Silent Sundays: Joyless Street (1925)

Joyless Street is a film I remember trying to watch years ago when I was first becoming interested in classic films. The film is included in a pack of one hundred classic films that my mom bought me for Christmas one year. I tried watching Joyless Street since I had never seen Greta Garbo in a film before but at the time I was not completely interested in silent films. I had tried before this to watch a silent Alfred Hitchcock film and that did not work out too well. And now look at me I run a movie blog where I watch silent films every Sunday!

            The story takes place in Vienna after World War I. There are more people living in the slums than there are living in comfort. In the slums the poor and their needs are taken advantage of by unscrupulous people. In one slum the only rich people are a butcher and a woman named Madame Gill who runs a boutique for the wealthy as well as a cabaret.

            A girl named Maria comes home one night without any food. Her father chases her into her room and nearly beats her. Upstairs from Maria, lives a father with his two daughters. He has worked as a civil servant for many years and is thus making some money and is able to put some food on the table. His oldest daughter Greta (Garbo) goes to wait outside on a line just to try to get meat. From standing all night Greta faints from exhaustion but must head back home since she has work the following morning.

            At work two other women in the office snicker at Greta’s beat up fur lined jacket. The boss comes down and wants to see her in the office. All the other workers think Greta is doing something with the boss and the boss thinks she is a prostitute and is always looking to have his way with her. The boss gives Greta her pay in advance since he can see on her face that she is exhausted.

            Greta’s father sees in the paper that as a civil servant he will be able to cash in his pension. He is given the option to cash the whole thing in or put it towards investing in a company. He decides to invest it in a mine. Unfortunately the mine he invests his pension in is being run by crooked men who want to create a rumor about the mine and drive the stock prices down and sell it. Obviously the father does not know this information. He believes that he will be making a lot of money. He tells Greta to go out and buy herself a nice coat. The next day Greta wears her new coat to work. The boss now definitely believes she is a prostitute and tries to have his way with her. She fights him off and in anger tells her to never come back that he does not want a girl like her working in his office.

            With no job and now her father’s pension no more she decides to rent out the extra room in their apartment and sell her jacket. Apparently she bought her jacket from Maria but Maria tells Greta to keep the jack and pay her back when she can. A young American working with a relief commission has come to town to help the poor. He is taken to a nightclub where all the rich have gone to dance and have a good time. He is upset it is not the Vienna he has come to help and declares that he is going to find a room in a poor neighborhood. Well as luck will have it he finds the room that Greta is letting. Of course after some time Greta and the American become close.

            Eventually Greta and her family become desperate for money. She decides to go to Madame Gills for a job in her cabaret. The American finds her before she can go on stage and becomes enraged that she would stoop so low. Her father comes just in time to tell the American the only reason Greta took the job was because of him since he could not bring in any money. But now he has been given money back from his pension so Greta does not have to work at the cabaret. The American goes to her to bring her back home.

            The original run of Joyless Street is over two hours long. The cut that I was able to find and watch ran for an hour. From what I was able to find of the plot there are several more characters and storylines which were cut for English speaking audiences due to censorship issues. I did not mind the story in the version that I watched. I felt terrible for Greta’s father who was ripped off just so rich people could make even more money. Sadly the world is still running that way. Garbo was fantastic as always. Her face and body language just conveyed so much more than words could say about her character’s position and feelings. Joyless Street is worth watching to see Greta Garbo in her first leading role. It is available to view in full on YouTube. 

Silent Sundays: Flesh and the Devil (1926)

Silent Sundays: Mysterious Lady (1928)

Queen Christina (1933)

“There are rumors that your Majesty is planning a foreign marriage.”
“They are baseless.”
“But your Majesty, you cannot die an old maid.”
“I have no intention to, Chancellor. I shall die a bachelor!” 

            The first time I ever heard the name Queen Christina I was reading a book about the Vatican. Queen Christina was queen of Sweden in the 1600s. She abdicated her throne when she converted to Catholicism and lived in Italy for the rest of her life where she was a great patron of the arts. Christina is one of the very few women to be buried in the Vatican. How fitting of MGM to make a film based off this queen in 1933 starring their current Swedish queen of the box office Greta Garbo. MGM of course glamorized Christina’s life because her life was not romantic in any sense but that is what the studio did best with their historical pictures. Queen Christina, although not a critical success in the States, offers one of Garbo’s best film performances.

