Montana Moon ** (1930, Joan Crawford, Johnny Mack Brown, Dorothy Sebastian, Ricardo Cortez) – Classic Movie Review 11,159

The 26-year-old Joan Crawford, expensively gowned by Adrian, stars as wayward and sophisticated rancher’s daughter Joan ‘Montana’ Prescott, who is tamed by Texas course cowboy Larry Kerrigan (Johnny Mack Brown), in director Malcolm St Clair’s 1930 black and white musical Western film Montana Moon. They marry but clash over their conflicting lifestyles. Ricardo Cortez also stars as Jeff Pelham, with whom flirty Joan does a sultry dance that ends with a prolonged kiss on her wedding night to Larry.

MGM tried to cash in on Crawford’s success in Our Dancing Daughters from 1928 and its sequels by mining the jazz-babe image, and adding a few musical numbers. Crawford, as always, surpasses the material she has to work with.

Montana Moon is entirely stilted, outmoded and faded, with some poor performances, though it is still worth a look for a game performance by the vibrant star in her salad days, the film’s sole recommendation.

It supposedly introduced the concept of the singing cowboy to cinema, and so has a lot to answer for.

It remained Crawford’s only Western till 1954’s Johnny Guitar.

The original story and continuity are by Sylvia Thalberg and Frank Butler, with dialogue by Joe Farnham.

It also stars Dorothy Sebastian as Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Prescott. Also in the cast are Benny Rubin, Cliff Edwards, Karl Dane, and Lloyd Ingraham.

Montana Moon is directed by Malcolm St Clair, is made and released by MGM, is written by Sylvia Thalberg, Frank Butler and Joe Farnham, is shot in black and white by William H Daniels, is produced by Malcolm St Clair, and is designed by Cedric Gibbons.

It was 1930 and MGM also released it in a silent version.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,159

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Movie Queens: Joan by Graeme Jukes.