The story is blameless, Garbo can't be otherwise... I always wonder- she wasn't classically beautiful, and even could be considered a bit less feminine (to be polite) at least structurally, than all the heroines around, but this never ever enters the mind while watching her, only afterwards, when you watch a still, you start wondering. Only another one, where nature was miser in bestowing feminine beauty, and audience didn't bother about it, could be Kat-Hep. Garbo of course is a notch above anybody else. If the movies score 4, you could be sure that Garbo got at least 8, the others scored -4 to bring it down, which you can't say about any other actor, of either gender. I am yet to see a movie, where she irritated the eye.
In this movie, I don't know whose fault it was. Conrad Nagel certainly, but what was Fred Niblo doing? He should have stopped Conrad from over-acting when it wasn't needed, and in fact was ridiculous. Only Garbo hogging the screen, tried to balance, but the movie lost major points. In fact I thought of giving it 6, but it would have been punishing two actors : Garbo and Gustav von Seyffertitz who too carried his role well, for fault of one.
I could have been a bit tolerant, considering it was a silent movie (where the actors tend to over emote), but when Garbo and Gustav didn't, and could express the feelings so well, Conrad became an eye-sore.
Up to half the movie, it didn't matter. But once he had entered the Lion's den, and faced the Lion and Lioness with the pride around (he didn't know the Lioness was tamed), the way he behaved, he gave himself completely away. He had been there to redeem himself, and get information, and not on a suicide mission, at least not before he could get the mole.s name. The general, Boris, if he hadn't suspected, he would have been a fool. Thankfully this wasn't a normal run-off the mill Holly movies, where villains are blind with IQ bordering on 30). Boris guessed, did a back-ground check, and was ready.
It's not very often that one finds a villain, who is so, only because he was the third person between the hero and heroine. Otherwise, his acts were not wrong, leave alone being nefarious. He was doing his legitimate duty. Human (not a demon), Intelligent, and quite good looking too, one wouldn't have cribbed, if heroine finally fell for him (she would have, had it been Russian movie). Anyway that wasn't to be.
Any movie where Garbo is there need not have a recommendation to watch, only her her sake, so I will forego that recommendation, or even her quite risque clothing for that age, which didn't seem vulgar or even titillating on her, and further recommendations to see of course would be the sets, lavish, but not eye-sore, one could imagine, Boris, at his rank, having that life-style (it was Czar's era, the revolution wasn't on yet) , probably it would be set at somewhere around 1913 or so (the Balkan wars ? Or the Allies Vs Three - Germany+ Austro-Hungarian+Italy, both of which finally exploded in WW1?
Bulid-up for WW1, if one looks dispassionately, only the minority of the blame goes to this three countries. The movie too is quite sympathetic to them, and that's quite strange, considering it is a Hollywood movie. Of course Russians had already become enemies (post revolution) but so were Axis.
As a footnote: The movie is highly influenced by the opera Tosca, not only the hero and heroine meet during the opera, and they sing/ play piano on its tune, but even the story (except the ending), has a very significant similarity : Tanya (Tosca), Karl (Cavaradossi), Boris (Scarpia), Unnamed Aide (Spoletta),
In this movie, I don't know whose fault it was. Conrad Nagel certainly, but what was Fred Niblo doing? He should have stopped Conrad from over-acting when it wasn't needed, and in fact was ridiculous. Only Garbo hogging the screen, tried to balance, but the movie lost major points. In fact I thought of giving it 6, but it would have been punishing two actors : Garbo and Gustav von Seyffertitz who too carried his role well, for fault of one.
I could have been a bit tolerant, considering it was a silent movie (where the actors tend to over emote), but when Garbo and Gustav didn't, and could express the feelings so well, Conrad became an eye-sore.
Up to half the movie, it didn't matter. But once he had entered the Lion's den, and faced the Lion and Lioness with the pride around (he didn't know the Lioness was tamed), the way he behaved, he gave himself completely away. He had been there to redeem himself, and get information, and not on a suicide mission, at least not before he could get the mole.s name. The general, Boris, if he hadn't suspected, he would have been a fool. Thankfully this wasn't a normal run-off the mill Holly movies, where villains are blind with IQ bordering on 30). Boris guessed, did a back-ground check, and was ready.
It's not very often that one finds a villain, who is so, only because he was the third person between the hero and heroine. Otherwise, his acts were not wrong, leave alone being nefarious. He was doing his legitimate duty. Human (not a demon), Intelligent, and quite good looking too, one wouldn't have cribbed, if heroine finally fell for him (she would have, had it been Russian movie). Anyway that wasn't to be.
Any movie where Garbo is there need not have a recommendation to watch, only her her sake, so I will forego that recommendation, or even her quite risque clothing for that age, which didn't seem vulgar or even titillating on her, and further recommendations to see of course would be the sets, lavish, but not eye-sore, one could imagine, Boris, at his rank, having that life-style (it was Czar's era, the revolution wasn't on yet) , probably it would be set at somewhere around 1913 or so (the Balkan wars ? Or the Allies Vs Three - Germany+ Austro-Hungarian+Italy, both of which finally exploded in WW1?
Bulid-up for WW1, if one looks dispassionately, only the minority of the blame goes to this three countries. The movie too is quite sympathetic to them, and that's quite strange, considering it is a Hollywood movie. Of course Russians had already become enemies (post revolution) but so were Axis.
As a footnote: The movie is highly influenced by the opera Tosca, not only the hero and heroine meet during the opera, and they sing/ play piano on its tune, but even the story (except the ending), has a very significant similarity : Tanya (Tosca), Karl (Cavaradossi), Boris (Scarpia), Unnamed Aide (Spoletta),