            Christina has been queen of Sweden since she was a young girl when her father died in battle. Her father raised her as a boy and as a young woman she wears men’s clothing and lives her life as a man. Christina becomes a beloved leader to her people. She ends the war that her country has been in ever since she can remember. The men in her court want the war to continue but she sees no reason for it she sees them as just wanting to fight.

            With the issue of war settled her chancellor keeps pestering her about marrying the war hero Prince Charles. The people want her to marry him as well but she does not love and has no intentions to marry him at all. Mad at what she is hearing she runs out of the castle and goes riding on her horse. Christina sees a caravan held up in a ditch and she laughs that they are stuck in the snow. The caravan is carrying the Spanish ambassador a very handsome man named Antonio. She helps them get out of the snow and Antonio thinks her to be a boy and hands her a gold dollar. That night Christina goes to an inn just to get away from everything. The keeper believes her to be a man as well and she goes with it so no one will bother her. Antonio and entourage come to the inn seeking shelter from the snow. They sit down and speak as men. The inn keeper tells Antonio that the best room was given to Christina. There is a situation over the sharing of the room but Christina agrees to share it with Antonio. At first when they undress for bed she is hesitant but then lets the hesitation go. Antonio knows who she is and says he felt her presence as a woman.

            Christina and Antonio happily spend five days together at the inn due to a snow storm. The lonely queen feels happy with her ambassador. When the snow finally clears enough for them to leave they hate to have to be apart. When Christina returns to her castle she has dresses made for when she sees Antonio again. When Antonio lays eyes on Christina again she is sitting on her thrown in a beautiful gown and a smile on her face. He is caught off guard by her beauty and stops what he is saying in mid sentence to look at her.

            The queen and the ambassador spend several more happy weeks together. Their happiness is interrupted when the treasurer a man named Magnus who loves Christina gets jealous of them being together and spreads rumors and gossip causing unrest among the court and the people. The people storm the castle but they have nothing to say. Christina tells them that she does not interfere with their personal lives so they should not interfere with hers. Now she is left with a big decision whether to let Antonio go and give the people what they want by marrying Prince Charles.

            As I said this is a glamorized version of an historical story so I am hoping you know that Garbo does abdicate to be with the one she loves. Also if you know anything about Garbo’s dramas her lovers always suffer because of her.

            Greta Garbo was flawless. Her performance was so touching and so beautiful. Her face never looked more beautiful. I love hearing her laugh she had a beautiful charming soft laugh. This was the first time I have ever seen John Gilbert in a film. Even with an awful wig and a fake mustache the man was so handsome. He was a very good actor it is a shame that Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg became so cruel to him and ruined his career. Garbo originally wanted Laurence Olivier in the lead but there was so chemistry between them so she suggested her old screen partner John Gilbert. Gilbert and Garbo made several silent films together and were very heavily romantically involved. Gilbert proposed to Garbo but she left him standing at the altar from cold feet. You can see their chemistry together it never went away.

            Queen Christina a very good film but I would not recommend it to anyone who is not a Greta Garbo fan or does not have an interest in seeing her films. The film is gorgeous and stunning but it to someone who does not like Garbo or cannot appreciate a well made film I can see where it could be slow and boring. The cinematography by William Daniels is stunning, he was the favorite lighter of Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford as well as Garbo and with good reason. Every scene no matter what it was was beautifully lit.  Queen Christina for a Garbo fan or an old Hollywood fan is a beautiful film with great performances and if you can appreciate it then I suggest seeing it. 

Mata Hari (1931)

“A spy in love is a tool that has outlived its usefulness.”

            If anyone has ever heard the name Mata Hari it has most likely been said along the lines of a woman being beautiful and alluring and also someone who likes to spy. I believe the first time I ever heard of Mata Hari is when Ingrid Bergman mentioned the name in Hitchcock’s Notorious. Naturally I had to look the woman up after hearing that line and several people in the extras mentioned how perfect it was that Bergman’s character mentioned the name in the film. Since I have been on somewhat of a Greta Garbo kick (or maybe it is a Swedish kick since I have been dying to go on an Ingrid Bergman binge?) lately, I decided the next films of hers I would view was Mata Hari. What actress past or present could do any better than playing an exotic, mysterious, alluring, beautiful spy better than the great Greta Garbo?

