Customer Reviews

The Painted Veil [VHS]

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I always feel approaching a Greta Garbo film to review it is like entering some Sacred Temple where one must show due respect and restraint.For the whole of the 1930's decade she along with Joan Crawford and Norma Shearer held the prime positions as the annointed Queens of MGM. Garbo however always seemed to have her own special niche in the pecking order and always had more popularity with European audiences than with the average American movie going public who flocked to Crawford's shop girl melodramas and Shearer's lady like portrayals in high society settings.

Fresh from her triumph in "Queen Christina", the previous year MGM legend Garbo tackled this modern dress romantic film which turned out to be her last modern themed film for quite some time. Indeed by this stage in her career Garbo was down to only making one film a year so her productions were always viewed as special events even when their stories might not have always been up to the quality of the rest of the production. "The Painted Veil", is a classic example of just this. While the story itself is fairly ordinary the same cannot be said for the lavish production with all its "A" list features, and the interesting central performance by Garbo. The story centres around an Austrian girl named Katrin who after the wedding of her only sister finds herself at a loose end and lonely for companionship. Still in the fallout from the wedding Katrin meets her father's assistant Dr. Walter Fane (Herbert Marshall), a sturdy but unexciting man who is immediately infatuated with Katrin and on a whim asks her to marry him before he returns to his position in Hong Kong. With nothing more inviting on the horizon Katrin agrees and after the wedding travels to China with Walter where she takes her place as one of the colonies bored wives who spend their days shopping and playing cards. Into this setup comes Jack Townsend (George Brent),who works for the British Embassy in Hong Kong and very quickly the two are involved in an affair. Walter discovers the truth and to punish Katrin decides to go into China's interior to help fight the cholera epidemic taking her with him in the belief that there at least no man can have her and she will be deprived of her one source of happiness. Because Jack refuses to give up his promising career which he would have to do to marry Katrin, she goes with Walter where in the midst of the crisis the two begin to see the real value in each other. As the crisis worsens Walter is nearly killed by a stab wound inflicted by an angry villager who's house Walter orders burnt to fight the epidemic. Katrin who has been tirelessly nursing the cholera sufferers then rallies to he husband's side and even the reappearance of Jack in the plague stricken area cannot tear her away from her real duty to her husband.

Based on a novel by none other than W. Somerset Maugham, the material at times is a bit thin but still makes compulsive viewing if only to see Garbo's sterling performance as the wayward woman torn between two very different men. Directed with gusto by veteran MGM director Richard Boleslawski he keeps the main action against which the story is set rolling on. As the two male leads Herbert Marshall and George Brent have their work cut out for them against Garbo but come across rather well in their very different characters. Marshall plays his usual upright character but here is injected with just an element of malice to make his playing a little less bland than usual. George Brent used to playing against powerful leading ladies like Bette Davis has just the right element of the cad in his character to breathe a bit of life into what could have been a cardboard character. Being a Garbo vehicle all the MGM expertise are evident on the screen from the superb lighting for all of Garbo's closeups courtesy of William Daniels, her stunning clothes by the legendary MGM designer Adrian, the interesting depiction of China in the last days of the Empire and the quite harrowing scenes of the cholera stricken villages all created within the confines of MGM studios.

I find Greta Garbo always a pleasure to watch on screen and she manages with her unique style to breath life into any story no matter how weak the material. Her absolute understanding of any character she is playing is always very evident and no more so than in "The Painted Veil". I enjoy the real feel of olden times China which is created in this story and find it a terrific romantic drama and to sit back and enjoy. It certainly shows one of MGM's crowning glories in a lavish production created around her where she is showcased to perfection. I recommend the exotic "The Painted Veil", to anyone interested to studying the great mystique of the legendary Greta Garbo.

