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By
NICK ZEGARAC
"Grand Hotel" is an all star extravaganza -- the first of its kind -- that follows the intimate goings on of guests staying at Berlin's posh resort. There is the high-strung, temperamental ballerina (Greta Garbo), the sassy vamp-like stenographer (Joan Crawford), the boorish industrialist (Wallace Beery), the fatally stricken laborer (Lionel Barrymore) and the devilishly handsome baron (John Barrymore). These seemingly separate lives crisscross -- some happily so, others with tragic circumstances -- all thoroughly absorbing and brilliantly performed and realized. At the time of its release "Grand Hotel" was the first movie to feature more than one star above the title credits.
After years of looking as though the camera negative had been fed through a meat grinder, this DVD is a considerable improvement. Having said that, a lot of work remains to get this one looking up to par. Solid blacks are about the best thing on this DVD. Contrast levels appear too low in many of the scenes. There are a considerable number of age related artifacts and quite a bit of film grain present. Edge effects, aliasing and shimmering of fine details make for a very harsh looking visual presentation half way through.
The audio has been extensively cleaned up but continues to exhibit considerable hiss. If this is a special edition, it's one of the poorest I've seen. Some featurettes are included that round out the history too briefly of this classic film.
"Grand Hotel" is undeniably engrossing entertainment. The transfer is not up to snuff. |
