User reviews

Arabian Nights tale "Aladdin from Broadway," by F.S. Isham, has been made into a Vitagraph Blue Ribbon Feature with excellent results. It is an adventure story that readily lends itself to screen presentation, and its romantic plot, picturesque settings and abundant life and color are utilized with skill in the picture version. The exploits of the young American who starts for Mecca after a Bible and returns with a wife are told in a straightforward, quick moving manner that goes far to engender belief in their accomplishment. Perils there are in plenty, and many moments when the hero's life hangs in the balance, but the light-hearted mood which is habitual to this nephew of Uncle Sam reacts on the entire drama and causes the spectator to view the proceedings in the guise of pleasant entertainment, and not give a rap about its plausibility. With New York, Mecca, Damascus and the desert as a background, the producer has been able to fill the drama with animated and diversified phases of life in the new and in the old world. Most of the oriental scenes are exteriors and their reproduction carries the stamp of truth. Director William Wolbert has caught the spirit of the book and transferred its atmosphere to the screen with commendable fidelity. The featured players of the cast are Antonio Moreno and Edith Storey. Both contribute largely to the success of "Aladdin from Broadway." Antonio Moreno has the mental alertness and physical force called for by the character of Jack Stanton, in addition to his unfailing sense of humor. Edith Storey has a dual role and plays both parts with equal skill. As the Armenian wife of an English antiquarian, and, later, as the daughter of the couple, she finds a wide range for the expression of her talents, and is particularly apt in investing both her impersonations with the flavor of the Far East. William Duncan, Laura Winston, Otto Lederer and George Holt are prominent in a thoroughly adequate supporting cast. - The Moving Picture World, March 24, 1917