Mexicali Rose | 1929 | Romantic drama

Title: Mexicali Rose | 1929 | Romantic drama Director: Erle C. Kenton Studio: Columbia Pictures Starring: Barbara Stanwyck, Sam Hardy, William Janney Based on: Original story by Gladys Lehman Release Date: December 26, 1929 Runtime: 60 minutes Format: Black-and-white; Movietone sound; also released in a silent version; 7 reels Country: United States Language: English Genres: Romantic drama --- Chapters: 00:00:00 Border casino and betrayal 00:12:00 College visit and engagement 00:25:00 Honeymoon at the “gold mine” 00:38:00 Schemes and confrontation 00:50:00 Cliffside climax and aftermath --- Summary: Happy Manning, owner of a border-town casino, discovers his wife Rose has been unfaithful and divorces her. He devotes himself to his younger brother Bob, a college football star who believes Happy owns a gold mine and plans to honeymoon there. When Bob arrives, his new bride is revealed to be Rose. Happy keeps the truth from Bob while trying to gauge Rose’s intentions. As Rose resumes manipulations, tensions mount between the brothers, culminating in a fatal cliffside incident that forces a reckoning with deception, loyalty, and sacrifice. --- Background: Produced by Columbia Pictures in October–November 1929, the film starred Barbara Stanwyck—on loan from United Artists—and was shot partly at the “Jesse Lasky Ranch” in Mexico with completion on Columbia’s Hollywood sound stages. It was released on December 26, 1929, with a New York opening on January 23, 1930. Contemporary trade coverage noted that an originally harsher ending was replaced before wide release. Both sound and silent versions were prepared to accommodate theaters transitioning to sound. --- Trivia: The film’s cinematography is by Ted Tetzlaff, who later photographed Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious . A silent version of the film is known to survive; sources also report preservation holdings at the Library of Congress. Barbara Stanwyck’s appearance here is among her early starring roles at Columbia, preceding her major 1930s successes. Trade reports indicated the ending was altered after preview, replacing an on-screen killing with an off-screen death reported to other characters. An unrelated feature with the same title was released in 1939, starring Gene Autry. The title echoes the popular 1923 song “Mexicali Rose,” though the film’s story is original. --- Public Domain / Rights: Original Release: December 26, 1929 Original Studio / Distributor: Columbia Pictures Copyright Status: Public Domain Renewal: Unknown --- Hashtags: MexicaliRose 1929 BarbaraStanwyck ErleCKenton ColumbiaPictures ClassicCinema PreCode PublicDomain Source page: https: //commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mexicali_Rose_(1929).webm Direct media URL: https: //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Mexicali_Rose_%281929%29.webm