New-York tribune., 1920-02-10
On the Screen
''Ihirteentln Commandment
Provides Argument for
Married Couples

Tho trouble with "The rh,-..r+h
commandment" being shown At the
hlalto Theater this week. ia +ho+ :,
eaves husbands an opportunity TO smuo-
~ lecture their wives Rupert Hucb hoo
tarred womankind with heavy brnsb
when he wrote the story, while the
adaptation by Alice Eyton make, them
out 10 be parasitic loafers who think
OF little but clothes The tbirteantb
commandment, according to the Para.
mount-Artcraft picture, is "Thou shalt
not spend moro than thou earnest
Ethel Clayton has the star part as
Daphne Kip. She is given the luxur;-
GUS kind of background that suits her
and she wears exquisite clothes, but
beyond that her performance is in
slpid and too highly sweetened. Lono
curling ashes and an air Of wistful-
ness make her an appealing figure. but
her acting is Ineffective Watching her
on the screen is like eating unsalted
food. "'"'''o
She has strong cast around her
and the picture might be distinctly
labeled the popular" kind If onlv for
the opportunity it gives husbands and
wives to argue. In the first place
1t IS assumed all husbands are poor
Woodworking slaves who toll at their
offices night and day while their but
terfiy wives 60 to cabarets with strange
men and run up extraordinary bills for
clothes.
~, A masculine villain in the person of
IhOOlQa w I'll,
mings) fits across the screen. but moat
of the treachery is left to the Other
sex We are of the opinion that Cum
mlngs would be regular villain if he
didn't wear such fashy clothes and
have mis- hair so beautifully marcelled
These invariable accompaniments spoil
one of the best dad men" on the
screen and even divert from him the
kind of sympathy that usually goes out
to attractive villains.
He has dark designs on Daphne al
the beginning of the picture. He even
starts out to kiss her, but stops half
way when she threatens to throw
something at him-we forget wheth Ell
IT was the baby grand or the chair
, but by and by he learns to be q good
little II, boy and helps Daphne in a purely
aitrulstlc way. He does not even fin
lsh the kiss, which seems very mar
tistlc from pictorial point of view.
we cannot see what it is that makes
hlm villain in this picture, for he
really behaves more sensibly than CLAW
Wlmborn (Charles Incredibly, the yerv
good young man" 70 whom Daphne is
engaged. Clay is rather foolish and in.
dulges in an unnecessarily passionate
love scene that makes Duane's at
tempts at love-making pale by way of
comparison. We have never seen anv-
thing quite. like it on the screen-cer-
tainl y not since the time Of the exag.
gerated vampire picture.
The story seems to have been made
some ones excuse to work off q Rrudge
against women. They are seen in their
most extravagant and petulant moods
and the result is not particularly fiat
tering to the sex. 1t is the sort Of pic
ture that women should try to keep
their men from seeing, for there is
much food for masculine vanity in the
presentation of the virtuous. hard
working husbands and fathers.
Monte Blue, taking the part Of Bay
ard Kip, is ready to grow wings. He
protests with his wife, pleads with her
burns the midnight oil for her, lets her
run around with other men and gen.
orally acts as an ignominious doormat
~1AAo 1>iiooViA NOcb D. 1AlIIy
characterization Of the reckless wife
Winter Hall and Lucille Ward are both
excellent as Daphne's parents.
The Strengthening out Of the tangled
plot is arranged in an original and neat
fashion. When everyone appears to
have got head over ears in debt and
there seems no way out, Daphne opens
shop for brides trousseaux. Clothes
get her into trouble and clothes finally
extricate her. She wants to have q
business as we'll as husband so that,
to quote her own words, "she need
never accept q cont from any man."
However, this is only after she has
learned by painful experience the value
of the thirteenth commandment.
There is Lincoln picture, "The Land
Of Opportunity" with Ralph Ince TAX
ing the part Of Lincoln. 1t may have
some sentimental value, but it certainly
has nothing else to commend it.
Gladys Rice sings, John Priest plays
"Finlandia" on the organ and Paolo
Grippe plays Dvorak's "Rondo" on the
cello. The overture is Hosmer's
Southern Rhapsode." with Hugo
Riesenfeld and Lion Vanderheim con-
ducting.