The New Pictures

The White Monkey. Barbara La Marr is one of those inexplicable personages of the cinema who do not seem to belong. She is not beautiful and certainly not a good actress. Why they placed her in this film translation of Mr. Galsworthy's story remains a mystery. Most of the other characters are miscast--if you like them to stick to the originals. For those who have not read Mr. Galsworthy, and really are not just sure who he is, the picture may serve. Are Parents People? The week's cheers must be devoted to this discussion of divorce and its denouement. Treated with a light and whimsical varnish of direction, the story of how a schoolgirl reunited her parents stands gaily up as one of the best of the recent films. Adolph Menjou and Florence Vidor are the accomplished parents. But the pick of the character basket falls to Betty Bronson. She plays the young lady with such astonishing ability that all fears that Peter Pan would be her only claim to fame are gratefully laid aside, and another actress of the first rank is admitted to the small company of the actual artists. Wildfire. Racehorse pictures are inevitable. Racehorse pictures always balance the fortune of the lovers on the outcome of the runing. The right horse always wins. Wildfire is one more retelling of the old story. It is acted rather more ineptly than usual, with Aileen Pringle chiefly conspicuous.

Dangerous Innocence. A wicked old villain and an honest man with a past struggle sturdily for this particular heroine. It seems that, in the latter's past, was an affair with the girl's own mother. The villain is punched in the jaw and explains to the girl that he was lying all the time.

"I'll Show You the Town." Reginald Denny and this narrative have been pitched precipitously together in the interest of slapstick. They roll about for several reels, get drunk, splashed with mud and involved with several females. The audience is generously amused. There was a time when Mr. Sennett had this particular market virtually to himself and his two-reelers.

Eve's Secret. This is another one you can go by without turning in. It started as a Hungarian play, was known to the local stage as The Moonfiower and comes to the screen crushed and pulpy with too much adapting. The Riviera is the scene; the adventures of a blonde lady among the wicked adventurers with whiskers and dark Italian dispositions are the story.