Grand Hotel

Plot synopsis:
Doctor Otternschlag (Lewis Stone), a disfigured veteran of World War I and a permanent resident of the Grand Hotel in Berlin, wryly observes, "People coming, going. Nothing ever happens", after which a great deal transpires. Baron Felix von Geigern (John Barrymore), who squandered his fortune and supports himself as a card player and occasional jewel thief, befriends Otto Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore), a meek accountant who, having discovered he is dying, has decided to spend his remaining days in the lap of luxury. Kringelein's former employer, industrialist General Director Preysing (Wallace Beery), is at the hotel to close an important deal, and he hires stenographer Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford) to assist him. She aspires to be an actress and shows Preysing some magazine photos for which she posed, implying she is willing to offer him more than typing if he is willing to help advance her career.
Another guest is Russian ballerina Grusinskaya (Greta Garbo), whose career is on the wane. She is high strung and seemingly on the verge of a breakdown. When the Baron is in her room to steal her jewelry and she returns from the theatre, he hides in her room and overhears her as she talks to herself in despair about wanting to end it all, holding a vial of medication in her hand. He comes out of hiding and engages her in conversation, and Grusinskaya finds herself attracted to him.
The following morning, a repentant Baron returns Grusinskaya's jewels, and she is able to forgive his crime. Instead, she invites him to accompany her to Vienna, an offer he accepts.
The Baron joins Kringelein and Flaemmchen at the hotel bar, and she cajoles the ailing man into dancing with her. Preysing interrupts them and imperiously demands she join him. Irritated by his former employer's coarse behavior, Kringelein – who is aware of Preysing's many swindles – tells him what he thinks of him. Surprised by his uncharacteristic audacity, Preysing attacks Kringelein and the two men must be separated. The Baron is desperate for money to pay his way out of the criminal group he had been working with. He and Kringelein decide to get a card game going, and Kringelein wins everything, and then becomes intoxicated. When he drops his wallet, the Baron locates and quietly stashes it in his jacket pocket, intending to keep the winnings for himself. However, after Kringelein begins to frantically search for his lost belongings, the Baron – who desperately needs the money but has become very fond of Kringelein – pretends to have suddenly discovered the wallet and returns it to him.
As part of a current desperate merger plan, Preysing must travel to London, and he asks Flaemmchen to accompany him. Later, when the two are in her room, which opens on to his, Preysing sees the shadow of the Baron rifling through his belongings. He confronts the Baron; the two struggle, and Preysing bludgeons the Baron with the telephone, killing him. Flaemmchen comes in and sees what happened and tells Kringelein, who confronts Preysing. He insists he acted in self-defense, but Kringelein, who always hated Preysing, summons the police and Preysing is arrested.
Grusinskaya departs for the train station, fully expecting to find the Baron waiting for her there. Meanwhile, Kringelein offers to take care of Flaemmchen, who suggests they go to Paris and seek a cure for his illness. As they leave the hotel, Doctor Otternschlag once again observes, "Grand Hotel. Always the same. People come. People go. Nothing ever happens."

Tags: murder

Review:
John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Greta Garbo, Wallace Beery, and Joan Crawford all check into the Grand Hotel one day and their lives are never the same.
This was the Depression in America too and many could identify with her.No one epitomized class and old world elegance like John Barrymore, he was not better on film than here in Grand Hotel.
Beery is the only one in the film to attempt any kind of Germanic speech and he does succeed in his portrayal of the hateful industrialist Preysing.My favorite in Grand Hotel has always been Lionel Barrymore.
It's utterly wonderful!The whole cast is superb -- charming, desperate, vulnerable John Barrymore; cynical, sad, appealing Joan Crawford; pathetic, whining, irrepressible Lionel Barrymore; coarse, selfish, all-too-humanly cruel Wallace Beery; and of course, the great Greta Garbo.
Watching this transformation on screen is like seeing the two sides of Garbo.Edmund Goulding directs this 113 minute drama at a fast-pace, starting its opening with overhead camera shots of numerous switchboard operators connecting the incoming calls, followed by the brief introduction of the central characters conversing on the telephone in the hotel lobby: Senf (Jean Hersholt), the head hotel clerk, awaits the news of his wife who is about to give birth to their child; Otto Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore), a bookkeeper, diagnosed with an incurable disease who quits his job to enjoy his remaining days to the fullest; Preysing (Wallace Beery), a no-nonsense industrialist staying at the hotel to negotiate a business deal with important clients; Suzette (Rafaella Ottiano), the maid to the famous Russian dancer, Grusinskaya, who expresses concern about her employer; Baron Felix Von Greigern (John Barrymore), an adventurer traveling with his Dachshund dog, desperately in need of money to pay off a heavy debt, planning his latest robbery by stealing valuable jewels from the famous ballerina; and Otternschlag (Lewis Stone), a scarred doctor who walks about the hotel lobby, observing the goings on, and reciting to himself quietly, "Grand Hotel, people come, people go, and NOTHING ever happens!" Things start to happen as Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford), a stenographer with ambition, is hired by Preysing as his personal secretary.
