Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-10

L
; he has tried the best American
directors, and then, in the hope o.
finding better, he has imported
| directors from the art centerS o.
the Old World, men considered
eminent in their sphere, to better
direction, or to incorporate into
movie making novel ideas in scores
of ways; he has searched the very
earth for talented actors, even fol
those whose talent is in the en-
bryo, in the hope of improving the
human action in his pictures. Sc
that in almost every way imagi-
! nable the producer has Striven to
do his part. If he has failed, even
in part, is it his fault? And If 1t
be not his fault, whose is it?
X x X
It should not be forgotten that
this Superhuman effort to provide
worthy picture art has been ham,
pered from the very beginning,
with pious knocks, intellectual
contempt and ignorant censorship.
The movie has been a favorite OBJ
ject of attack by the new geniuSeS
that have crept into the State
legislatures, and some Of him also
has appeared in the national Con-
gresS as we'll. There has never
been helping hand extended to
this wonderful art of picture max
ing that has fascinated the whole
world. There is a vast difference
between heckling and helping to
improve human effort. If the
world that longs for real art in the
movie, for something Intellectually
interesting in it's stories, would eX-
tend the helping hand for a while,
doesn't 1t seem reasonable to be-
lieve that better results might be
obtained than by continually pc
nalizing, knocking and tearing
down the producers efforts? If,
for instance, those who have the
genius of story telling would write
better stories for the movie, isn't
it likely that much of the fault
now found with the photoplay
might disappear? If those who
have great ideas that would tend
to better pictures would advance
them, wouldn't it be better than
standing off and knocking them
right and left for what they are?
Censorship, no matter in what
form it may find itself, is destruc-
tive. Surely nobody wants to an
nihilate the photoplay. It cannot
be denied that there is a type of
constant objector whose thought
is directed more at feathering his
own nest than of improving the
goose that lays the golden egg. His
idea is hush money, not high art.
But happily the world knows this
individual and also knows how to
deal with him. The chief need
now is for the competent man who
can and will help build up and i'm
prove the art of picture making.
And the incentive to him, if he
cares to look for it, must certainly
be found in that industry which
of all others has in a little more
than a generation found itself, If
not leading, at least on close terms
of intimacy with, the financial
giants Of the world.
x X X X
1t would not be kind to dismiss
this subject without advancing to
the limelight, for due credit, the
great number of sensible women
in all parts of America who have
banded themselves into clubs and
organizations of a helpful char
acter to improve motion picture
art and lift it to happier plane
than 1t occupies today. Without
hope of fee or reward other than
the attainment of their ultimate
object, these women, through
sympathetic committees, under
take to ascertain and to commend
pictures worthy Of public patron
age, and thus make it profitable to
producers to make that class of
pictures, instead Of wasting money
on the rnaudlin or the mere
triciouS prints that form the basis
for the clan1or against "all mo-
ton pictures" as something de-
filed. These women have been
known to get in touch with pro-
ducerS, offering their suggestions,
learning more of the business of
picture making, advising in a
nelpIuI way Suggestions Tor con-
sideration, and they spend their
own money to do this. There is
not a single instance known where
they have been treated otherwise
than with the utmost conSidera-
ton and respect. They have said
so in their printed reports and
papers that they publish at their
own expense in the interest of bet
ter pictures. Their work is con-
structive, as should be all effort to
better and to build up the kind Of
pictures that America wants and
will be proud Of. Their effort is
worthy of emulation by our story
writer's, even the best of them.
And If those who wish to purify"
the screen and make its product
less offensive in any other line
will but lend their constructive
endeavor to that end, the result
may make it difficult for anybody
to select "the 10 best" pictures Of
the year, for there will be so many
"best" that only the mot best"
mill ,.nnl - H. ID, Ill Il 1..+