Greta Garbo

TCM Archives - The Garbo Silents Collection (The Temptress / Flesh and the Devil / The Mysterious Lady)
$39.98
If you're not familiar with Garbo, start here, because this is a great introduction. All three feature films include commentary that is insightful and stays on track. The commenters do not meander off into side issues as is often the case.

When TCM put this set together they apparently took the same approach as they did with Lon Chaney Collection: The Ace of Hearts; Laugh, Clown, Laugh; The Unknown. Plus Documentary Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces. that was released about the same time. In both cases, they are not giving you the absolute best that the artist did, but are trying to give you a sample of their works with one extremely good film (in this case "The Flesh and the Devil").

"The Temptress" is the film that I liked the least. Made before "Flesh and the Devil", you may be slightly annoyed that Garbo is not as much the center of attention that she is in the other two. "Flesh and the Devil" is of course the center attraction here, with this being the beginning of the Garbo/Gilbert collaboration that was so successful onscreen. Finally, there is 1928's "The Mysterious Lady" made as the silent era was waning with Garbo starring opposite Conrad Nagel. The commenter notes how much Nagel looks like John Gilbert in this film and wonders if this is why he was chosen to star with Garbo.

If you are already familiar with Garbo, don't buy this separately. Go straight to Greta Garbo - The Signature Collection (Anna Christie / Mata Hari / Grand Hotel / Queen Christina / Anna Karenina / Camille / Ninotchka / Garbo Silents). It is a perfect boxed set of films in every way, and this entire set of silents is included in it. Plus there is an entire disc dedicated to a documentary about Garbo.

I would still like to see another set of Garbo silents, since there is so much good work still out there that she did at MGM that is not on DVD - A Woman of Affairs, The Single Standard, Wild Orchids, and The Kiss come to mind. It is somewhat ironic that one of the extras in the set is a featurette on TCM's Young Composers Contest. This is a competition in which young musicians score part of a silent film and the winner goes on to score an entire silent film in the TCM library that is then premiered on TCM. That competition has now been eliminated, and is one of the reasons that Warner Home Video has not releasing any more silents. Releasing the films I mentioned would bypass that problem since they were all made with a Movietone score and synchronous sound effects, something that was popular in the non-dialogue films released in 1928 and 1929.

Two Faced Woman [VHS]
$19.98
It's striking to find out how many critics, especially in the past, condemn this film. Almost every biographer in every Garbo book comes up with a senseless list of accusations - including quotes from the Legion of Decency and the critics in December 1941, when America entered the war, to tell us that this film is no good. But it's a misjudgement. Garbo herself was disgusted with the criticisms.
TWO-FACED WOMAN is a lively and extremely interesting film and certainly no disgrace for Garbo. It's one of the Garbo films that fascinates me most, because it's her last one and because she plays a different kind of role (although she has frequently played a two-faced woman, like in "As you desire me" and "Ninotchka"). The story is very funny with excellent bits of farce. In the two-faced character of Karin/Katharine Blake/Borg, Garbo shows many different personalities which makes it so amazing to watch. This was a new and very experienced Garbo. George Cukor told that she was in a very brilliant period at that time. However, Cukor dismissed the film in retrospect.
The film grossed $1.8 million and it wasn't really a huge flop, it was a modest success, especially in Europe after the war.
The uncensored version still exists, it was shown at the George Cukor retrospective in London in 2004, and it is possible that it will be released on DVD.
"Two-faced woman" was destined to be Garbo's last film, as she predictably says: "In this harsh new world there's no place for me anymore".

Greta Garbo: A Cinematic Legacy
$50.00
Mark Vieira's "Greta Garbo: A Cinematic Legacy" is an excellent book. Great research. Very informative of all her films and the great legacy they are. Also, he has told facts in her personal life that were not known until recently. (I agree 100% re the Oct. 1926 to Apr. 1927 "strike" and two months again after; honestly, I thought the same a long time ago)!
I also agree 100% w/his saying that Karen Swenson's biography, "Greta Garbo-A Life Apart", is the definitive one (read this book twice too).
If there is any fault at all that I find w/Mr. Vieira's excellent work, it is as follows: The constant references to M. Dietrich. Furthermore, I certainly don't believe any kind of info that Dietrich's daughter Maria Riva has related.
Another pet peeve is the non-mentioning of the way John Gilbert, who loved Greta passionately and vice versa (they really were star-crossed lovers), was really destroyed with glee by Mayer.
All in all, though, I thoroughly enjoyed it!!

The Painted Veil [VHS]
$19.98
The 2006 remake of this film (or should I say readaptation of the W Somerset Maugham novel) is a marvelous cinematic achievement; the perfect blend of beauty, tragedy, love and hate. It runs the gamut of human emotions and offers one of cinemas most fully fleshed out and beautifully tailored performances. I often have praised Naomi Watts' beautiful portrayal of Kitty Fane, for she really gives us a character that makes the complete circle of life so-to-speak. She gives us every stage of her emotional journey with effortless grace.

Enough about `that' version of this movie!

Richard Boleslawski's 1934 version of `The Painted Veil' has some, but not a lot, in common with John Curran's remake. The basic premise of Kitty marrying Walter, a mad she barely knows and does not love, is still here. She still has an affair and is ushered off to the pits of cholera infested Asia with her husband as a consequence, but the way in which Boleslawski handles the relationships between all parties is rather different.

And the ending, but I have not read the novel and thus don't know who was more faithful.

This 1934 film concentrates much more on the budding romance between Kitty and Jack Townsend then necessary. In the 2006 film their relationship begins and ends in the first 15 minutes of the film, which allows for the blossoming relationship between Kitty and Walter to get the attention required, giving it sustenance and heart. By the time hearts are softened and lives are changed we should be able to truly feel it within the characters, and in the 2006 film we can. Here it is more difficult, beings that their relationship is really only given about 30 minutes of screen time. It was an odd directorial decision, and it served as a disservice to the film.

And I much preferred the ending given the newer version.

That said, the performances are really great here from everyone, and they work to carry the film, even when the script falls short. Greta Garbo is wonderful as Kitty, but the script doesn't give her the benefit of a fully fleshed out character (although her `revelation' scene before her husband leaves us astonishing). Herbert Marshall uses a nice restraint to his performance that adds to the layers of hurt he is experiencing; and George Brent has glorified supporting role as Townsend, and he uses ample amounts of suave charm to create a memorable character.

In the end, `The Painted Veil' is a good film, but it is rather incomplete. It has the basic promise of something special, but it does add enough layers to make it really stand out and grab us. I'd recommend the remake before I'd recommend this one. There is just so much more there.

This one is good, but far from great.