Winter sports run riot at the Fine Arts this week, restrained only by a tenuous plot and some inconsequential German dialogue. Brilliant performances of skiing, slalom (scooting downhill along sinuous paths among obstacles), ski-joring (skiing along the level with a horse doing the pulling), bob-sled racing, and skating are crammed into this virile, carefree picture called after one of the sports "Slalom".

"Slalom" must be a rare treat for the devotees of snow and ice, for besides being entirely in a sympathetic vein, it shows how the feats of splendid grace are performed by experts. For the rest of humanity this unique film is vicarious participation in the breathless and apparently effortless antics of winter athletes, without involving any of the chills and spills, but at the same time giving a most generous sample in comparison with the measly glimpses of the news reels.

The chief virtue of all the actors is their agility with the sliding boards. The eccentric rogues, for example, draw most of their laughs by means of expert and unpredictable twists and turns and leaps and hops. They however, would probably be funny in any circumstances, being a perfect team on the order of Mutt and Jeff.

The program is almost entirely manly, outdoor stuff. Second on the bill is "Fish from Hell", the log of a fishing expedition off the west coast of Mexico, featuring such gory delights as the death struggle between a whale and a sword fish. A Silly Symphony and Fox Movie tone News fill in the gaps.