Set in the mysterious Orient, Garbo is cast as an unfaithful wife who eventually mends her ways........... she's magnificent throughout this rather weak story in one stunning scene after another (Garbo alone is worth the "price of admission"). Garbo just had finished her smash hit QUEEN CHRISTINA when she went into this rather mediocre Maugham tale. The rather melodramatic story, which was adapted for the screen by John Meehan, Salka Viertel and Edith Fitzgerald, seems to hark back to Garbo's silent films as she's torn between a worthy husband and a passionate lover; its plot is curiously similar to that of WILD ORCHIDS (1928) except that China replaces Java as the exotic locale. It was rumoured offscreen that Garbo and Brent had a briefly torrid little affair; however Garbo baulked when Brent insisted on marriage!

The 2006 remake of this film (or should I say readaptation of the W Somerset Maugham novel) is a marvelous cinematic achievement; the perfect blend of beauty, tragedy, love and hate. It runs the gamut of human emotions and offers one of cinemas most fully fleshed out and beautifully tailored performances. I often have praised Naomi Watts' beautiful portrayal of Kitty Fane, for she really gives us a character that makes the complete circle of life so-to-speak. She gives us every stage of her emotional journey with effortless grace.

Enough about `that' version of this movie!

Richard Boleslawski's 1934 version of `The Painted Veil' has some, but not a lot, in common with John Curran's remake. The basic premise of Kitty marrying Walter, a mad she barely knows and does not love, is still here. She still has an affair and is ushered off to the pits of cholera infested Asia with her husband as a consequence, but the way in which Boleslawski handles the relationships between all parties is rather different.

And the ending, but I have not read the novel and thus don't know who was more faithful.

This 1934 film concentrates much more on the budding romance between Kitty and Jack Townsend then necessary. In the 2006 film their relationship begins and ends in the first 15 minutes of the film, which allows for the blossoming relationship between Kitty and Walter to get the attention required, giving it sustenance and heart. By the time hearts are softened and lives are changed we should be able to truly feel it within the characters, and in the 2006 film we can. Here it is more difficult, beings that their relationship is really only given about 30 minutes of screen time. It was an odd directorial decision, and it served as a disservice to the film.

And I much preferred the ending given the newer version.

That said, the performances are really great here from everyone, and they work to carry the film, even when the script falls short. Greta Garbo is wonderful as Kitty, but the script doesn't give her the benefit of a fully fleshed out character (although her `revelation' scene before her husband leaves us astonishing). Herbert Marshall uses a nice restraint to his performance that adds to the layers of hurt he is experiencing; and George Brent has glorified supporting role as Townsend, and he uses ample amounts of suave charm to create a memorable character.

In the end, `The Painted Veil' is a good film, but it is rather incomplete. It has the basic promise of something special, but it does add enough layers to make it really stand out and grab us. I'd recommend the remake before I'd recommend this one. There is just so much more there.

This one is good, but far from great.

The film did badly when it was first released. After viewing it, i know the present audiences can't really rely on the history. Though the film was not Garbo's best,but it's one of the better ones.

"The Painted Veil" is a 1934 romance set in exotic China with Greta Garbo and Herbert Marshall.

Greta Garbo (1905-90) had been in nearly 20 silent films, starting as early as 1920. Her best known silent films were "Flesh and the Devil" (1926) and "Love" (1927). She was nominated 3 times for an Oscar ("Anna Christie", "Camille", and "Ninotchka") but never won. She is listed #5 on the AFI's list of Greatest Actresses. At the time of this film she was one of the hottest stars in Hollywood.

Herbert Marshall (1890-1966) plays Garbo's husband,. A dedicated physician. Marshall appeared in more than 50 films between 1927 and 1965. He could play comedy ("Trouble in Paradise") or drama ("Foreign Correspondent") and his distinctive voice was often used in voice overs.

George Brent (1899-1979) plays Garbo's love interest. Brent is best known as the frequent co-star with Bette Davis in 13 films although he was also very close with Garbo, as described in her 1995 biography.

Warner Oland (1879-1938) plays a Chinese General. Oland is best known for his many films as Charlie Chan, starting in 1931 following his role in "The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu" (1929). Interestingly enough he was Swedish.