The studio loaded it with an A List of star performers: Greta Garbo, uttering her trademark phrase, `I want to be alone.' Radiant in love, one can only imagine the despair that awaits her after the film ends.John Barrymore, suave, sophisticated & ultimately tragic.Lionel Barrymore, in a performance that will stay in your memory, slowly dying.Wallace Beery in a heavy role, all bullying bluff & bluster.Joan Crawford, tough as nails & good as gold.Lewis Stone, Jean Hersholt, Rafaela Ottiano & Ferdinand Gottschalk all lend sterling support.There was concern that putting so much talent into one film, instead of spreading the stars out over 4 or 5 films, would lose the studio money.
In fact, this seems to be one of the first films to have relied in the prominent "names" it gathered to portray the different characters in the movie.By today's standards, the film is dated, but for a discriminating film fan, "Grand Hotel" is a classic because of the star turns one witnesses.
In fact, most of the complaints in comments submitted to this forum would have been different if this was 1932 and the film had just come out.The best advice for anyone new to this film is to sit back, relax, and enjoy the trials and tribulations of the people seen at Berlin's Grand Hotel.The biggest surprise of the film is the shortness of Greta Garbo presence in the film, in which for some unknown reason, she looms large above the rest of the players.
There are five centre characters hemmed in Berlin's Grand Hotel, a Russian prima ballerina Grusinskaya (Garbo), a moneyless Baron Felix von Geigern (John Barrymore), an accountant Otto Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore), a dying man who decides to shell out all his savings by living in the luxury.
As for Otto, he is supposedly to be a sympathetic character, but myself find Lionel Barrymore's all-over-the-place acting quite annoying, wanting any trace of subtlety needed to counterbalance the haphazardly-paced narrative, together with Beery's hateful Preysing, an outrageously repulsive character, becomes the nadir of star-power vehicle (Beery won BEST LEADING ACTOR at the same year for THE CHAMP 1931 though).Director Edmund Goulding (THE RAZOR'S EDGE 1946, 7/10) is an important name in the Golden Age Hollywood - although never won any substantial accolade for his directing work, plus his filmography being too comprehensive to sum up thus it is difficult to extract his own directorial touch to be categorised as an auteur - his adroit skill in manoeuvring a large and elaborate set, the outstanding fluidity of shifting his camera within a confined interior and magnanimously permitting enough space for his stars to enjoy the spotlight, is undeniably a key factor is this polished hit of its era..
At the same time, industrialist Preysing (Wallace Beery) has arrived at the hotel in an effort to conclude a important business deal and has hired a stenographer named Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford) to assist him--but Preysing is unaware that company accountant Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore) has been diagnosed with a terminal illness and has taken rooms at the hotel, determined to enjoy himself before he dies.
These characters, along with Grusinskaya's maid (Rafaela Ottiano), the hotel doctor (Lewis Stone), and various hotel employees (including Jean Hersholt) collide repeatedly over the course of a few days--and none will emerge entirely unscathed from their encounters.John Barrymore was noted for his larger-than-life performances on the stage, and he brought that same quality to many silent films; less fortunately, he also carried into the sound era, and his performance reads as excessively large.
Although Garbo was a great star in the silent era, she quickly adapted to the new demands of sound in such films as ANNA Christie--but when faced with Barrymore's over-the-top performance she responds in kind, and the result is visually beautifully but incredibly mannered, and their scenes are not greatly aided by their dialogue, which is itself very much in "the grand manner." Although they are indeed fascinating, their performances are distinctly out of synch with the rest of the film, where a more natural style of acting is the norm.While Wallace Beery and Lewis Stone are quite good, and while Lionel Barrymore is unexpectedly effective (and much less mannered than his brother John), it is really Joan Crawford that points the way toward the new acting style.
Even so, there are plenty of compensations: Garbo at the height of her beauty; Lionel Barrymore's multi-layered performance; a Crawford classic; and always, always the lush look and feel of the movie.
Of course, it didn't do so well, being head and shoulders above both the original play and this "all-star" M-G-M romp.There is a reason why this is the only film to win "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards -- and nothing else."If it ain't on the page, it ain't on the stage," actors have maintained since, oh, Euripides.Here, what's on the page is cliché after cliché -- pretentious conceits that were already old and tired by 1932.What's fascinating is certainly not Goulding's hackneyed direction, but the various actors' more or less successful attempts to breathe real life into cardboard roles.At the top of that list is Lionel Barrymore.
