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By
NICK ZEGARAC
MGM, the studio with "more
stars than there are in heaven," had proved their
point by putting six of their top talents in one
film, "Grand Hotel," in 1932. A clean sweep at the
Oscars, the success prompted David O. Selznick --
then a rival producer on the backlot -- to devise
his own all-star melodrama of merit with "Dinner
at Eight" (1933).
The plot is threadbare but serviceable: Affluent
hostess Millicent Jordon (Billie Burke) is so
enraptured at the prospect of throwing the society
party of the decade that she eschews all other
concerns in favor of the frivolities associated
with such a swank soirée. Her roster of guests
includes the boorish social climber Dan Packard
(Wallace Beery) and his much younger wife -- of
hot body but low class -- Kitty (Jean Harlow),
aging grand dame of the theater Carlotta Vance
(Marie Dressler), family physician Dr. Wayne
Talbot (Edmund Lowe) and desperate has-been movie
actor Larry Renault (John Barrymore). Millicent's
husband, the kind-hearted, good-natured Oliver
(Lionel Barrymore) has just discovered that he is
fatally ill. However, acknowledging his wife's
lack of feeling for anyone but herself, Oliver
decides to forego divulging his diagnosis,
presumably until after the party.
What is most engaging and impressive about
Selznick's take on the all-star spectacle is that,
unlike "Grand Hotel," he does not afford any one
actor particular preference or even attempt to
evenly space their on-screen time. Rather, there
is a strange sense -- particularly from a star
system as electric as MGM's -- that the people
being observed are just common folk on route to a
flashy night on the town. The film also gives DVD
audiences their only chance to admire the comedic
stylings of one of Vaudeville's most gifted former
actresses, Marie Dressler. In girth, stature and
poignancy, Dressler is at her personal zenith --
delving high comedy and low melodrama with equal
panache. At one point in the evening, after having
been told by Harlow's character that a book has
explained that machinery is going to take the
place of every profession, Dressler casually eyes
the sultry Harlow from head to toe before
commenting, "Oh my dear, that's one thing you need
never worry about."
Warner Bros. DVD treatment of this classic star
vehicle is about on par with their lackluster
previous treatment of "Grand Hotel." Although the
grayscale can exhibit some nicely balanced
contrasts, solid blacks and clean whites, more
often there is a sense that contrast levels are a
tad too low and blacks are more deeply gray than
black. There is, at times, an excessive amount of
age-related artifacts for an image that is rarely
smooth or easy on the eyes. Film grain is also
obtrusive. The audio has been cleaned up but
exhibits a fairly noticeable background hiss
throughout. The Sharon Stone hosted bio on Harlow
-- which is all too brief, and a short subject:
"Come to Dinner" are all the extras you get. A
shame. |
