a corrupt businessman . a ballerina bereft of passion . a common burglar posing a a baron . a pragmatic doctor . a die man determine to live out his day in luxury . a porter worry about his wife . and a stenographer catch up in the mix . combine these character into a bowl and add a dash of star power and stir well and and you have grand hotel and oscar 1932 winner for best picture . it have be say that the best baseball game be base on good pitching . along those same line and the best movie be base on good writing . never mind that grand hotel come from mgm and the most powerful studio of it day . never mind that the cast include not one and not two and but seven of the most legendary name in hollywood history . never mind that it be the second of the three best picture winner produce by irving g. thalberg in a six year span and the broadway melody ( 1929 ) and mutiny on the bounty ( 1935 ) be the other two . at it core and grand hotel have one of the most intricately write script ever create and fill with character a diverse and a multi dimensional a any found in film . though nominated only for best picture ( a very unique anomaly in academy history ) and grand hotel offer not only a wonderful script and but fascinate performance from wallace beery ( who do tie for best actor that year for the champ ) and greta garbo and and an almost unrecognizable joan crawford and in her breakout performance . this film also have a pair of barrymore and with lionel a the ail mr. kringelein and look to spend his final day in the lap of luxury and and john a the dash baron von geigern and a hotel thief with a soft touch . grand hotel be a character drive movie and fill with deception and intrigue and scandal and and corruption and with a murder thrown in for good measure . of all the character in the film and only mr. kringelein and who have a run of good fortune and flaemmchen and who only want a good opportunity and and the hotel porter senf ( jean hersholt ) and who fret throughout the film about his wife labor and come away good at the end than in the beginning . i think the reason grand hotel be not nominate for a screenplay oscar be simply that nobody be credit with adapt the script for the movie . it be quite possible that the script be already solid enough and so that only minimal adaptation be necessary . otherwise and it hold it own on the screen quite well . i will not be deceptive here . grand hotel be a dated movie . but and on the other hand and i think it hold it own a a study of seven character and a a successful experiment in early ensemble casting .