Jean Hersholt (1886-1956) has a small part as Garbo's father. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1906 and 1955, including such memorable films as "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" (1921), Erich von Stroheim's "Greed" (1924), Karloff's "The Mask of Fu Manchu" (1932), and "The Country Doctor" (1936). He's best remembered as Shirley Temple's grandfather in "Heidi" (1937).

Keye Luke (1904-1991), in his first film, plays an assistant to Marshall. We know Luke best from the TV series "Kung Fu" (1972-5) in which he played Master Po (the blind Priest). Luke did more than 100 films and as many TV shows. He was Charlie Chan's #1 son in Warner Oland's film series in the 30s

Another "Kung Fun" alumni is Richard Loo (1903-1983) who is barely on screen. Loo was Master Sun (the Weapons Master). Between 1942 and 1981 Loo appeared in more than 100 films.

William Daniels (1901-70) is the cinematographer. Garbo insisted he shoot all her films, which he did, except for 2 ("Conquest", "Two-faced Woman") which turned out to be flops at the box office. When not working with Garbo, Daniels was a favorite of Erich von Stroheim, who was Garbo's favorite director (even though she made 6 films with Clarence Brown). Daniels lensed more than 150 films. He was nominated 3 times ("Anna Christie", "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", "How the West was Won") and won once ("Naked City" in 1948).

Herbert Stothart (1885-1949) provides a great musical score. Stothart was nominated 8 times for an Oscar and won once ("Wizard of Oz"). Among his notable 100+ films were "Rasputin and the Empress" (1932), "Viva Villa" (1934), "Treasure Island" (1934), "Anna Karenina" (1935), "Romeo and Juliet" (1936), and "Northwest Passage" (1940).

The NY Times said that Garbo "continues handsomely to be the world's greatest cinema actress" and praised Marshall and Brent. The film was remade in 1957 and again in 2006.

1934 was an OK year for films. The top box office slots went to "Viva Villa", "Cleopatra" and "The Barretts of Wimpole Street" and "It Happened One Night" was the big Oscar winner. That year "The Thin Man" series began, Karloff and Legosi appeared in "The Black Cat", Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers danced in "The Gay Divorcee", Laurel and Hardy laughed it up in "Babes in Toyland", and Howard Hawks' "Twentieth Century" came out.

This is the type of romantic exotic picture that was very popular in the 30s (e.g., Gable and Harlow in "Red Dust", Marlene Dietrich in `Shanghai Express", Garbo in "Mata Hari", Herbert Marshall and Miriam Hopkins in "Trouble in Paradise", George Arliss and Alice Joyce in "The Green Goddess", Norma Shearer and Robert Montgomery in "Private Lives"). If you're a fan of those kinds of films, then the Painted Veil is for you. Otherwise you may find it a bit too melodramatic.

This is a pretty average melodrama that I found a little dull and lifeless; despite the "exotic" locale and star power. Frankly, I don't think the Garbo "mystique" holds up so well over the decades, and she doesn't add anything special to this "weepie", as they use to call them. Herbert Marshall as the sophisticated but substantial husband is past his prime, and so is his acting style. George Brent as tall, dark, and handsome is... forgettable, as he was in so many of the Bette Davis flicks.
The familiar plot of a woman torn between an exciting lover and a "good" husband; and the consequences and heartbreak wrought by her infidelity needs stronger performances to make this story more interesting or engaging.

I just saw "Now, Voyager" and I would recommend that film as a far better example of the genre. I am not even a Bette Davis fan, but her personality and mannerisms seem much more genuine and accessible to contemporary tastes than Garbo's. I give The Painted Veil 2 1/2 stars.

Where else can you watch Garbo cheat on Herbert Marshall with George Brent...and during the interum meet up with Warner Oland (Charlie Chan) in a bar??? It definietly caught my attention. I would recommend if only for the aesthetics. Check out the bar..very KONTIKI...gotta buy this one..