ENTERTAINMENTS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 204, 30 July 1937, Page 3

ENTERTAINMENTS

STATE THEATRE. “HEAD OVER HEELS.” “She’s slender and graceful as a willow —and dances like a leaf in tho wind. She’s Britain’s greatest dancing star and she earned the title after years of hard work and sacrifice —after a childhood ot rigorous discipline and study.” She says one of England’s greatest authorities, and every word is true. Jossie Matthews is a star of the first rank and her rise to fame lias been thoroughly earned. Sho was born in London on March 11, 1907, and made licv stage debut in 1923. ller older sister was a strong influence in her life —it was she who first discovered little Jessie’s talents and helped her to develop them, finally gotting her an audition with Andre Chariot, Her first professional appeai-aiioo was in “The Music Box Revue” at the Palace Theatre, and then Chariot engaged her to understudy Gertrude Lawrence in his revue. Then Miss Lawrence became ill and Jessie's big moment bad arrived. -From then onward, her success was assured and she became a name, a name with personality, in electric light, 5. Then sho went lo America. Back in London again, she scored a great success in 1926, and then C. B. Cochran, London's greatest showman, starred her in “One Dam Tiling After Another,” “Wake Up and Dream” and “This Year of Grace.” Then came “Evergreen,” which became one of her greatest film successes at a later period. First film appearance , was in “There Gees the Bride’’ and from then onwards, the screen lias not lot her go for one moment. Other films include “The Man from Toronto.’” “Waltzes from Vienna,” “First a Girl” and “It’s Love Again.” Now comes her latest and greatest filmusical, “Head Over Heels,” in which sho will delight film fans even more with her radiant and refreshing personality. “Hoad Over Heels,” which screens tonight at tho State Theatre, introduces lour new faces to the screen, and between Jessie and these people occur sonic of the most amusing scenes in tile film. There are her two leading men, Robert Flemyng from Dublin,and Louis Borrell. who is Dutch, both of whom are good-looking and sure of instant success. Then there is Romney Brent, a little better known; bis last appearance was with George Arliss in “East Meets West,” and Edward Cooper wlio is very woli-known on the English music halls. Jessie sings no less than six song hits in tho film and wears many gorgeous gown. Tiro production was directed by Sonnio Hale, and our advieo to lovers of good pictures is, do not miss it. It is a picture of which' GaumontBritish may well be proud and one that will take its jilace among the greatest musicals of tho screen. REGENT THEATRE. “TIIE GREEN PASTURES.” Never has there been a picture quite like “The Green Pastures,” which screens finally at the Regent to-night. It is tender and humorous, touching and gay. And through this blond there runs a deeply sympathetic feeling that never condescends to burlesque the fable’s simple imagery. Based on the Roark Bradford stories, “The Green Pastures” is more fluent than ever was the stage play. And since Hal Mohr’s exquisite photography gives tho delightful setting a dreamy reality, this conies as the most delicious bit of foimbro yet to emerge from Hollywood. Here the Testaments. Old and New. arc shown ns seen through tho eyes of a backwoods negro preacher who explains the Bible to a Sunday school class of pickaninnies. lie tolls them about the day God decides to make the earth; about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; about Noah and the Deluge; about the riotous idolaters of Babylon ; about Moses 40-ycar march across the desert. All this is depicted with such unaffected and live ly charm, with such sincere gravity, that “The Green Pastures” becomes much more deeply humorous than it would be if played outright for laughs. It is so beautifully enacted by an all-negro cast that one does not think of individual performance, though Oscar Polk as the Angel Gabriel and Rex Ingram as De Lawd do stand above their brother players. The film owes its undeniable great ness, however, to Marc Connelly, who wrote the stage and screen plays, and whose wise direction, witli the assistance of William Keighley, has retained the unstudied eloquence of these religious’ Heightened no little by the music of the Hall Johnson Choir and amusingly staged by Allen Eaalburg and Stanley Fleischer, “Tho Green Pastures’’ is the cinema treat of the year.