George Montgomery Movies

A veritable honor roll of famed western heroes and villains appears in the fanciful oater Badman's Country. It all begins when Sheriff Pat Garrett (George Montgomery) draws up plans to lure the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang, headed by Butch Cassidy (Neville Brand) and the Sundance Kid (Russell Johnson) into a trap. To do this, he enlists the aid of fellow peacekeepers Wyatt Earp (Buster Crabbe), Bat Masterson (Gregory Walcott) and Buffalo Bill Cody (Malcolm Atterbury). By the time everyone is introduced, the film is half over. No matter: Badman's Country is redeemed by a truly impressive climactic gun duel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In December of 1944, the Allied high command is convinced that German forces in Belgium are in a low state of readiness, and perhaps even about to withdraw. Only one officer on the front lines, intelligence specialist Lt. Col. Kiley (Henry Fonda), believes otherwise -- that the Germans are actually planning an attack. His opinion is rejected by his immediate superior (Dana Andrews) and his commanding general (Robert Ryan). Kiley spots several suspicious signs of German activity behind enemy lines on a reconnaissance flight, and he is at the front looking for evidence when the German counter-offensive starts. Taking advantage of Allied unpreparedness and a weather front that grounds all aircraft, their heavy tank units, supported by infantry, roll over the American forces, assaulting the lines at five different points in an attempt to ultimately divide the Allied forces in the west. The German top tank officer, Colonel Hessler (Robert Shaw), has planned his operation perfectly, but he is in a race against time, to take as much territory as possible before the weather front moves out and American aircraft can fly again, and to capture the American fuel supplies so that the offensive can continue right to the port of Antwerp. He has the total dedication of his men, but engenders doubts from his aide, Conrad (Hans-Christian Blech), who is weary of the fighting and wonders what it is all for. Meanwhile, Kiley is trying to uncover the weak spot in the German offensive, and he crosses paths with several other key players in this drama: Charles Bronson as a combat officer charged with the defense of the collapsing American position, James MacArthur as a neophyte lieutenant who becomes a leader, and Telly Savalas as a conniving sergeant in command of a tank who unexpectedly finds a nobler, less mercenary side of himself. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

George Montgomery both produced and starred in the psychological western Black Patch. Written by character actor Leo Gordon (who also appears on screen), the story revolves around one-eyed marshal Clay "Black Patch" Morgan (Montgomery). The marshal is delighted to find out that his old buddy Hank Danner (Leo Gordon) is riding into town, but less than thrilled to learn that Danner is now a wanted outlaw. Reluctantly throwing his friend into jail, Morgan sets off a chain reaction of terror, beginning with a jailbreak engineered by crooked saloonkeeper Frenchy De Vere (a particularly vicious performance by Sebastian Cabot) and culminating in a showdown between the marshal and Danner's young protégé Flytrap (Tom Pittman). This is the sort of film in which a rape is represented by the symbolic opening and closing of a screen door. Black Patch seems pretentious when seen today, but in 1957 a western never lost money at the box-office. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An American pilot swears to get revenge on the German ace who shot his brother in this war movie set in war-torn Europe. Montgomery is the pilot. After he sees his brother die while trying to parachute to safety, Montgomery's plane is shot down over Germany. He is placed in a POW camp. There he meets a Russian medic and a Czech. Together the trio escapes. Along the way it is discovered that the Czech is a Nazi spy. The medic, Annabella, makes it to England through the underground. Montgomery, discovers a local airport, impersonates a German pilot, steals a plane and flies home. He also manages to kill the flying ace who shot his brother. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