            Young Russian aviator Lt. Alexis Rasonoff (Ramon Novarro) has just flown from London to Paris on his way back to his country. He meets with his superior officer General Shubin (Lionel Barrymore) who takes him to a nightclub to see a show by the exotic Mata Hari. As soon as Alexis sets his eyes on the gorgeous woman he becomes obsessed with her. He pesters Shubin to introduce him to her but Shubin brushes him off that he could not possibly set a meeting up with her she is a very popular woman. But apparently Shubin knows Mata on a personal level meeting with her in her dressing room and speaking to her very comfortably.

            That night Alexis follows Mata to a gambling house then back to her house. She tells him goodnight but he does not want to go. All that is between her bedroom and the living room are curtains which she only closes halfway.

            The next day Mata meets with Shubin. He knows that she is a spy who has been working with a man named Adriani. He also knows that she is supposed to be gathering important Russian secrets to give to Adriani. Their meeting in interrupted by a man named Dubois who accuses Mata of being a spy. Jokingly Shubin says yes of course Mata is a spy all of Paris knows it just to embarrass Dubois further for walking in on them. A few minutes later Alexis walks in to receive his orders from Shubin. Alexis will not even look at Mata after she kicked him out of her apartment that morning.

            On her way back to her place Mata notices she is being followed. She manages to get away and goes to Alexis’s apartment he keeps in the city. Alexis is so completely in love with her that he says she comes before God and country to him. Above the bed he has an icon of the Virgin where he keeps a candle lit at all times underneath it. Mata says that if he loves her that much he will blow it out and after some hesitation he does. During the night a man comes in and steals the secrets Alexis is supposed to be taking to Russia, has them photographed, and returns them.

            Dubois goes to Shubin to try to rile him up to spill about Mata. Dubois knows the general is in love with the woman and tells her he saw her with Alexis that she went to his place last night and left in the morning. When Mata comes in later Shubin confronts her in a rage. He says he will call the embassy to confess to her being a spy which is exactly what Dubois wanted him to do. Mata shoots Shubin dead. She tries to make it seem as if he killed himself but Dubois knows that she killed him.

            Mata has to go into hiding under Adriani’s orders. She hears that Alexis was hurt in a plane crash and is in the hospital. Mata has fallen for Alexis and risks her life to see him. Alexis has been blinded. When she gets her car to leave Dubois is waiting for her.

            If you want to know what happened to real Mata Hari look her up. The ending to the film is outrageously melodramatic.

            Garbo, Lionel Barrymore, and Ramon Novarro were excellent. Garbo was the perfect choice to play Mata Hari; she was gorgeous and she was not called the Mysterious Greta Garbo for nothing. I find the more I watch Garbo’s films the more I love how she expresses so much with her eyes or should I say her eyebrows, well both actually. Novarro played kind of the same character he played in The Barbarian where he chased Myrna Loy all over the desert, his character was obsessed with a woman and he just chased after her until the woman started chasing after him. In the films I have seen Novarro in he played the love sick little boy. He definitely had the look for it. Lionel Barrymore was nothing to shake a stick at his character was alright.

            Mata Hari is pure melodramatic fluff with very little actual historical accuracies… but would expect anything else from MGM during the 1930s? Didn’t think so. I just loved how pre-code the film with both Mata and Alexis staying over the others places for the night and Mata using Alexis’s sexual desire for her to get what she needed. Mata Hari is not Greta Garbo’s best film but it is good and one I would suggest seeing sometime. 

Camille (1936)

“I shall love Armand always. And I believe he shall love me always too.”

After recovering from his head cold, [Irving] Thalberg joined [George]Cukor in his studio screening room to see what he had missed, a scene of Garbo at the theater with [Laura Hope] Crews and [Lenore] Ulric.

“George, she’s actually good,” said Thalberg. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her so good.”

“But Irving,” said Cukor, “she’s just sitting in an opera box.”

“She’s relaxed,” said Thalberg. “She’s open. She seems unguarded for once.”

Garbo’s new attitude prompted Thalberg to rework the script with [Zoe] Akins. “She is a fascinating artist, but she is limited,” Thalberg told Akins and [David] Lewis. “She must never create situations. She must be thrust into them. The drama comes in how she rides them out.”

- excerpt from Irving Thalberg: Boy Wonder to Producer Prince by Mark A. Vieira

            What Irving Thalberg said in the excerpt about Greta Garbo when she was filming Camille is completely true. For once in her films she looks unguarded, she looks like she finally let her walls down and just gave herself completely to the character and Robert Taylor as her lover. Greta Garbo said that Camille was her favorite film she made and it is widely considered her best film.