Third-billed, and even with added Garbo scenes to keep Crawford from walking off with "Grand Hotel," she still does.Crawford and Lionel Barrymore not only make their clichéd lines and characters wholly believable, they literally walk off into the sunrise together at the end, as clichés often do.Wallace Beery is wonderful and dimensional and even heart-breaking as Preysing.
Grand Hotel is considered to be a fine example of the work of Greta Garbo, but I like other critics of this film on this website seem to agree that her performance is over the top, and on par with acting that took place in silent films, exaggerated and unreal.The best performance in the film is Joan Crawford.
The stenographer (Joan Crawford) has set her sights on the Baron believing him to be rich, while she is being eyed by her employer, a wealthy industrialist (Wallace Beery) who is the former employer of a dying man (Lionel Barrymore) who intends to spend his life savings experiencing what he has been missing out on all these years, who in turn is befriended by the Baron.
Oddly enough that film was superior to "Grand Hotel" in many ways, but didn't receive any Oscar nominations.Finally, much has been said about Greta Garbo's over-the-top performance in this one.
Garbo and the Barrymores, Crawford, Wallace Beery (compare if you can his performance with that of Gert Fröbe in the later German version) may be seen as larger than life each in his or her own right.It is not enough to judge this film on its own merits from the perspective of the twenty-first century.
It's not as overstuffed as some modern movies, focusing on just five characters: a hotel thief pretending to be a baron (John Barrymore), an industrial magnate (Wallace Beery), his secretary (Joan Crawford), an aging and neurotic ballerina (Greta Garbo), and a nebbishy, dying man spending his last days in the luxurious hotel (Lionel Barrymore).
"Cabaret" meets "The Love Boat" in this revolving sequence of interlinked stories set in a Berlin hotel in the early 1930s.There's John Barrymore as a penniless baron reduced to thieving for unguarded jewels in order to hold off a vicious creditor; brother Lionel Barrymore as a dying clerk determined to spend away his life savings in what's left of his life; Wallace Beery as a struggling, bad-tempered industrialist; Joan Crawford as a up-for-anything stenographer; and Greta Garbo as a legendary but fading ballerina."People coming...going" observes the facially scarred lobby lizard Otternschlag (Lewis Stone).
The meaningless bustle seems a foreshadowing of the war we know is coming to destroy this world for good, even if the only Adolf in evidence is the Baron's faithful dachshund, Adolphus.But the movie is hurt by the triteness of the story lines and the thinness of the acting.Lionel Barrymore's gentle Kringelein is an assay in scraping obsequiousness, pointing up the class difference between himself and the baron with a mawkishly heavy hand.
She looks like a '30s Eva Green with her lean, angular body and deep, flashing eyes; playing her scenes with a subtle coyness that hints both at the sexual abandon of Europe after the Great War and the nature of being a woman in what was then still decidedly a man's world."Have you ever seen a stenographer in a decent frock?" she asks the baron."I have indeed," he says, eyeing her."One she bought herself?""Grand Hotel" plays with libertine notions here and there, but doesn't really declare itself as much more than a costume drama and an event picture where the stars gathering together IS the story as much as any plot point.
Otto gets his by now hot in the collar boss even madder at him by stealing his pretty stenographer Flaemmchen or Flaem for short, Joan Crawford, who sees what a creep her, like Otto's, boss the Iron Prussian-like Preysing really is.The movie "Grand Hotel" also has as one of its guests the flat broke and compulsive gambler Baron Felix Von Geigern, John Barrymore.
***SPOILERS***It's then that Baron Felix finally sees the light and gives up his life of a cat burglar and con-artist but only after one last fling, in robbing Preysing room, which turned out to be fatal for him.Despite the major and established stars in the film, Greta Garbo the Barrymores and Wallace Beery, it was Joan Crawford, compared to the quality of acting talent she was up against, in a more or less supporting role who stole the films acting honors.
MGM rolled the dice and put Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, Lionel Barrymore and Joan Crawford together for a memorable film.
But again, that was the style of the day, so how much can you discount the film for that?I would love to see this picture re-made, but left in the pre-WWII Berlin, and hopefully include a minor storyline of what was happening in Berlin at the time.A wonderful artifact from Hollywood's golden age, I would rate "Grand Hotel" a 8 out of 10..
John Barrymore gives one of his greatest performances as the down on his luck Baron Von Giagern,charming wistful and melencoly.Brother Lionel gives his greatest performance as the dying,but zestful Otto Kringelien.Lewis Stone is appropietly flippant and cynical as the enigmatic Dr. Otternslag and Joan Crawford shows us just how pretty and endearing she was in her early career.And then there is Garbo,the mystique that followed her to her grave must have started with her ethereal performance in this film.She is a wonder.
