Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-02-28
I1NCOln
The Moving Picture
By Robert z. Sherwood

THERE have been swarms of extra
super-special pictures this season,
and the end is not in sight.
on top of Don q" Stella Dallas.
1.-The Big Parade" THE Merry Wild
ow." The Phantom of the Opera, =
THE Gold Rush" THE Sea Beast,
THE Vanishing American" and Mare
| Nostrum" will come before long THE
Black Pirate" Don Juan" What
Price Glory" "Old Ironsides." LA
Boheme" and THE Volga Boatmen. -
Pictures of this magnitude are not
released directly through the regular
movie channels. They are placed in
| theaters usually devoted to the spoken
as they can continue to be profitable.
| The scale Of prices is high. and there
are usually only two performances a
| day.
Some of these uper-productions
have developed an enormous earning
capacity. and will continue to run on
the present high-priced basis for
months. 1t is predicted that THE Big
Parade will not be released to the
movie theaters for another year.
The latest addition to this list,
Mare Nostrum," opened at the Critic
rion Theater in New York last week.
This is the production which for the
past year has engaged the attention
of Rex Ingram. the temperamental
young Irishman who jumped to fame
with THE Four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse.
Like its memorable predecessor,
Mare Nostrum' is based on a novel
by IbaneZ. and is concerned with the
Great Wra. 1t tells of the activities
of the U-boats in the Mediterranean
and of a gallant Spanish captain who
unwittingly gave aid and comfort to
the enemy. To make this picture Mr..
Ingram took his cameramen. to the
south coast of France, and the scenes
of Mare Nostrum' were photo
graphed there All of these scenes
are beautiful: some of them. notably
those showing the submarine warfare,
are genuinely thrilling. The cast.
headed by Antonio Moreno and Alice
Terry, is a good one. all the support
ing players having been recruited by
Mr.. Ingram abroad.
y 4 X y
Mare Nostrum' has not been well
received in New York, and the wise
acres of Broadway are predicting for
it a brief and none too profitable ca
reer In spite of this gloomy verdict,
I must confess that ! enjoyed it i'm
mensely. To me it is the best of ReA
Ingram production since THE Four
.Horsemen." That, however, is only
my own fallible opinion, which may
be taken or left, in the order named.
There is another picture now con-
fronting the public which may or may
not ring the bell of popular approval.
That is "Moana," Robert J. Flaherty's
portrayal of life in the South Seas.
Mr.. Flaherty, having achieved appre-
ciable success with 'Nanook of the
North" was sent bv Famous Players
to Samoa to produce a picture of the
Polynesian natives in their lair. He
did so. spending IS months on the job,
and the results of his activities are
now visible
Here again | venture to express a
personal opinion. to the effect that
"Moana" ranks among the finest, most
beautiful, most creditable achieve
ments of the screen. Like "Nanook
of the North" it Is charged with Wig
orous truth: there is nothing phony
or artificial or cheaDly theatrical
about it.
It is Mr.. Flaherty's intention, If he
can gain dueQudle support, W Hidhc
some true biographical portraits of
American life which will reflect our
native existence as it is really lived.
not as some literary hackwriter in
Hollywood imagines that it is lived.
He would like. for instance, to make
a real picture of the cowboy IA van
| ishing type). of the traffic policeman,
of the Kentucky mountaineer or of the
Gloucester fisherman.
u. tlw< L. d. ky.nA
the movie can attain an enduring
value as a record of its time. 1t is
| being done by the news reel and by
| the two-reel scenic film. 1t should be
| done also on a larger scale in the
manner that Mr.. Flaherty suggests.
| At the conclusion of his contract
! wish Warner Brothers. John Barry