"People come. People go. Nothing ever happens."
Grand Hotel (1932) is the granddaddy of the Hollywood ensemble drama. Everything from Stagecoach to '70s disaster movies, from Robert Altman's oeuvre to The Love Boat, owes a debt to Edmund Goulding's multi-character soap opera. The movie hasn't aged especially well, yet its central conceit remains appealing.Numerous colorful characters converge upon Berlin's Grand Hotel. Baron Felix von Geigern (John Barrymore), a professional gambler and occasional thief, prevents depressed ballerina Grusinskaya (Greta Garbo) from committing suicide, striking up a doomed romance. Terminally ill accountant Otto Kerngelein (Lionel Barrymore) watches his old employer Preysing (Wallace Beery) try to conduct a business merger, while striking up a flirtation with his secretary Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford). Naturally these dramas intersect, resulting in romance, heartbreak and tragedy.
As that summary implies, Grand Hotel is pitched firmly as high melodrama. Goulding and screenwriter William A. Drake (adapting his own play) do a creditable job juggling these disparate storylines, trying to humanize interwar Europe's airy disconnect. Aristocrats are now penniless, artists suffer from depression and doubt, working women sleep with corporate benefactors to get ahead. It's too sentimentalized to seem realistic, yet the stories complement each other for a compelling tale of human misery.
Grand Hotel's main draw, then and now, is its cast. John Barrymore has never been more effective as a suave, likeable quasi-criminal; brother Lionel plays Kerngelein with tragic abandon, relishing the chance to insult his employers and court a pretty woman like Flaemmchen, who otherwise wouldn't have noticed him. Lionel's story's the most affecting, even if it's the most predictable. Lewis Stone's on hand as a disfigured doctor dispensing medical advice and knowing epigrams.
Greta Garbo earned cinematic immortality with her breathless, desperation declaration that "I want to be alone!" She plays Grusinskaya with the perfect air of resigned high tragedy, an indelible performance. Joan Crawford provides much of the film's levity, trading snappy banter with Wallace Beery's corporate bigshot while slowly unveiling her good intentions. This film propelled both actresses to superstardom and they're in according top form.
Goulding's direction further sells the shows, with effective camerawork that belies the limited setting. The movie's signature shot is an overhead of the hotel's spacious lobby, with William H. Daniels' camera effectively flitting between different parties as they enter the story. Interior dialog scenes are smothered in brooding, effective shadows, highlighting its protagonists through clashing dress and emotive spotlights.
Certainly Grand Hotel's impact is lessened by endless imitations and its own hoary story elements. Even so, it's still Classic Hollywood at its best: both a classy, escapist fantasy and a high-toned, human tragedy, its appeal is lasting.
