Walter Sondes Movies
- 1938
In this crime drama, a police inspector pursues a Lord's secretary suspected of stealing his gold bullion. She is the prime suspect because she is the leader of an infamous gang of thieves. The cops do not realize that the gang acted on their own accord. The secretary and the inspector then team up and board a train to try and stop their getaway cars. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1936
When Prisoner of Corbal was released in the US in 1939, reviewers were confused as to its country of origin. A bit of extra research would have revealed that the film was lensed in England under the title The Marriage of Corbal, and that it was based on The Nuptuals of Corbal, a swashbuckling novel by Rafael Sabatini. Hazel Terry plays Cleonie, the romantic bone of contention between the French aristocrat Marquis de Corbal (Hugh Sinclair) and insurrectionist Varennes (Nils Asther). To save Cleonie from the guillotine during the Revolution, Varennes disguises her as his nephew (!) and smuggles her out of the country. Unexpectedly, it is the Marquis who proves the hero of the peace, while Varennes willingly becomes a martyr to his own cause. Noah Beery overracts as usual in the role of a rogueish Sergeant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nils Asther, Noah Beery, Sr., (more)
- 1936
This adventure is adapted from a melodrama by Victor Hugo and is about the amoral captain of the first steamship who greedily abandons his ship and leaves his first mate in charge to navigate the dangerous Channel islands. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1934
No relation to the 1968 John Cassavetes film of the same name, the 1934 Faces is a compact British romantic melodrama. Anna Lee plays a beautician who harbors dreams of wealth and luxury. She becomes the mistress of a millionaire, leaving her poor-but-true boyfriend Harold French in the lurch. Lee quickly changes her ways when she befriends the amiable wife of her wealthy "protector". Faces was adapted from a play by Patrick Ludlow and Walter Soames; the latter appears in the film as the philandering millionaire. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1934
The Iron Duke is one of the best of the George Arliss biopics -- and one of the few that can claim near-total accuracy (with the usual glossovers and embellishments, of course). Arliss plays the Duke of Wellington, the brilliant and foresighted British diplomat -- warrior of the Napoleonic Era. The film covers the years 1815 and 1816, reaching a climax as Wellington faces down Napoleon's armies at Waterloo (an exciting sequence, despite obvious production economies). On the home front, Wellington must contend with political enemies, prevaricators and turncoats -- and also with those who demand impossible sanctions against the French, thereby setting the stage for future wars (the parallels between Wellington's era and the post-WW I years are impossible to miss). Of the supporting players Gladys Cooper is sheer vitriol as the Duchess of Angouleme, daughter of Marie Antoinette, while Emlyn Williams is equally effective as an anti-Wellington journalist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Arliss, Ellaline Terriss, (more)
- 1933
In this musical, a middle-class cockney fishwife yearns to become a movie star. Her plans go swimmingly. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