            Marguerite Gautier (Garbo) is a young woman living it up in Paris in the year 1847. Months ago she came from the countryside and now she has a place in high society. She and her friend Prudence attend an opera where Prudence sets her up to meet the Baron de Varville who is handsome and rich. A mix up occurs when their opera box is given to a “friend” of Marguerite’s named Olympe. Marguerite is not as into catching the Baron’s eye as Olympe and Prudence. During the intermission she locks eyes with a young man she mistakes as the Baron. When the young man comes up he introduces himself as Armand Duval (Robert Taylor). The mistake is forgiven as both he and Marguerite are taken by each other. She asks him to grab him some candy but when he comes back she has left with the Baron.

            The next time Marguerite and Armand see each other is six months later. In that time Marguerite had been seriously ill. He tells her that for all those months he was the only visitor she had. Her birthday comes around and she throws a big party even though she is still recovering. At the party Marguerite over exerts herself and goes into a coughing fit. Armand notice and goes to her. They confess their love for each other and plan to meet later on in the night when everyone else has gone. Before Armand arrives the Baron comes back and spoils their plans for the night.

            Armand tells his father (Lionel Barrymore) that he wants to travel. His father can tell that he wants to get away because he is in love. Before he leaves he writes a letter to Marguerite that she says was not too kind. She visits him just as he is packing. Marguerite tells him she truly loves him and is willing to leave the Baron for him. Armand wants to take her to the country for the summer where they can be alone and she can get better. That night Marguerite asks the Baron for some money to pay her debts. He is not blind to the fact that she has found someone else to run around with. He gives her the money she needs and slaps her after she thanks him.

            Armand and Marguerite have a wonderful time in the country. Armand wants to go to Paris to have his money he has inherited from his grandfather released to him so he can marry Marguerite. His father hears about this and goes down to the country to speak with Marguerite. He tells her that he does not want his son to be limited because of her. Armand needs to have a good social standing and she would just be holding him back since he could not be seen with her. He also believes that she is just after his money when she truly is not she really does love him. But it is her great love that she has for Armand that she is willing to listen to his father and let him go. When Armand comes home Marguerite says things to make him hate her so they can break off their affair.

            Again they meet at a party some time after their break up. They still love each other and Armand is furious that Marguerite is back with the Baron. He pleads and begs for her to come back to him but when she says she will not he gets very angry at her. No matter how angry Armand gets at her Marguerite does not tell him she broke things off because of his father. The Baron becomes furious with Armand for speaking to Marguerite the way he did and challenges him to a due. Armand wounds the Baron and has to leave France for a while.

            When Armand comes back he learns that Marguerite is seriously ill and has not been out for weeks. Creditors wait in the living room making sure no one walks off with anything since she owes so much money and Prudence come barging in looking for some money that is owed to her. Luckily her sweet and generous friend Gaston has left some Francs in her purse and is genuinely taking care of her. All Marguerite cares for and wants is Armand. She knows her ending is near and has Gaston call for a priest. Armand comes just in time. Marguerite dies in his arms.

            As Irving Thalberg said Greta Garbo was unguarded for once. Garbo was always mysterious because she put so many walls up and that showed in her films even when her characters were not supposed to be. In this film you can see that her walls were finally broken down and just let herself be swept into the character and swept off her feet by Robert Taylor. That fallen wall makes Garbo shine and that is the reason this is her best film.

            Robert Taylor was wonderful as Garbo’s leading man. He was so handsome and he was a great balance to Garbo. I have seen my share of Taylor’s films but this one was definitely his best acted as well. I never knew he had such a great dramatic range. His scene where Armand begs Marguerite to come back to him was incredible.

            Lionel Barrymore only had two scenes and you are not meant to really like him since he made Marguerite leave Armand. Laura Hope Crews as Prudence was really good. I cannot believe that she was Aunt Pittypat in Gone With the Wind she was just all over the place. Prudence was a not nasty but not nice she made it out like she was Marguerite’s closest friend but when it came to money she wanted it and turned mean. Lenore Ulric was really good as Olympe she was jealous of Marguerite but not in an annoying way.

