Grand Hotel (1932)

MGM's young, brash executive with the touch of great movie production, Irving Thalberg, would pull out all the stops with the film production of Grand Hotel. From the moment he read the original story by Austrian-born American writer Vicki Baum about the interactions of guests in a hotel in Berlin Thalberg believed it was going to be a hit. His $13,000 investment in purchasing the story rights turned into a very successful Broadway play, which already made profits for him, but he wanted to turn it into the greatest film ever made. Thalberg would assembled all of MGM's stars into the ensemble cast, something unheard of at that time, to ensure that not only the story, but also the star power would bring unheard of interest to the production, making Grand Hotel a true winner in every sense. Grand Hotel was a landmark production bringing together the greatest collection of acting talent all to one screen. With such large appeal, and with the help of great directing, cinematography, art production, and an intriguing story, Grand Hotel would be greatest movie made in 1932 taking home the Academy Award along with it.

Grand Hotel is the story of a luxury hotel in Berlin and the happenings that surround five of its guests as their lives intermingle in many ways with each other, including love, suspense, mystery, and drama. Not only is the film about a grand hotel, but about a grand ensemble cast that includes Greta Garbo as Grusinskaya, a prima ballerina, John Barrymore as Baron, a rich man without his fortune, Wallace Beery as the German industrialist Preysing, Lionel Barrymore as a former employee of Preysing's, Kringelein, who also happens to be ill, and Joan Crawford as the German's stenographer Flaemmchen. Also seen in the picture are fellow gifted supporting actor Lewis Stone as a scarred doctor and Jean Hersholt in a small roll as the hotel porter. The film interestingly intermingles the various stories of the individuals into near two hour film, as their stories pass in and out of each others. At first they are separate persons, but things change in the two days we are with them in the hotel.

We meet Preysing as he struggles with handlings of his business, and tries to have an affair with his pretty, young stenographer. Kringelein learns to live life at the fullest as he knows he is terminally ill, even standing up to his imposing employer, a liberating moment for him. We see how the desperate Baron falls in love with the melancholy dancer Grusinskaya, giving both new reasons to be happy to change. But the Baron is a thief and is caught by Preysing, who accententally beats him to death. We leave our characters going their separate directions as they all check out. The Baron is dead. Grusinskaya, blissfully unaware of her new lovers death, leaves to perform in next destination. Preysing leaves in cuffs while Kringelein and Flaemmchen leave together in order to live the joys of life despite the terrible actions they saw. All this is done giving us the great closing line by the doctor "Grand Hotel. People come and go. Nothing ever happens."The people change, but the hotel remains the same.

Where to begin? The picture is quite grand. You can feel even decades after its original release the star power that surround the picture. The act direction of the lobby is magnificent, creating such great staging for many scenes that take place in and around the front desk of the hotel. The writing is brilliant as the stories glide form one to another so smoothly. The direction is wonderful as not only are the lead actors well placed in the film, but the side characters and extras as well, throwing out single lines or creating background noise in just the right spots. This production does stand out for the other films put out during the same year, which is clearly why the film would take home the best picture Oscar and would even be part of the National Film Registry at the Library of Congress.

Of course the film with such star power would not be solely about the story, but about the cast and the production. A cast of unparalleled star power never seen before in Hollywood would be brought together by the picture. MGM was known for their stars, but usually put only one or two in a single picture to spread the wealth around, but producer Thalberg wanted the film to be talk of the town, and succeeded. Each star had his/her story. Garbo, the biggest of MGM's female stars, felt she was too old, at 27, to play a prima ballerina, but Thalberg pushed her hard enough and insisted to advertise her by only her last name. (This perhaps made her the first star in film to be known by only one name.) Garbo insisted that her fiance, John Gilbert, play her love interest, the Baron, but John Barrymore would be big star to get cast. At first Garbo was unpleased, but the two got along wonderfully. This would not be true about Garbo and Crawford as the two were huge film rivals, refusing to work with each other, never filmed together on the picture, and would not talk to each other on set, aside from quick snide comments. When Crawford's role got most of the juicy parts of the film extras scenes were added to give equal time for Garbo. Wallace Beery turned down his role at first, feeling his co-stars would outshine him, but was reassured when he was told he would be the only actor to use a German accent. For Kringelein, at first MGM wanted to use Buster Keaton, but later decided to use John's equally famous brother Lionel, rounding out the cast.

Grand Hotel opened to one of the first great red carpet, superstar premieres at Grauman's Chinese Theater on Hollywood Boulevard, truly exemplifying MGM's saying of having "more stars than are in the heavens." Even at this lavish event was seen an animosity between Garbo and Crawford. The picture was MGM's top grossing film of the year and as mentioned beforehand was awarded best picture, a goal Thalberg had set out to do. The interesting fact that comes with Grand Hotel winning best picture is that the film also would be hailed as the only best picture winner not be nominated for any other awards. You read that correctly. Grand Hotel only had one nomination, and not one for its acting, directing, or cinematography. A shocking fact to think of looking back on it years later. Wallace Beery did take home the best actor trophy that year, but in his role as the The Champ.

A lasting memory for the movie would be the Great Garbo line "I want to be alone," a phrase that would follow her for the rest of her life. Garbo was a private and shy woman that disliked the prying eyes of the press and public and many times would ask to be left alone. She would resent the line in a way, as she was believed to want to be completely alone, but she would make it clear that she wished to be let alone not be completely alone. She would one day be sick of being hounded by people and live a private, quiet life in New York until her death.

Grand Hotel would a benchmark in MGM and cinema for its production and star quality. Such a star studded produce would be done on occasions in the future, much like Steven Soderbergh's 2001 movie Ocean's Eleven. It was production like this that made MGM the prestigious studio in Hollywood, the one with what seemed to get the most press and seemed to shine the brightest. There would be attempts to recreate the same movie in the future, most notably the 1945 picture Week-End at the Waldorf, creating some success but not as much as the original. Grand Hotel is a good film that should be watched not only for its stars, but for down right good movie production.