Our Modern Maidens (1929)
*** (out of 4)
After the success of OUR DANCING DAUGHTERS, MGM cashed in and come up with a similarly titled film that doesn't have anything to do with the original. To make sure headlines were grabbed, co-stars Joan Crawford and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. were married. In the film the two play a happy couple who are engaged with their whole lives in front of them. Crawford decides to gave a fling with an important government man (Rod La Rocque) so that her fiancé can get his career off the ground. This morality play isn't overly strong in terms of drama but all the pre-code elements make up for that. The first thirty-minutes of the movie are quite naughty as our young ladies do nothing but want sex, men, drinks and gambling. These jazz-age images are certainly rather fresh considering how many classic movies didn't feature any of this stuff. I would have loved to have been in the leg casting room as there are countless shots of beautiful legs that I'm sure had men smiling back in 1929. We even get Crawford in a rather revealing, bikini-like outfit showing off her curves. The story itself really isn't anything overly great as it's rather predictable and I'm sure you'll see the ending coming from a mile away. Crawford is very good in the role making for a nice little character that she can play without any trouble. Fairbanks is also pretty good but his highlight is the sequence where he mocks John Barrymore's Jekyll and Hyde and spoofs his own father's image. Anita Page has a brief part of bad girl Kentucky and La Rocque is good in his scenes as well. As with the previous film, this one here has a synced music score, which features the typical cheering, brief dialogue and even a radio broadcast. I feel this early "silent to sound" stuff doesn't work too well but again, we must remember this was 1929.
*** (out of 4)
After the success of OUR DANCING DAUGHTERS, MGM cashed in and come up with a similarly titled film that doesn't have anything to do with the original. To make sure headlines were grabbed, co-stars Joan Crawford and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. were married. In the film the two play a happy couple who are engaged with their whole lives in front of them. Crawford decides to gave a fling with an important government man (Rod La Rocque) so that her fiancé can get his career off the ground. This morality play isn't overly strong in terms of drama but all the pre-code elements make up for that. The first thirty-minutes of the movie are quite naughty as our young ladies do nothing but want sex, men, drinks and gambling. These jazz-age images are certainly rather fresh considering how many classic movies didn't feature any of this stuff. I would have loved to have been in the leg casting room as there are countless shots of beautiful legs that I'm sure had men smiling back in 1929. We even get Crawford in a rather revealing, bikini-like outfit showing off her curves. The story itself really isn't anything overly great as it's rather predictable and I'm sure you'll see the ending coming from a mile away. Crawford is very good in the role making for a nice little character that she can play without any trouble. Fairbanks is also pretty good but his highlight is the sequence where he mocks John Barrymore's Jekyll and Hyde and spoofs his own father's image. Anita Page has a brief part of bad girl Kentucky and La Rocque is good in his scenes as well. As with the previous film, this one here has a synced music score, which features the typical cheering, brief dialogue and even a radio broadcast. I feel this early "silent to sound" stuff doesn't work too well but again, we must remember this was 1929.