nave reason to establish dia-
mond horseshoe of boxes
Adapted under Louis Cashiers iirec-
| tlon from the gorgeous Oreinta. thriller
I in which Otis Skinner so sue cessfuli'
/ transferred the atmosphere OF Omar
/ XII yam" 10 the stage. II adheres
| closely to the lines of Edward Knob
locks drama, yet seems TO ve more
| oriskly. with Il wealth OF that la,i N
detail by which the motion picture com
panies could almost reproduce Utopia
! on the screen IL so desired. From one
sunrise to the next Hell. the beegar at
the Mosque Of the Carpenters in ancient
Bagdad rises meteorically to the
dazzling position of zone high In the
Fgraces Of the Wazir, the second highest
! dignitary OF that picturesque city, has
an opportunity TO Stay the ruler. fails
! and Is baaished, while his daughter be-
! comes the bride OF the "all highest -
/ which looks like an honor. but tIsider-
I ing the anomalous position of Oriental
| wives. is like visiting the sins of the
/ father lpon the chilli
Makes Himself Welcome.
In this brief span OF twenty-four
| hours all The possible vicissitudes of hui
man experience seem plumbed-the willy
| elderly beggar in his silks and satins
| l.n 10, n 70 tt~rf
whose temperament Is ruffied when she
discovers he Is not really man about
| town. Mr.. Skinner invests the role with
appealing touches Of q philosui hical
polSnanCy. though this Is not actually
/ felt by your true Eastern fatalist. He
made himself welcome TO the screen for
ever with i dashing romantic briskness.
even when a murder was 10 be COM
initted. 20 that ole forgave him for kill
! ing his arch enemy. the roober Jdican
because he did IL with such workman
like despatch. In fact, he succeeded In
investing the act of drowning JdUan's
son in the harem bath with a little sar-
donic humor-9or all but the son.
IL Is surrounded by a comniendable
cast. and perhaps he played the father
so authenticity because his charming
daughter. Cornelia Skinner, made her
screen debut likewise in that part. AL
1og Their, with its bizarre and spectacu-
lar scenes. its brilliant costumes and it's
fine acting. 'kismet' marks a high
water mark in cinema acnievement-es-
pecially in it's harem bathing scene.
which might have inspired Mack Sennett
himself.
At tha Criterion this high water marx
GIBBS a bit in Idols OF Clay" soon after
one encounters group OF South Sea
beach combers This production by
George + itzmaurice of an original scenario
by Oulda Bergere starts out Interestingly
enough with a scoundrt lly ex-missionary
in the tropic seas, his intensely pure
daughter and sculptor recuperating
from an unhappy love affair, and the in
terest doesn't flag even when one dis
covers that the Idols of clay" worslipped
b. the artist and the girl include on his
part his sublime ego and on hers
wholly impossible and half baked inno-
cence
Cracks Under the Strain.
Then the picture cracks under the
strain when the red emed sculptor turns
the girl. who has followed him TO Lon
don when he remakes his career. over
to the woman who nearly ruined him
lust after he has EXPIRE ssed distrust OF
her. and the rest of the picture is APP
propriately festooned in fog. Mae
Murray strikes an occa sichally attrac-
dive pose and does well rs a dope fiend.
md David Powell makes picturesque
wastrel, but In spite OF one of the most
daring darces ever screened this photo
play Is too much like the statuary The
sculptor smashes in n frenzy--it looks
we'll az first glance, but At breaks too
asily In the middle.
At the Capitol rather unique ven-
.ure Is made with "The PeraIty" in
aving for the chief figure man of
SIN Franchises underworld whose per-
ons 'ity Is unpleasantly Mcphistor he
an, who doesn't wear seek. glossy
hair and who hasn't even n set of gold
'epth TO recommend him. While this
Goodwin version of Gouverneur Morris's
powerful rovel suggests "Dr. JekyIl and
Mr. Hyde" the repellent character
'asn't lovely Sir Galahad side TO gain
him n drag with the fair sex in the
audience.
Nevertheless. Lon Clancy. who did
such fine work as the Frog IN 1.-THE
Miracle Man." Is able by the sheer
force of his own impersonation truly
PROJECTED to clam the attention on the
photoplay. thus proving himself some
hing of n miracle man. The story
which was directed by Wallace Wors-
ey, tells how Bi=zdrd as a boy had his
Eggs needlessly amputated and grows up
nursing saturnine revenge on the Of
Tending surgeon. eliminating Ia cli-
max that is an epic of the shud1er.
Wallace Reid in Always Audacious"
and Thomas Meighan in Conrad in
Quest OF His Youth" both reviewed last
week. do double cross on each other.
The Leonard Merricl< pro iuction moves
to the Rivoll. while the film version of
Ben Ames Wil'iams's yarn rushes In to
fiji the gap left at the RIalto.