America had not officially gone to war in November of 1941, but try telling that to the producers of the "preparedness" drama Cadet Girl. The title character is nightclub songstress Gene Baxter (Carole Landis), but the weight of the film rests on the shoulders of West Point cadet Tex Mallory (George Montgomery). Falling in love with Gene, Tex wants to marry her, even though this will force him to give up his military-academy appointment. Tex' innate patriotism is aroused by his bandleader brother Bob (John Sheppard, aka Sheppard Strudwick), Gene's boss, who writes a patriotic song called "Uncle Sam Gets Around." After a few bars of this flag-waving ditty, Tex realizes that his first duty is to his country, and he returns to West Point-but not before securing a promise from Gene that she'll wait for him until his tour of duty is over (little did she know that she'd have a four-year wait!). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The title character in Charter Pilot is King Morgan (Lloyd Nolan), who thinks nothing of taking life-threatening risks on a daily basis. When Morgan marries radio personality Marge Duncan (Lynn Bari), he accedes to her wishes and takes a desk job. Alas, he is unable to resist the call of the clouds, and soon he's back flying between the US and Central America. At long last, she talks him into remaining earthbound by starring him in a radio series based on his adventures. But there's still enough time in this 70-minute programmer for Morgan and his missus to foil a gang of Nazi saboteurs. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cripple Creek is an excellent example of Columbia's "A-minus/B-plus" Technicolor westerns of the 1950s. Government agent Bret Ivers (George Montgomery) goes undercover to infiltrate a gang of gold smugglers. Ivers and his two partners (Jerome Courtland and Richard Egan) face exposure and sudden death at every turn; indeed, one of the federal agents meets his demise before the film is a third over. The villains are the erudite-but-deadly Denver Jones (John Dehner) and the just-plain-deadly Silver Kirby (William Bishop). With so much already in its favor, Cripple Creek hardly needs a romantic interest, but Columbia had to keep contract actress Karin Booth busy, thus she shows up briefly as a flashy saloon gal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier, didn't become a nationwide craze (and merchandising cash cow) until Disney got hold of him in 1954. In the meantime, however, there was Columbia's Davy Crockett, Indian Scout, which in fact had little to do with the famed frontiersman. George Montgomery stars as Crockett's same-named nephew, a military scout assigned to insure safe passage for wagon trains. Someone has been tipping off the Indians as to the trains' movements, and Crockett wants to find out who before more blood is spilled. Suspicion immediately falls upon Davy's Tonto-like Indian companion Red Hawk (Philip Reed), but the answer lies somewhere else in the supporting cast. Also appearing in Davy Crockett, Indian Scout are Ellen Drew as the mixed-blood heroine, Robert Barrat as a muscular Indian chief and Paul Guilfoyle as a heavily disguised undercover agent. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A wealthy mercenary lives in blissful solitude upon his private island in the Philippines. This actioner chronicles what happens when it is invaded by pirates, mobsters, and smugglers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this musical western, ranch owner "Lucky" Langham (Robert Homans) dies unexpectedly, and in his will he leaves his spread to his daughter Cody (Carol Hughes). However, "Lucky" added the proviso that ranch foreman Gene (Gene Autry) is to be the executor of his will, and must give his OK before Cody can marry. Larry Cummings (Craig Reynolds) is a man from the city with eyes for Cody and her ranch; Gene has a feeling that Larry isn't to be trusted, and refuses to allow them to wed. Gene turns out to be a shrewd judge of character when Larry involves Cody in a kidnapping, and Gene (who is also drawn to Cody's charms) must come to the rescue. As usual, Smiley Burnette co-stars as Gene's sidekick Frog, and Gene warbles five songs of the sagebrush. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Technically a "B" western, Gun Belt is a notch or two above the norm. George Montgomery stars as former outlaw Billy Ringo, whose bank-robbing brother Matt (John Dehner) implicates him in a recent holdup. When Matt is killed in a shootout, Matt's son Chip (Tab Hunter) holds Billy responsible. When not trying to clear his name and patch up his family problems, Billy finds time to romance requisite leading lady Helen Westcott. The most tangible asset of Gun Belt is the superb Technicolor photography, courtesy of William Howard Greene. The film was one of several budget-conscious 1950s productions turned out by producer Edward Small for United Artists release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide