Inspiration

I've seen practically every Garbo film and I have to say that INSPIRATION is one of my favorite of hers. Certainly in the top five films. It's a beautiful and delicate film with one of Greta's best performances. Though the story is slightly underwritten and the direction could have used a bit more punch and Robert Montgomery is miscast, what weaknesses this film has are easily compensated by the amazing performance by GG, the sharp dialogue and the assured direction of Clarence Brown.

It's not easy to make a film about inspiration and in a way this film has. There are so many inspired moments in it, it would be difficult to list them. Here's a few: the opening sequence at the party; the staircase to Andre's room; what happens to Lewis Stone and his young girlfriend; when Garbo confronts Robert about infidelity; the ending, with the scenes in the snow.

Unlike a lot of other Garbo films or even other films made in those days, the melodrama is kept low. No screeching violins and such or major scenery chewing moments. I love the way Clarence Brown kept everything low key. Probably too low key for most people but I for one loved it. The pace is a tad slow but that's a minor complaint.

It's one of those Garbo films I like to watch and re-watch on a regular basis. Had the male lead been someone else than Robert, this little film would have been perfect.

Many (perhaps too many) of Garbo's films are rated primarily on the basis of her performance, with everything else secondary. This is most unfortunate, since MGM - very much to their credit - did not arrange her pictures primarily as star vehicles: the leading men and supporting players are usually strong performers. Considering the fairly large number of pictures in which she starred, her performances do not encompass a wide variety of characterizations: she is typically a woman who has loved well but not wisely (and probably too often), a worldly and world-weary femme fatale preoccupied with the futility of searching for real happiness, yet finding no viable alternative in the life she knows.

This is once again her character in "Inspiration," a relatively obscure Garbo film which compares very favorably with the later and much better-known "Camille." The stories have much in common, as do her performances. While "Camille" obviously had a considerably larger budget, resulting in more impressive production values, the dramatic values in "Inspiration" are at least equal to those of the other.

Of particular note: Garbo, dismissed by her lover, huddles in a storefront, waiting for him to pass on a dark, rainy day - finally emerging when she spots him, only to be rejected once again - without a word - with nothing more than a curt shake of the head as he walks on.

And Lewis Stone, having ended the liason with his young, despairing mistress in an upper apartment, descends the staircase, pauses ever so briefly at the building entrance to note her lifeless body now crumpled on the sidewalk, and continues on his way.

"Isn't life always full of romance?" (the personal quote by Greta Garbo)

The Garbo's words I entailed at the beginning of my review do not only refer to an individual life that they were meant to but, more importantly, appear to resemble most of Garbo's career in Hollywood. Aren't most of her films full of romance? And that is perfectly all right when we consider this movie made at the dawn of talkies, along with ANNA Christie and ROMANCE by Clarence Brown, Garbo's beloved director. Again, INSPIRATION appears to discuss the similar theme of self sacrifice, honest feelings changing people from within, significant decisions that require courage and that lead to love that inspires and illumines life. What a classical, timeless theme of old cinema!

And...who makes INSPIRATION worth seeing is, of course, Garbo whose gracious presence in movies will always live in the hearts of her fans and classic movie buffs worldwide. Again, as it is the case with most movies she made in MGM between 1925 and 1941, her exceptional acting and glamorous photography by William Daniels leave a lasting impact on the viewer's memory. Moreover, among the supporting cast, we can admire Lewis Stone, the wonderful actor whose memorable performances I have mentioned in many of my reviews on Garbo films. Here, he is equally convincing.

And everything would seem to make way for INSPIRATION to be successful, to be inspiring for both the viewers of the 1930s and for today's classic buffs. Yet, INSPIRATION is usually mentioned as one of Garbo's least significant films. Why?

The reason for that lies in the leading man, Robert Montgomery. His role of Andre, a 24 year-old man in love with delicious Yvonne is an interesting role that could be depicted with desirable passion and memorable chemistry. Surely, that would have been not so hard for Garbo's ultimate leading man, John Gilbert, as well as for Melvyn Douglas (who played at her side in NINOTCHKA, for instance), for John Barrymore (in GRAND HOTEL), Robert Taylor (in CAMILLE) and Ramon Novarro (in MATA HARI). But it was beyond Robert Montgomery's skills and attempts. It is worse than ever with absolutely no chemistry between Garbo and Montgomery. One can say while looking at them that he is the worst leading man for Garbo, which, above all, makes their love in the plot hardly convincing. There are moments when Garbo intuitively tries to create a natural, authentic situation (because she was known to create things in acting situations galore) and Montgomery maintains fake and pathetic. Consider, for instance, their scenes on stairs that could have been so well executed.

Therefore, I think that INSPIRATION is, in no way, one of Garbo's first films that you should plan to see. It's worth for Garbo fans who know her great top movies of the 1920s and 1930s and want to see the queen of MGM in yet another role. No top movie whatsoever! 5/10

Don't get me wrong. I love both Garbo and Montgomery. They are both very talented and extremely sexy. This film, however, was not. As the previous poster has said, there is NO chemistry between the 2 stars. It was as if they were not even in the same movie.

Montgomery looked very bored with it all, and, although very dapper in his tuxedo, looked as though he were going to fall asleep throughout the film. I had to laugh when he WAS asleep in the last scene and never woke up, credits rolling. Looks like the poor thing finally got his nap after all. Still, he's always wonderful to look at!

The same goes for Garbo, only this time, her slow talking got on my nerves not just a little bit. I loved her outfits, and she could definitely be a model, but her speech was simply too languid for the film. Even Bob spoke slowly. What the hell?

The supporting players were given awful dialog, stock characterization, and no substance whatsoever, thus making no impact. All this accomplished was to get screen time away from the 2 stars, thankfully, I suppose. (The little doggie was cute, though.)

Nobody looked as though they had any enjoyment making this film, and the same can be said for the unfortunate viewer.

Bottom line: lovely to look at, painful to follow through.

INSPIRATION is Greta Garbo's third talking picture and less static than "Anna Christie" and "Romance". In 1931 Garbo was at the height of her fame and INSPIRATIION was an expensive MGM production. But now it's an undeservedly obscure Garbo film. The scenes are varied, glamorous and entertaining. You can see clearly it was an expensive production: There are some grand and striking scenes like Garbo and Montgomery in the stairwell, Garbo in the artist studio, the snow scenes, the street scenes at night. Great care was taken with every scene. It's melodrama but there's also some comedy included. (It's very unlike the gloomy "Anna Christie"). Garbo is amazing in this film and very beautiful, from the first scenes when she joins the party, relaxed and smiling - until she sees Montgomery and she realizes what she's missing, till the last scene when she writes the letter. I also like Robert Montgomery here as an introverted man, his acting is great.

I would love to see this film in a theater for maximum impact. Ignore the abysmal reviews by those who are cynical and desire more than fine old-fashioned entertainment. This is true inspiration.