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Special Features
- Theatrical trailer
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
She's a household name that conjures up international intrigue and wartime espionage, predatory sexuality and fatal passion. So how is it that none of the several movies titled Mata Hari is very satisfying? This Greta Garbo vehicle is much less interesting than the 1931 Sternberg-Dietrich film Dishonored (whose doomed spy lady went by the name X-27). The divine Swede plays the Javanese-Dutch exotic dancer who romances a Russian aviator in perfumed Paris on behalf of German intelligence. It's typical that the Balinese temple harness Garbo almost wears in the first nightclub number looks sexier in stills than it does in motion: Mata Hari is less a film than the idea for a film. George Fitzmaurice's direction is static, silent-era holdover Ramon Navarro makes a cookie-dough leading man, and the feisty Karen Morley (as Mata's secret-agent colleague) exits the picture much too soon. The gowns--and harness?--are by Adrian. --Richard T. Jameson
Product Description
Mata Hari: the name breathes mystery, intrigue and sexual allure. Who better to play the notorious World War I spy than Greta Garbo, the enigmatic, exquisite screen icon called The Swedish Sphinx? Garbo is mesmerizing as the dancer-turned-German secret agent in a wartime Paris seething with secrets and betrayal. The notable supporting cast includes Lionel Barrymore as a Russian general besotted with her, Lewis Stone as an icy master spy, and Ramon Novarro as a handsome aviator who wins the heart Mata Hari did not know she possessed. With the world at war, love was her weapon. And the only men she couldn't seduce were the 12 in the firing squad that ended her tragic and tumultuous life.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
Actually, the only real reason I wanted to see this picture was the alluring Greta Garbo. The woman radiates mystery, which in today's cinema is all-to-rare. She is really the best thing about this film, which is kind of cheesy in everything else. The costumes are gorgeous, the sets are well-contrived, but it's the worn story and wooden acting all around Garbo that drag this film down.
This is a Hollywood rendering of a famous spy, Mata Hari, who, on being caught, is executed by firing squad in the end. There is no faulting Garbo's contribution, as she slithers from one scene to the next, fully convincing as the ill-fated, beautiful spy. I only the rest of the cast had put forth that much effort! Ah well.
Fans of Miss Garbo will, no doubt, fully enjoy this film, as Garbo is actually very moving in her scenes. Now don't get me wrong, I actually enjoyed this film, myself. I just wish more effort could have been put forth by just a few more of her colleagues.
I give this film four stars on the basis of Garbo's unique ability to light up the screen whenever she appears, and for the glorious costumes that populate her environment. Just sit back and enjoy the visual treat that was Greta Garbo.
This is a Hollywood rendering of a famous spy, Mata Hari, who, on being caught, is executed by firing squad in the end. There is no faulting Garbo's contribution, as she slithers from one scene to the next, fully convincing as the ill-fated, beautiful spy. I only the rest of the cast had put forth that much effort! Ah well.
Fans of Miss Garbo will, no doubt, fully enjoy this film, as Garbo is actually very moving in her scenes. Now don't get me wrong, I actually enjoyed this film, myself. I just wish more effort could have been put forth by just a few more of her colleagues.
I give this film four stars on the basis of Garbo's unique ability to light up the screen whenever she appears, and for the glorious costumes that populate her environment. Just sit back and enjoy the visual treat that was Greta Garbo.
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
Excellent early 30's vechicle for Greta Garbo and Ramon Novarro. Both stars have never been better in both looks and performances. Lighting of the film is a real highlight and it's performances like this that make you wonder why the great Ramon Novarro didn't stay one of the greatest heartthrobs of 30's romances, he is sensational. Garbo as always is exotic, mysterious and totally captivating. Any real lover of Hollywood's glamour era when stars were real stars should purchase this video.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Anyechka
Format:DVD
This seems like one of those films that sounded better on paper than in the actual finished product. The sets and costumes are gorgeous, the plot (though rather loosely based on the history behind the real Mata Hari) had a lot of potential to be interesting and gripping, and it has four big names heading the bill. Greta Garbo and Ramon Novarro are two of my favorites, and though I haven't seen him in a huge amount of films yet, I've also really enjoyed Lewis Stone in the films I have seen him in. The other big star, Lionel Barrymore, overacts as usual, though he does pull off the role well. (Though I know he was talented in spite of his tendency to overact, it's beyond me why he was once considered a better actor than his brother John.)
