"CHARMING SINNERS," ALLTALKIE, MAJESTIC.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 274, 20 December 1929, Page 2

"CHARMING SINNERS," ALLTALKIE, MAJESTIC.

Reginald Denny's first all-talkie, "Embarrassing Moments." a comedydrama packed with laughter and romance, will head the new bill afc the 3Ia.ie.stic Theatre 011 Saturday. For the last time to-night will he screened "Cfiarming Sinners," the -picturisatiou of W. Somerset Maughan's clever and suhtle elmina of domestic re-arrange-ment, which has heen the talk of the town in all the centres in which exhibited. In this picture the playwright, thougli himself a mere male, took the side of the opposite sex and proved that a mere wonian often got the hest of an argument in a battle of "wits wjth her better half. Certainly as far as vocal reprcduction was concerned, 110 finer talkie has heen made, and with that outstanding British actress, Buth Chatterton, in the leading feminine role, suppoi'ted hy Clive Brnok, Williani Powell and Alaiy Nolan, it is small wonder that lasfc j night's audience were so delighted air.i j so entliusiastic. Afiss Chatterton was whollv delightful as the young wife | who devised a new treatment for her philandering hushand, : applying her unique remedy in a way that left a smile all round, even with the poor hushand. Clive Brook was seen 111 what was for him an exceptionally rare role, for the audience was treated not to a tragically serious character, such as one has learnt to expect from the star, but to a charncterisation that gave them a new Clive Brook, giving also free piay to all the whimsicalities of which he is capable. William rowell was outstanding in the type of role in which he seems to delight, that of "the other jnan," while Mary Nolan was charming and altogether fliHatious as "the other woman." Undoubtedl.v, hoAvever, the feature par excellence of the whole shoiv was the pantomimic behaviour of Clive Brook, obviously en-joying himself every bit as muefi as last night's audience enjoyed his perfoirprance, his antics lighteping the drapia and contributing in no small clegree to the outstanding suceesS of a very fine picture. Included -in a firstrate selection of all-talkie shorts was another instalment of Fox Movietone News, a- Dickensian sketch "Grandfather Smallwood," hy that constnnmate Bidtish artist, Bransbv "Williams. "Armistice- Day in London," and the wizard of the rap, Roxy La Rocca. The com]xlete programme was in every way excellent entei-taimnent and tlioroughly delighted the audience, wlio were by no means slow to vqice their P^iniom-