THE MATING CALL
Starring Thomas Meighan and Renee Adoree
MOTION PICTURE CLASSIC
December 1928
There's a let-handed wallop directed at the boys who wear the
white sheets in this picture - written by Rex Beach and giving
Tom Meighan another opportunity to play a strong, silent, but
suffering he-man of the soil. It is entitled "The Mating
Call" and develops a triangle in that Tom goes to the front
over there and remains faithful to his spouse for four long years
only to return to discover some goings-on around the old homestead.
The vigilantes volunteer to straighten out the trouble but overlook
the fact that one of their number is a conspicuous violator of
the hearth. They also overlook t he fact that a woman may lure
a man to play around a bit.
It is a single-track story, but it is forcefully presented with just sufficient conflict to make it interesting despite the fact that you can spot the ending as early as the first reel. The Meighan man has two leading women here, one being Evelyn Brent, the other, Renee Adoree. Both give excellent performances and appeal to you in entirely different ways.
So it shapes up as perfectly K.O. It is right up the Meighan alley and James Cruze, the director, has brought forth a good romantic swing in the plot besides giving it a first-rate atmosphere dressing. You ought to like it. It marks the last of the even pictures which the star made for Paramount under his million-dollar contract.