However, in spite of the big names, the promising storyline, and the gorgeous costumes and sets, the picture ultimately seems to fall rather flat. Perhaps part of it could be attributed to how this is after all an early talkie, made in 1931; it would take a little bit longer yet for films to lose this stagy feeling, with almost nonstop chatter, and go back to having more freedom of motion and a balance between dialogue and scenes and moments that didn't rely so heavily on constant talk. Many of these lines themselves weren't very dramatic or original, more like empty words used to fill the time. Additionally, it just didn't seem to have a whole lot of dramatic tension or to be a very compelling interesting story till it was well more than halfway over. There's also the problem of how Ramon is supposed to be portraying a Russian aviator. Given his Mexican accent and Mexican appearance, it's not really convincing, though he is as beautiful as always, and does manage to convey his talent and bring depth and emotion to the role in spite of the oftentimes rather lame script. And as in all of her other roles, Garbo also really shines. She always managed to elevate films that would otherwise be outright clunkers to something interesting and at a higher level due to her subtlety and her electric presence, not to mention how beautiful she was even when she had to wear some pretty ridiculous outfits, as she does here (particularly her hats). Basically (in my opinion at least), it's one of those films that one watches just to see the stars of because they made it interesting by their mere presence, whereas, had the leads been lesser-talented and less-captivating actors, one might not be all that inclined to want to watch it.
However, in spite of the big names, the promising storyline, and the gorgeous costumes and sets, the picture ultimately seems to fall rather flat. Perhaps part of it could be attributed to how this is after all an early talkie, made in 1931; it would take a little bit longer yet for films to lose this stagy feeling, with almost nonstop chatter, and go back to having more freedom of motion and a balance between dialogue and scenes and moments that didn't rely so heavily on constant talk. Many of these lines themselves weren't very dramatic or original, more like empty words used to fill the time. Additionally, it just didn't seem to have a whole lot of dramatic tension or to be a very compelling interesting story till it was well more than halfway over. There's also the problem of how Ramon is supposed to be portraying a Russian aviator. Given his Mexican accent and Mexican appearance, it's not really convincing, though he is as beautiful as always, and does manage to convey his talent and bring depth and emotion to the role in spite of the oftentimes rather lame script. And as in all of her other roles, Garbo also really shines. She always managed to elevate films that would otherwise be outright clunkers to something interesting and at a higher level due to her subtlety and her electric presence, not to mention how beautiful she was even when she had to wear some pretty ridiculous outfits, as she does here (particularly her hats). Basically (in my opinion at least), it's one of those films that one watches just to see the stars of because they made it interesting by their mere presence, whereas, had the leads been lesser-talented and less-captivating actors, one might not be all that inclined to want to watch it.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Gobble, gobble
You could honestly say that this film, a not very accurate retelling of the story of the most famous female spy in history, isn't a total disaster, if you put total in italics. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jon Corelis
5.0 out of 5 stars
Garbo Rocks as Mata Hari
Since this DVD got mixed reviews, when I watched it the first time I wasn't sure what to expect. But, I was really impressed. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Desert Dancer
2.0 out of 5 stars
Garbo Poses
Greta Garbo has always been interesting to watch, with her many expressions, especially sad ones, and her great looks. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Cary Grant
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mata Hari
Silly hokum of course, but I'm just such a sucker for MGM gloss. By '31 they worked out all those early talkie kinks, & the sets and costumes just shine. Nice mobile camera, too. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Charles D. Fulton
4.0 out of 5 stars
"A spy in love is a tool that has outlived its usefulness"
Garbo spoke in 1930's "Anna Christie"....but no-one was prepared for the frenzy that would be unleashed the following year, when she took on the exotic character of MATA HARI. Read more
Published on December 29, 2010 by Byron Kolln
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mata: Yours forever!
Mata Hari was probably one of the most tragic episodes of the WW1. Mata Hari personified the mythical woman, the femme fatal, the unreachable ideal, the highest peak of the... Read more
Published on October 26, 2010 by Hiram Gomez Pardo
3.0 out of 5 stars
Visually Pretty but Shallow
Mata Hari, whose name translated loosely as "Eye of the Morning," was an eastern princess who had been immersed in dance from the moment of her birth--or so she said. Read more
Published on August 26, 2010 by Gary F. Taylor
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best exotic Dancer sequence, EVER
Garbo looks alluring and superb in every second of footage. She first appears as the exotic dancer, dedicating her dance to Shiva, as a bayadere would in a sacred temple, except... Read more
Published on August 17, 2009 by Alberto M. Barral
5.0 out of 5 stars
What ever you do, don't put out The Madonna's Holy light.
Loosely based on the real Mata Hari (WWI spy), this is a tail of a spy that may have got caught up in something greater than God and Country. Read more
Published on February 24, 2008 by bernie
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fantasy Love Story
This Hollywood drama is loosely based on the most famous spy of the Great War. In 1917 France they sought a scapegoat for the stalemate and huge losses in the war. Read more
Published on July 7, 2007 by Acute Observer
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