December 3, 2011
Garbo Talks (1984)
The legacy of Greta Garbo is such that the only time Garbo Talks (a movie that uses her appearance on screen as a denouement) comes alive is when Garbo herself is on screen - and she is silently portrayed by an actress! The movie itself is a pastiche of events in the life of a guy as he runs around New York City trying to find the legendary recluse for a visit with his dying mother (Anne Bancroft in an over-the-top performance as a Jewish mother that was almost distasteful). The film's creators ladled on the quirk factor while sprinkling emotion only slightly in this one.
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2 comments:
Greta Garbo was not a happy woman. The legend far overshadowed the person. She was one of my favorite classic actresses, along with Bette Davis. I once spent an entire day watching her movies and interviews with people who knew her on AMC. She once said to her her nephew "I am a monument. A monument does not do anything. It just sits there."
When she was in kidney failure at the end of her life, some of the staff who had worked at the dialysis center stated that she had always been very polite and had a great sense of humor. She never acted like a "star" with them.
What an interesting comment. "I am a monument." Nice to hear that she was nice to others but I'm still partial to Bette Davis. The Letter is playing at the Stanford Theatre so I just might see it on a big screen.
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