Dinner at Eight

Wow! What a terrific movie! I believe "tour de force" is the technical term, in the language of cowardice. I never would have thought that an ensemble piece could be so intense. I remember I first saw this movie a few months ago and caught only the Jean Harlow and John Barrymore segments, but because I hadn't seen it from the beginning, it seemed to me that the momentum faded after that. Nothing could be farther from the truth (though I must concede that the John Barrymore part is unparalleled, climactic). The whole thing is perfect, uncomfortable pathos from beginning to end. The only part that stumps me is how this could be a COMEDY. I suppose people find it funny just because it is so unrelentingly uncomfortable, but it's also existential enough to cross into tragedy territory.

This was also my first Harlow picture, the one that won me over. If you look at her stills, sometimes you can't tell if she has the face of a man (say, lumberjack or Kirsten Dunst) or a doll. So how did she become the sex symbol par excellence, with that chin? I used to wonder. Then I saw her in action, with her sass and her back-talking foul mouth, and I understood. That's what makes her such an icon for me: here's a woman who didn't just land on a golden egg and get born with the best-looking face in the world, but she used the force of her personality to redefine her freaky features into "freaky-beautiful."

This movie also shows that you can't really say boo about her acting. All the performances, in fact, hit it out of the park. I especialy liked the Harlow and Lionel Barrymore, and it goes without saying that John Barrymore is simply untouchable. His was the most gut-wrenching picutre of disillusionment and pride I've seen in a long time.