March 28, 2005

Dinner at Eight

This 1930's George Cukor classic was recently released on DVD. The quality of the transfer isn't superb, and honestly, though it was certainly an event in its day and features a plethora of the era's stars, the film doesn't hold up terribly well. The most obvious short-coming is that many of the actors engage in not remotely funny, hammy bluster more than, oh I don't know, acting. Still there are some bits of fun to be found in it. The film is probably best known for containing one of Jean Harlow's most famous performances, and she is entertaining. I also enjoyed Lionel Barrymore's sickly, kindly indutrialist. Billie Burke's performance as the hostess reminded me of exactly the kind of person my social-climbing grandmother would have sought to emulate. But far and away the scene stealer here is Marie Dressler as Carlotta Vance. As a character for comparison - think of what Are You being Served?'s Mrs. Slocum would have been like if she had cunningly used her (self-perceived) beauty to make a great deal of money, but over time both her looks and her fortune had faded. Not that that's led her to want to change her lifestyle one iota. She's a funny force of nature with her own sense of propriety. If you are into films of this era this is certainly worth a look. But when it comes to Cukor films of the 1930's based on theatrical works, I prefer The Women.

Posted by armand at March 28, 2005 09:29 PM | TrackBack | Posted to Movies


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