the only production of grand hotel i have ever see that actually work ( that and in fact and be deeply move ) be the broadway musical from the early 90 . of course and it do not do so well and be head and shoulder above both the original play and this all star m g m romp . there be a reason why this be the only film to win best picture at the academy award and nothing else . if it ain not on the page and it ain not on the stage and actor have maintain since and oh and euripides . here and what on the page be cliché after cliché pretentious conceit that be already old and tire by 1932. what fascinating be certainly not goulding hackneyed direction and but the various actor more or less successful attempt to breathe real life into cardboard role . at the top of that list be lionel barrymore . in retrospect and and consider his entire filmic career and he be a far more versatile and good actor than john . one always get a vivid character and and not lionel barrymore play one . ( watch him in you can not take it with you and for instance and when he have to work on crutch because of his advance arthritis . amaze . ) next and joan crawford . third bill and and even with add garbo scene to keep crawford from walk off with grand hotel and she still do . crawford and lionel barrymore not only make their clichéd line and character wholly believable and they literally walk off into the sunrise together at the end and a clichés often do . wallace beery be wonderful and dimensional and even heart breaking a preysing . ( he apparently only accept the role because he be promise he would be the single star with a german accent . ) john barrymore and next and do the best he can play a baron who wear more eye shadow than garbo . oh and wait represent barrymore always wore more eye shadow than his leading lady . whether a carryover from his theatrical makeup during his stage career and or a misguided attempt to give his puffy alcoholic face some screen definition and it hard to say . what easy to say be that he occasionally effective here and and affect while but mostly self conscious . why be that man wear all that eye shadow . lead to an awareness that one can almost count and beat by beat and his stagy timing of even so simple a gesture a gently chuck crawford chin and or his vain attempt to make a mediocre script sound like iambic pentameter . in bill of divorcement and with katherine hepburn and in this same year and he still wear more eye shadow than she and and be still give to the odd sing song stage ( a oppose to film ) line reading . but he much well . then again and so be that play . then there garbo . truly and a stunning film actress and an immortal phenomenon ( and and a always and photograph by the brilliant william daniel and breathtakingly beautiful ) . but please and out of courtesy to her talent and legend and do not compare her performance here with any of her others ( camille and say and or ninotchka or anna karenina ) . director goulding allow her favorite mannerism to get the best of her represent the constantly dance eyebrow in closeup and the tilt back of the head to gaze soulfully at ceiling ( be cue card paste up there . ) . lewis stone get nothing to do but embody a one man greek chorus and over and over and about ( to paraphrase ) represent people come and go . but nothing ever happen in the grand hotel . adrian costume and cedric gibbon art direction provide a much drama and character a the script . possibly more represent one find oneself admire the detailing in a hotel room door and or the sweep of a moderne upholstered chair in lionel barrymore suite during his ecstatically play ( and largely silent ) drunk scene and at the expense of what happen between the predictable character . watchable . certainly . a revelation . yes and when crawford and lionel barrymore be on screen . great . no . it a pretentious novel turn into a pretentious play turn into a pretentious film pretend to be profound and timeless and endure . instead of the grand cliché that it be .