            Although it is never specified what Marguerite, Olympe, and Prudence due I have a feeling they were escorts or companions. The name Olympe or Olympia was usually used by prostitutes in France. When Manet first exhibited his painting Olympia in 1863 it caused a scandal because it was a nude woman that was not in a classical setting and there is much symbolism of prostitution in the painting.

            George Cukor made a fantastic film. He got the most out of not just his main actors but even the supporting actors. There is not one bad frame in the whole picture every shot is perfection. The film is the perfect blend of cinema and art. Irving Thalberg’s main goal as a producer was to have film be considered an artistic medium just like the theater. Camille is probably his only film to have come close to his goal. At a time when the studios were turning out picture after picture and just making a picture for the sake of turning them out Thalberg put so much care and thought into his films; he was creating art. William Daniels was THE cinematographer at MGM. He was the only cinematographer who Norma Shearer wanted to work with and always got for her films. His lighting alone makes lends the film its artistry.  

            In the middle of production Irving Thalberg passed away at the age of thirty-seven. Camille was one of the films he poured his complete heart into creating. When he died other producers tried to step in and “fix” the film to how they wanted it to be done but once they made their “corrections” they realized that Thalberg’s ways were the only correct ones and kept what he had wanted.

            Camille is the most perfect picture to come out of Hollywood’s Golden Age. I mean this in all honesty because I do not have any Ifs, Ands, or Buts or complaints about it. I could not find anything wrong with this film. Camille is artistic but just enough as it does not turn people away. The acting is some of the best I have ever seen in a classic film. No matter what era of movies you enjoy Camille is a film that all film buffs, admirers and aspiring filmmakers should see. 

Anna Christie (1930

“Gif me a visky, ginger ale on the side, and don' be stingy, baby.”

            Greta Garbo started out making films during the silent era. When she came to America from her native Sweden she was this gorgeous mysterious actress who captivated not only men but women as well. Garbo was MGM’s number one commodity well into the thirties, in fact she was only actress from the silent era who was an even bigger hit in sound. MGM put off making a talkie picture with the star because of her accident. Even Garbo was nervous about having to talk. Eventually a Garbo talkie had to happen since silents were passé and MGM did not want to lose money or see their biggest star fall. The actress’s first talking film was Anna Christie made in 1930.  

            The film opens up on a drunken Marie Dressler as a tramp named Marthy Owens. Marthy is sitting in a rocking chair listening to a record. In walks Chris Christofferson the man who she has been living with for time on his coal barge. They head off to a local bar to drink some more. The bartender gives Chris a letter. The letter is from Chris’s daughter Anna (Garbo) who he has not seen in fifteen years. She does not tell him much just that she is coming from St. Paul Minnesota to visit.

            Chris goes to get something to eat to sober up a bit before Anna arrives. Marthy stays at the bar drinking away her beer. Not long after Chris leaves a young blonde woman enters the bar. She sits down at a table and orders a drink. Marthy gets to talking with her and she discovers the woman is Anna, Chris’s daughter. Anna tells Marthy that she is not expecting much from her father since he left her and her mother years ago. In that time Anna has not had it easy: she was left with family who did not really care for her and one of the cousins had his way with her. After that incident she left to work in St. Paul as an escort. She was thrown in jail where she got sick and had to be taken to the hospital. Anna tells Marthy that all she wants is rest she has nowhere else to go.        

            Marthy hears Chris come back into the bar. Before he can get into the sitting room she tells him Anna is waiting for him. She does not betray what Anna had told her but she tells Chris to treat Anna right. Chris has nothing but love for his little girl. Anna is hesitant with her father because after all he left her causing her a miserable life. He tells Anna he lives on a barge, she is not too sure and asks if it is safe for girls. She takes a chance and travels on the barge with her father.

            After a few days on the barge Anna comes to love it and being on the sea. One night they hear a man shouting in the fog. They see three men on a piece of debris and take them aboard. Their ship had gone down in a bad storm and they have been floating for five days. The captain is an Irishman named Matt Burke (Charles Bickford). Almost as soon as he gets aboard he is harassing Anna. He takes her in his arm but she fights back and pushes him sending him backwards. Matt tells her after that push he would rather be friends than enemies with her. As they sail back to New York Anna and Matt flirt with each other. Matt tells her that once they get on land he is taking her out. When they get back he takes her out to Coney Island.

