Dave Cochrane

This dark and beautifully shot story tells of a man's quest to discover the facts behind his good friend's death, and of the revelation that his friend had, in truth, not only been less than good, but had actually been profiting from the exploition of the sick by supplying third-grade counterfeit medicine at a time of desperation and short supply, with no care for the suffering and death resulting from his actions.

This engrossing film focuses on a small passage of time in the lives of a diverse group of characters whose paths intertwine when they reside together at the Grand Hotel in Berlin. All the characters are complex and flawed: a terminally ill accountant and drunkard (Lionel Barrymore), conscious of his squandered existence, at last liberated by the knowledge of his pending death to live out his final days to the full; a kindly gentleman thief (John Barrymore), determined to turn over a new leaf but reluctantly forced to carry out one last job in order to pay a debt to the mob; and a suicidal has-been ballerina (sensitively played by Greta Garbo), painfully aware that her best days are behind her. The film is by turns sad, laugh-out-loud funny, touching and tragic. It also contains some of the most skillfully acted drunkard scenes you will probably ever see. This is classic pre-code cinema, and as such is highly recommended.