The Washington times., 1929-03-19
IGLEANINGS
AND
SCREENINGS
BY ANDREW R. KELLEY

Perhaps the Washington. Cham
ber of Commerce may send
Director L. Monta Bell an Eas-
ter lily after viewing "The Bel
lamy Trial"
You may recall that the BUSH
ness men of our city called on
Will Hays to take some action
when Mr.. Bells last picture,
"Man, Woman and SIM" was
given its first F Street screen
ing. They called it libel on
the old home town.
In 1.-THE Bellamy Trial." made
from q story by Frances Noyes
Hart. Director Bell turned out
a highly creditable feature for
Metro Goldwyn. If there is any
primary fault with the screen
tale it is the lack of real char
acterization. So much has been
crowded into this court portrayal
of a sensational trial little OPP
portunity is given to do other
than sketch briefly the central
figures. Thus the district at.
torney, Charles B. Middleton,
a comparatively unknown film
actor, emefges with credits that
ordinarily accrue to the higher
priced stars. He achieves this
distinction because it falls to his
role to voice the most dialogue
and to appear for the greatest
camera footage. think, incl
dentally, he grasped the main
chance with such a vise-like
hold he will get better parts
from now on.
This murder trial is carried
on to musical accompaniment,
something that is not so much
out of place as it appears, since
the strains are heard in the
silent sequences of the feature.
You will probably be impressed
with the reportorial sense dis
played by Director Bell in the
creation of realistic legal set
tings and Blackstone procedure
for his drama. Also in the
cross-examinaticn dialogue and
the words given the dignified
Judge to voice from his judicial
rostrum. 1t all seems very
solemn because there is a
marked absence of the usual
hokum.
The picture is novelty intro
duced. 1t really begins as an
M-G-M news reel and before
some of the audience are aware
of the fact the story has begun
to unfold. Decidedly away from
the conventional opening and
another credit for a director
given to megaphone pioneering.
The screen action ends in an
epilogue clearing UP the mystery
and the audience is asked to
retain the secret of who killed
Mimi Bellamy. Again a double
"a" for Mr.. Bell in his policy
or repeating the names Of the
cast as the close of the picture.
/ wish more producers would
emulate him.
In "The Bellamy Trial." Betty
Bronson handles a bit as a
journalistic novice nicely. One
of Hollywood's little mysteries
is why the "Peter Pan" girl
seldom gets more ambitious
parts. The industry whispers
it is because of the maternal
influence. Mrs. Bronson has
never become innoculated with
the idea that the less you wear
the more they care. Miss Bron-
son has refused greater oppor-
tunity because of a ban on the
step-in stories, rigidiy applied
by her mother. She refuses to
permit her daughter to become
an exhibitionist for either direc=
tors or screen audiences. In
"Sonny Boy" the Warner
Brothers fe eature exploiting
Davy Lee, Miss Betty is seen
for a flash partly dishabille.
There were numerous family
conferences before she was
finally permitted to make the
brief display. With this ex-
PLANTATION and the trend of the
modern screen drama, it is not
difficult to see why Betty gets
the minor chores.
Helen Mencken, who has spent
most of the season in New York
with Harry Hervey's play, "Con-
gai," is going on the road for
a brief tour. She is booked at
the Belasco for a week, begin
ming April Is.
Frank Conroy was in the role
of the amorous husband when
Dorothy Gish's play, young
Love-" opened in Baltimore last
night. Miss Gish thinks the
role requires more stressing of
comedy than the actor who
played it in Washington pro-
vides. Her husband, Jimmy
Rennie, played it in the orig
inal cast.
Cecil Lean and Cleo Mayfield,
following the completion of a
not so prosperous Washington
engagement, moved over to the
Metros -Goldwyn- Movietone 10 t.,
where they made a singing
short for Major Edward Bowes.
Musical comedy producers are
getting apoplectic about the ac-
tivity of scouts from Holly