That is, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket.", to be Flip.The Film Features Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Lionel Barrymore, and Wallace Berry.
It is fluffy to be sure, but it also happens to be wildly entertaining, so I guess you can call it a supreme success as it does exactly what it sets out to do.A bevy of big, big stars--Lionel and John Barrymore (where was Ethel?), Greta Garbo, Wallace Beery and a young Joan Crawford (before she turned scary)--act up a storm in this glorified soap opera that takes place solely in the eponymous hotel.
Best not to take too critical an eye with this one and just enjoy the goings on.Joan Crawford pulls the rug out from under every other cast member and walks away with this film; indeed, she's so good, she seems to be acting in a completely different movie.
This movie seems today a bit stiff and slow,but the story is still fascinating.John Barrymore gives a marvelous performance as the fatalistic thief and Joan Crawford is utterly beguiling in one of her most naturalistic roles.Greta Garbo's performance would have suited the silent screen better than it does here.Lionel Barrymore is just right for his part as a dying and meek clerk on a last spree.As the desperate and unlikeable businessman Wallace Beery is perhaps a bit too hammy..
Set in a ritzy hotel in 1928 Berlin, the film follows the little dramas of a group of guests, including the impoverished Baron, reduced to theft to survive, an aging ballerina, a dying man on his last fling, the corrupt industrialist, the young stenographer, not above prostituting herself for extra money.
Good drama film that was over promoted and over rated by the powers that be.The film is not all that great.The script was very average and so was the directing and cinematography.The story,although engaging was not that incredible either.What was nice was the performances of the great John Barrymore and  Crawford.Lionel Barrymore over acted and was irritating.The same could be said of Garbo who could be excused though because she was portraying one those over acting type divas in this film.This is nothing compared to it's less propaganda promoted counterpart "Skyscraper Souls" which was ten times better than this film even if it featured a less stellar cast.See that masterpiece film first if possible before seeing "Grand Hotel".
Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Lionel Barrymore and Wallace Beery all deliver classic representations of what made them stars of that period.
The film shows us the importance of having money - Crawford's character needs it to make ends meet, John Barrymore's character needs it to be free from an entanglement, Lionel Barrymore's character has it and is able to enjoy life as a result, and it's an important part of both Garbo and Beery's standing.
The movie has a superb script and a cast of characters played by some of the great actors of the time: two of the Barrymores, Lionel and John, Greta Garbo, Wallace Beery, Joan Crawford, Lewis Stone.
There's Joan Crawford, looking like a classic movie star, and Lionel Barrymore, having the time of his life.
Baron Felix Von Geigern (John Barrymore) has wasted his inheritance and results to jewel thievery; Otto Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore)is a man stricken with an incurable disease who decides to spend the last days of his life in pleasure; General Director Preysing (Wallace Beery) stays at the hotel to close an important business deal; Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford) is employed by Preysing as a stenographer (typist).
The central characters are the hotel's hard-drinking doctor (Lewis Stone), a bankrupt aristocrat/cat burglar (John Barrymore), a burned out ballerina (Greta Garbo), a greedy and exploitive manufacturing executive (Wallace Beery), an ambitious stenographer (Joan Crawford), and a terminally ill bookkeeper (Lionel Barrymore), whose paths cross during a stay at the high-class Grand Hotel.
Meanwhile Grusinkaya's loneliness is the price of her success and fame, like that of many a celebrity.Also, here in Grand Hotel, a young Joan Crawford's character, - played with great intuition - which is that of Flaemmchen states how she'd love to be in the movies.
Joan Crawford, young and sexy and not as mannered as she would be a couple of years later, almost steals the picture.Lionel Barrymore as the dying clerk on his last spree delivers a heart-wrenching performance.And then there's brother John as the suave jewel thief and he is magnificent.Those three are the heart of the movie.Wallace Beery as the industrialist plays more or less a caricature and the great Garbo doesn't really have much to do then look depressed and suddenly transformed by love.
With Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Wallace Beery, and Joan Crawford, each character dominates the screen when they come on, making the other players seem like bit parts.
A young and vibrant Joan Crawford as a stenographer at the "Grand Hotel" and the two Barrymore brothers--Lionel and John--are the best things about this Oscar-winning film from 1932 that is now so dated as to be a museum piece with over-the-top melodramatics from Greta Garbo (as a weary ballerina) that had me cringing in embarrassment.
I especially liked Lionel Barrymore (as "Baron Felix von Geigern") and Joan Crawford ("Flaemmchen") in their respective roles but both Greta Garbo and Wallace Beery ("General Director Preysing") were also quite good.