            Matt asks Anna to marry him. She is not sure how she feels for him and does not want to marry him. She and Chris talk it over. He does not Anna marrying Chris because he does not want what he did to her mother to happen to her. He also does not want to see her waiting around for him on land not knowing if he will ever come home again. Matt is furious that Anna will not marry him. When he goes to speak to Anna he and Chris literally fight over her pulling her arms. She has enough and breaks down and tells them what has happened in her life. Both men are now upset with her- Chris for what his actions did to her and Matt over the fact that she was an escort. Anna tells Matt that his love for her has made her clean. He makes her swear that she really loves him and she does.

            In the end Anna agrees to marry Matt and is very happily in love.

            For this being Greta Garbo’s first speaking role she was amazing. Her entrance was nothing mind blowing but from the moment the door opens to reveal her standing there she just commands your attention. Garbo had those eyes that were mysterious they were soft and big and conveyed that there was something hidden underneath them but you did not know what. That part of her was attractive you could not look away but when she opened her mouth and spoke with her husky voice mixed with her Swedish accent you are hooked. I cannot even imagine how amazing or shocking or stunning it was to finally hear Garbo speak for the first time. Sure I have seen two of her other talking pictures but just knowing this was her first speaking role is incredible and her first scene still kind of hits you in the face. Greta Garbo was twenty-five years old when she played Anna Christie. She was wonderful and absolutely incredible. I would like to see a twenty-five year old actress pull off this role today. There would be no way.

            I will say had to laugh a bit when Garbo said some American slang with her accent. She did not sound bad and I hate to say they sounded funny. I laughed a bit when she said to Chris and Matt “I am my own boss. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.”

            Marie Dressler in her two scenes almost steals the film away from Garbo. If I were an actress and I needed to be a sloppy messy fall down drunk I would go to Dressler as Marthy Owens for my inspiration. She did such a great job she was so believable as this tramp who if you saw on the streets you would avoid like the plague.

            Charles Bickford as Matt and George F. Marion as Chris were alright. Bickford was perfect as the tough Irish sailor. Marion had played his role in the stage production in the 1920s. He was good but I did not particularly care for him… nor Bickford either.

            Famed screenwriter and sometimes director Frances Marion wrote the script from Eugene O’Neill’s play of the same name. The film is very static making it feel like a filmed stage play. But I think that can be forgiven how this is an early sound film. Marion was one of Irving Thalberg’s favorite writers and went to her often to adapt stories. This is one of Thalberg’s several successful films he produced without ever giving himself screen credit.

            Anna Christie is an exceptional film. There is no doubt that this film belongs to Greta Garbo and no doubt that she was an extraordinary actress from an early age. Although I really did not care for the story Anna Christie is a very good film that I recommend seeing especially for the performances.  

Two Faced Woman (1941)

“He’s impossible.”

“He’s in love.”

           

            When any classic film buff is asked about the great Greta Garbo the first thing they may say is she was mysterious and gorgeous. Garbo’s roles of the late 1920s when she came to Hollywood from Sweden to the mid-1930s were usually of a vamp whose beauty tempts men to do something wrong for her and then in the end to save the man she loves she sacrifices herself. Yeah, those are some pretty heavy roles but Garbo tackled them like a pro and looked beautiful doing it. So guaranteed if you only know that Garbo did dramatic roles and uttered the immortal line “I want to be alone” you do not know that she actually made two comedies. The first one was Ninotchka which is considered one of the greatest comedy films of all time (and it is I loved it) and her second comedy Two-Faced Woman happened to be her last film.

            Larry Blake (Melvyn Douglas) is a business man from New York on a vacation in the mountains. An employee asks him if he would like to ski and at first he says no but once he gets a look at the beautiful ski instructor he changes his mind. He asks for a private lesson with her and gets his way. The instructor’s name is Karin Borg (Garbo). Larry is not good at all on skis he is terrible to every inch of the word. Karin gets a little frustrated with him after a while. Larry is so bad he manages to lose control and fall off the side of a huge snow drift.

            That night Larry and Karin are nowhere to be found. His work partner O.O. Miller (Roland Young) has been called in. Finally the instructor and the instructed come back and with a surprise. Larry tells O.O. that they have been away all day because they have gotten married! O.O. is not happy at the marriage at all, for some reason he does not like Karin.  He gives Larry a magazine that has not been printed right and decides to head back to New York the next day. In their bedroom Larry tells Karin that he wants to go back. This news leads to a very heated argument of them going back and forth between going and not going. Each is very adamant about their decision. They do make up and go to bed happy.

