Their Own Desire

"Forty-five? And falls in love?" Lally Marlett laughs off the thought that her middle-aged father could still feel the flame of romance -- until he runs off with another woman. Shocked and embittered, Lally accompanies her mother on a vacation in an attempt to put the past behind them. But the past catches up when she falls for a polished charmer who, unknown to her, is the son of her father's paramour. Norma Shearer and Robert Montgomery headline Their Own Desire, scripted by woman's-picture screenwriter extraordinaire Frances Marion (Dinner at Eight, Camille). Marion shows her skill at heartbreak by packing star-crossed love, infidelity and two near-death experiences into a brisk 64 minutes of romantic melodrama.

Yet another early talkie about love, jealousy and divorce among the upper classes, THEIR OWN DESIRE remains a dramatically stilted if technically efficient star vehicle. Lewis Stone is married to frumpy Belle Bennett, whom he leaves for the more streamlined Helene Millard. Stone's daughter, Norma Shearer, formerly a carefree member of the younger polo set, takes her mother's side on the issue and refuses any further association with the parent she once worshipped. In an attempt to forget her family problems, Shearer dallies with young Robert Montgomery and they fall madly in love. But he turns out to be Millard's son and Mother Bennett reacts to this alarming development by having fainting spells. Forced by circumstances to meet in secrecy, Shearer and Montgomery find themselves caught up in a ferocious storm on Lake Michigan and are reported missing. They have survived on an uninhabited island, however, from whence they are rescued by Stone, whom Shearer has forgiven. Parading a series of sleek gowns by Adrian, Norma Shearer performs one of her patented "restless debutante" roles with her usual elan but is somewhat defeated by Frances Marion's overly talkative scripts. Still, THEIR OWN DESIRE did well enough at the box-office for MGM to re-team her with newcomer Robert Montgomery in the similar THE DIVORCEE (1930), for which she earned an Academy Award.