Boom Town

"Where Men Are Rough And Tough . . . And Like Their Women The Same Way !"

1940 1h 59m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 64

AdventureDramaRomanceWestern

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Two buddies who rise from fly-by-night wildcatters to oil tycoons over a twenty year period both love the same woman. McMasters and Sand come to oil towns to get rich. Betsy comes West intending to marry Sand but marries McMasters instead. Getting rich and losing it all teaches McMasters and Sand the value of personal ties.

“Where Men Are Rough And Tough . . . And Like Their Women The Same Way !”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Clark Gable
Big John McMasters
Spencer Tracy
Square John Sand
Claudette Colbert
Betsy Bartlett
Hedy Lamarr
Karen Vanmeer
Frank Morgan
Luther Aldrich
Lionel Atwill
Harry Compton
Chill Wills
Harmony Jones
Marion Martin
Whitey

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jack Conway
Writers: John Lee Mahin, James Edward Grant
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.6M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.1× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

86 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Directed by Jack Conway, shot by Harold Rosson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Franz Waxman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Blanche Sewell shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy and Claudette Colbert carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Where Men Are Rough And Tough . . . And Like Their Women The Same Way !".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jack Conway directs. Harold Rosson behind the camera. Franz Waxman scores. Blanche Sewell cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.6M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 3.1× over at the box office.
386 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Jack Conway, shot by Harold Rosson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Franz Waxman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Blanche Sewell shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy and Claudette Colbert carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Where Men Are Rough And Tough . . . And Like Their Women The Same Way !".
9IMDB entry: tt0032273 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 64 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Harold Rosson
Original score: Franz Waxman
Editing: Blanche Sewell
Makeup / hair: Sydney Guilaroff
Runtime: 119 min · 1h 59m
Status: Released
Budget: $1,600,000
Box office: $5,000,000
Return: 313% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Boom Town (1940)

Also by

Jack Conway

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

talisencrw2016-03-03
★ 9/10
Clark Gable has outstanding rapport both with Claudette Colbert, whom he was with in It Happened One Night, and Spencer Tracy, whom he had acted with before in the disaster flick San Francisco, in this fine film which would make an excellent double-bill with There Will Be Blood, for the price of being a prospector of black gold in early 20th-century America. Very enjoyable and thoroughly recommended.

Production companies