            The next morning though, all is not right between the couple yet again. Larry thought that Karin agreed to go with and Karin thought Larry was going to stay. They argue again but Larry eventually leaves. Weeks go by before Karin has had enough of not seeing Larry that she calls his secretary Miss. Ellis up telling her she is coming to New York and not to tell Larry.

            Miss. Ellis tells Karin that Larry is at the theater watching rehearsals for his ex-girlfriend’s play. The ex-girlfriend, Griselda Vaughn (Constance Bennett), was not happy at all when she found out Larry had gotten married on vacation but she seems to be dealing with it in the theater… mostly because Karin is not around. Karin sneaks into the theater. Unfortunately they do not see her and Larry and Griselda walk out of the theater arm in arm. Now she definitely does not want Larry to know she is in New York she wants to go back home. At that moment O.O just happens to pull up to the theater as Karin and Miss. Ellis are leaving. The two women run into the theater and Karin hides. Miss. Ellis covers for Karin saying that Karin is actually Katherine, Karin’s twin sister. O.O is amused and is immediately taken by “Katherine.”

            Karin plays Katherine with a sexy, outgoing personality. O.O is immediately taken with “Katherine.” He takes her out to dinner and cannot take his eyes off of her. Larry is at the restaurant where O.O and “Katherine” are with Griselda by his side. Larry cannot believe his eyes seeing Karin in New York but she manages to play off Katherine really well and Larry is completely taken by her as well. But not believing in Katherine he calls the snow lodge where Karin is and they say she is not there she is in New York.

            Since Larry knows Karin’s game he plays along and falls in love with Katherine. Katherine is alluring and sensual. She stays out all night with O.O and a young man named Dick. Karin sees that Larry wants a vamp not a nice quiet woman like her. This is something Karin cannot handle.

            Eventually Larry and Karin make up.

            I did not in any way make this story sound interesting or funny but believe me it really was. The reason it is funny and why this double-identity plot works so well and does not get boring is because of Garbo.  As I said many people know her image of this beautiful, mysterious, and serious woman that they do not know she made two comedies. She was fantastic as Karin/Katherine and this is because she was such an incredible actress, she was very versatile. But I guess what it comes down to is that since Garbo made mostly dramatic films that seeing her in a comedy is surprising and seeing her play a comedic role catches you off guard. I love this in an actress or actor because it shows just how good and believable they are. This is only the second Greta Garbo film I have seen and I have to say I adore her and I truly understand why she is praised like she is. As I said about Norma Shearer in Lady of Chance the reason she was popular is because she was watchable. The same with Garbo she was so watchable you cannot take your eyes off the screen when she is in a scene.

            My favorite scene in the film is when Karin drunks calls Miss. Ellis. She has been living it up as Katherine and went out drinking Champaign with O.O and Dick. I forget what exactly she tells Miss. Ellis but she was so funny. Oh and Garbo also dances. Apparently she was really embarrassed having to dance but she just looks so natural and like she had a good time. It is not funny I just had to mention it.  

            I have not seen Melvyn Douglas in too many films yet but the more I see of him the more I adore him as well. His character was brutish and very much a man of the late 1930s early 1940s with that he-is-the-man-and-should be-listened-to-and-be-obeyed shtick. I love Douglas though I do not know why but I do I always love to see him in a film.

            Constance Bennett in her few scenes was funny. When Larry tells Griselda that he is married she covers the phone and screams then calmly gets back on the phone and talks to him, but as she calmly talks to him she throws things. I died laughing when Griselda talks to “Katherine” in the ladies room at the restaurant. She thinks that Katherine is in love with Larry so she just wants to make sure. When Karin leaves Griselda looks in a mirror and screams. Bennett was just as biting and witty and beautiful as she was in her earlier films.

            Two-Faced Woman, depending on what reviews and stories you read, got a lot of slack and is cited as the reason why this was Greta Garbo’s last film. Some reviewers say that the film did not do well because the US was officially in WWII and was not what people wanted to see and that the poor reviews embarrassed Garbo so much she did not want to make any more films. Bull on that, during the War she went back to Sweden and had the chance to make another film when she returned but it fell through and that really embarrassed her into never making another film. Two-Faced Woman is very witty, funny, and entertaining. I enjoyed every minute of it.