City Girl (1930)

This is one of those films that you can just sit back and let wash over you... The plot is simple, as are the characterisations involved - but that's what makes it effective. "Lem" (Charles Farrell) is a young man sent by his overbearing father to Chicago to sell their annual wheat crop. He frequents a diner where he meets the young waitress "Kate" (Mary Duncan) and the pair are soon an item. Meantime, though, the price of wheat is dropping so he must quickly secure a deal before he and his gal return home to rural Minnesota. His father "Tustine" (David Torrence) is less than impressed with both the deal he got for his crop and with his new daughter-in-law, and a period of unpleasantness culminates in some deliberate and selfish actions by the father as the harvesting is going on, that could spell ruin for everyone. The camera simply loves Farrell and Duncan - and the accompanying score helps them to convey their love and frustrations expertly. The ending is maybe just a little twee - but it does offer some redemption that illustrates how difficult it could be for a father to show affection for his son, and also of the somewhat trivial roles accorded to women at the time - many of whom were far more competent than their men folks! It is based on Elliott Lester's play 'The Mud Turtle", which like this film, I suspect, doesn't get out much nowadays - but this flows smoothly and effortlessly and really is quite a joy to watch.