THE TALKIE FILMS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIX, Issue 249, 19 September 1929, Page 6

THE TALKIE FILMS.

Possibly due to their novelty “the talkies” appear to be taking on in all tiie larger centres wnere they have been introduced, and people are evidencing a partiality tor them which seems likely, in time, to displace the silent pictures almost entirely. The talkies will undoubtedly be a permanent feature of picture entertainments in the future, and it is not surprising, therefore, to find the growing demand in British countries for the screening of films of this class made in England. The corruption of. the accent and pronunciation of the English language is a characteristic of the average United States citizen, and the effect upon British children who hear the nasal twang and Yankee mode of speecn is not likely to prove beneficial to them. That danger is recognised by the members of the teaching profession in New Zealand and has also been referred to in the Legislative Council and House of Representatives, questions having l been asked on the subject and references made to it by Mr R. A. Wright, M.P., and others, while the Minister of Internal Affairs (Hon. P. A. de la Perrelle) expressed agreement with the opinion that “New Zealand did not want too much Americanisation in ‘the talkies’.” The Minister stated, however, that he had attended a British talkie the other evening which he described as “an excellent production,” and he further stated that he had had “a conference in his room of the leading picture interests, and, as a result, a stipulation had been made that a greater proportion of British films should be shown in the future.” It is gratifying to know that the Minister has been thus far mindful of British interests. The talkies are, beyond doubt, a wonderful invention; their very novelty attracts, and most people in New Zealand will agree that it is the duty of the Government to use its best endeavours to encourage the screening of as many English-made films as possible.