Cattle Queen of Montana

1954 "She strips off her petticoats . . . and straps on her guns !"
5.6| 1h28m| NR| en
Details

Sierra Nevada Jones must fight a villainous rancher to regain the land that is rightfully hers.

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Reviews

Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
Portia Hilton Blistering performances.
Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.
ma-cortes Famed Western with a magnificent Barbara Stanwick and a splendid Ronald Regan who is ideal as a mysterious gunslinger . This Western movie produced by RKO , Radio Picture Inc , deals with confrontation between cattlemen and settlers . This exciting picture tells the story of the Jones family , formed by father , J.I. 'Pop' Jones (Morris Ankrum) , and his gutsy daughter (Barbara Stanwyck with the super name Sierra Nevada Jones) , both of them about to prove claim to prime Montana land . Then , they are attacked by rebel Indians led by Natchakoa (Anthony Caruso) in league with nasty neighbor McCord (Gene Evans) , the latter gets most of the stolen cattle and their lands . Nobody is willing to help them ; however , appearing a good guy , a college-educated chief's son called Colorados (Lance Fuller) and two survivors are helped by him . Later on , there appears a good-looking gunfighter , Farrell (Ronald Regan) , investigating weapon smuggling and livestock rustlings and with whom Nevada Jones falls in love . Now Sierra Nevada Jones must confront enemies , as villainous outlaws , as Indians raids . This classic western is plenty of thrills and emotion as showdown approaches and the protagonists realize he must stand alone against impossible odds , while Nevada Jones attempts to clear her father's murder . The flick is of a higher than habitual calibre for a regular oater , filled with betrayals , hateful , ambition and Indian uprising. Montana prairies provide the backstage for a torrid love between Barbara Stanwyck and Ronald Regan . Western fans will enjoy the continuous pursuits and confrontations among a brave Stanwyck supported Reagan , being raided by Indians , and against ominous villains as Gene Evans , Jack Elam , Anthony Caruso . Furthermore, an exciting ending climax at the meadows in which the protagonists are besieged by Indians and cutthroats . Nice acting by Barbara Stanwyck , she stars an uncomplicated lady who fights for her land against legal technicalities and assorted villains . Barbara Stanwyck as usual did her own stuntwork , so impressing the local Blackfoot Indians that they named her Princess Many Victories and made her an honorary member of the tribe . Acceptable acting by Ronald Reagan , his role of Farrell was originally offered to Robert Mitchum, who turned it down because he didn't like the script , it was then offered to Ronald Reagan, who took it . Large support cast does well , full of known secondary actors as Gene Evans , Lance Fuller , Chubby Johnson , Anthony Caruso , Jack Elam , Morris Ankrum , many of them usual in Western . Although made in no much budget by the producer Benedict Bogeaus is a very efficient film and very entertaining . It packs a colorful cinematography print in Technicolor by John Alton who along with Nicholas Musuraca are considered to be two of the best cameraman specialized in Noir cinema . Marvelous scenario is really superb , shot on location in Glacier National Park, Montana, and Iverson Ranch , Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California . Thrilling as well as evocative musical score by Louis Forbes . This middle budget movie was professionally directed by Allan Dwan , though has some flaws and gaps . Dwan was a good craftsman working from the silent cinema . He was Gloria Swanson's favorite director and after he began to work for Triangle in 1916 , he also won the respect of Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford , who were , at that time, the most powerful couple in the film business . Dwan directed over 1400 films , including one-reels, between his arrival in the industry (circa 1909) and his final film in 1961 . Among them some good Western as ¨ Restless breed¨, ¨The rivers edge¨, ¨Cattle Queen of Montana¨ and ¨Montana Belle¨ , being ¨Silver Lode¨ is his unqualified masterpiece . ¨Cattle queen Montana¨ results to be an acceptable and passable picture . Watchable and presentable results for this classic western movie .
mark.waltz While this allegedly featured some real Blackfoot Native Americans in extra roles, very few of them are noticeable on screen, making this colorful western shot on its real settings a major let-down. Beautifully photographed but filled with Native American stereotypes and one dimensional supporting characters, this is only noteworthy for the strong performance of Barbara Stanwyck as Sierra Nevada Jones, the daughter of a Texas rancher who has brought her up to Montana to create a new cattle ranch on the open plains. They have only just started to set up when the Blackfoot Indians attack, leaving papa dead and Stanwyck at the mercy of the chief's kind-hearted, university educated son (a very non-native Lance Fuller). He's rivals with brother Anthony Caruso, the stereotypical white man hating native who is in cahoots with sinister rancher Gene Evans to keep infiltrators like Stanwyck off of the land he wants for himself.While the film is certainly watchable, the elements of how the natives are treated here is beyond reproach and the presence of that emotionally absent actor turned politician Ronald Reagen adds more laughability to it as a secret agent working to expose Evans. Yvette Duguay plays a native maiden jealous of Stanwyck's friendship with Fuller who betrays him to his brother. A retread of already stereotypical types roles played by Myrna Loy in the late 1920's and early 30's and Rita Moreno earlier in the 1950's, the fate of this character is obvious from the moment she is introduced.If it wasn't for Stanwyck and the beautiful color location photography, I would rank this as a total bore not worth wasting time on. But with her incredible feisty performance and ability to do her own stunts, Stanwyck makes every mediocre action film she ever made worth seeing. Just forget about the presence of a future Republican president (then supposedly democrat) and focus on the toughest legendary movie star ever to ride over the range.
jarrodmcdonald-1 The Cattle Queen of Montana is a robust Technicolor western from RKO that displays the gorgeous scenery of Glacier National Park. Yes, outdoor photography may be most suited to the western genre. And this film proves it.It's easy to see that Barbara Stanwyck is in her element in a story that sets her in the great outdoors. The film, more than others on Stanwyck's varied resume, supports the idea that westerns served her very well. During the course of the story, Miss Stanwyck demonstrates her range as an authoritative ranch owner. Savage natives? Rough cowboys? Natural disasters? They are no threat when she rides on to the scene.
NewEnglandPat Barbara Stanwyck stars as hard-riding redhead who is out to reclaim land and cattle stolen from her by an unscrupulous rancher in cahoots with hostile Indians. Many of the standard western movie clichés make up the story so there isn't anything new here. Ronald Reagan appears as an undercover government agent investigating unlawful distribution of rifles to the Indians and has trouble keeping Stanwyck out of harm's way. Lance Fuller is a college-educated Indian who wants his people to walk in the ways of the white man. Anthony Caruso, who was great at portraying villains, is on target as a bad Indian who's in cahoots with Gene Evans who conspires to drive Jones off her rightful claim to the valley. The picture also has a wealth of great character actors such as Myron Healy, Jack Elam, Morris Ankrum, Chubby Johnson and Rod Redwing. The film has fine technicolor lensing and an okay music score.