Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise) (released in 1931) - starring Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Jean Hersholt and Alan Hale

This movie is an adaptation from a racy novel of the same name from David Graham Phillips. Directed by Cedric Gibbons, this early sound film has Greta Garbo and Clarke Gable in the pivotal roles.
Helga is raised by her uncle Ohlin on his farm and has to contend with a grim treacherous life as she was born out of wedlock. Ohlin plans to wed his illegitimate niece to a monstrous Mondstrum whom Helga hates. On the day of a storm Ohlin persuades Mondstrum to stay the night at the farm and he attempts to molest Helga. Fighting off his advances she runs out in to the storm, never to go back. After wandering around she hides herself on a barn and survives the storm. She is soon discovered by Rodney Spencer, an engineer who had the barn for a weekend. Having nowhere to go Helga stays with Rodney and they soon develop a liking for each other. A relationship blossoms and the lovey-dovey pair soon set a date for the wedding.
Rodney has to move out urgently on business and he promises to be back as soon as possible. Meanwhile Mondstrum and Ohlin track Helga down and she flees to save herself from their clutches. She is not able to leave any forwarding messages for Rodney and finds a hideout with a moving carnival. She christens herself as Susan Lennox and work as a dancer/ acrobat for the carnival whose boss, Burlingham has a shady reputation as a womanizer. Rodney meanwhile tracks her down and becomes livid when he comes to know about the “terms of employment”. He leaves in anger after telling her about the consequences she would face.



Susan leaves the carnival and for self preservation and survival becomes the mistress of a driven Mike Kelly who nurses political ambitions. She lives a life of luxury albeit “a kept one”. But by the quirk of fate she meets Rodney whose career has nosedived because of his drinking binges. She realizes that her feelings for him has never changed and clandestinely invites him over for a party. Rodney harboring anger and hate has heated exchanges with her before storming out embarrassing Susan in front of others.
Stricken Susan leaves the comfortable position of a “well kept woman” and tries to track down Rodney. She also meets Ian Keith, a decent honorable man who falls in love with her and proposes to her. He does not care about her checkered past and wants her present for himself. But on finding Rodney, she is momentarily torn between the pure selfless love of Keith and anger in Rodney. But she realizes that her love for Rodney is far greater and both of them reconcile to give a life together another chance.
This movie is a Greta Garbo vehicle who through her star power and acting prowess breathes life in to the role which is handicapped by a weak script. The movie has long gap of silences which bores the viewer. Apart from this the sizzling chemistry between Clark Gable and Garbo lifts the mundane proceedings to another level. This is in-spite of their mutual dislike for each other and is a hallmark of their professionalism. A romantic drama for a rainy day.

Inspiration (released in 1931) - Starring Greta Garbo, Robert Montgomery, Lewis Stone, Marjorie Rambeau and Judith Vosselli

This movie solely rest on the able shoulders of Greta Garbo with everything, the weak script, low chemistry, insipid acting and tiring story fading in to nothingness. Garbo illuminates each and every scene.
This movie directed by Clarence Brown, stars Greta Garbo as the older women falling for a younger man played by Robert Montgomery. This is the only movie in which Garbo acted with Robert Montgomery. Directed by Garbo's favorite director Clarence Brown, this movie is a modernized version of Alphonse Daudet's novel, Sappho.
Yvonne is a worldly wise model in Paris who has gone through all the vices the world can offer. She goes through her lovers to keep her life in Paris, smokes like a chimney, drinks like a fish and lives life of a gay abandon. At a party he chances upon Andre a small time engineer keeping life afloat and falls in love with him. She leaves her society and all her lovers to live her life with him. But Andre is aghast at her past and Yvonne moves out to give him some space. But soon she returns to start life again and this time a jealous Andre leaves her heart broken. She descends in to poverty and is a pale shadow of her older self.



Both Yvonne and Andre cross paths with each other again and this time he decides to stay put with her. He tries to tell her about a respectable marriage he has contracted and Yvonne begs him to be with her. He also mentions about a great project he has achieved which means traveling abroad. But sensing her desperation Andre chooses his love over his career. He decides to stay with her and buys an estate to keep Yvonne in Paris.
Yvonne slowly realizes the chains she is putting him in. So as he lies sleeping in the couch she writes a letter about her love for him and his need to get on his life and career with out her. She keeps the letter next to him and leaves the place.
This movie was pilloried by all the critics for poor script, and bad acting. It is said that Garbo never liked the character she played and was never pleased with the dialogues. After this movie she had serious differences with the director Clarence Brown and stopped working in his movies. Apart from Garbo's screen presence, the only saving grace of this movie is the art direction. There is one scene where Garbo rejected by her lover, walks aimlessly through the streets of Paris and come to rest at a seedy restaurant. The lighting and the mood brings out the vulnerable woman in her. The lighting and camera angles compliments Garbo in every way and lifts a mundane movie to the next level.
Well nothing much can be said about the other characters because it is just Garbo all the way. Just see it for her sake.

Mata Hari (released in 1931) - Starring Greta Garbo and Ramon Novarro

Mata Hari is a pre-code (before the introduction of censorship) film loosely based on the life of Mata Hari (the stage name of Margaretha Geertruida Zelle), a courtesan executed for espionage during World War I. This movie directed by George Fitzmaurice stars Greta Garbo in the pivotal role. This movie is one of Greta Garbo's biggest hits and MGM's hit of the year netting a profit of nearly one million dollars. This pre-code movie was released again later and heavily censored, and many a scene was chopped to fall in line with the Hay's code.
Mata Hari is a courtesan who resides in Paris and is a spy for the German armed forces. She seduces many army and police officers passing secrets to enemy hands. With the general paranoia for spies during World War I, French spy bureau chief, Dubois vow to unmask the femme fatale. He keeps surveillance over her activities to nail her with complete evidence.
Mata Hari gets her assignments from Andriani who urges her to get the information of Russian Troop movements along the border. She meets the dashing Russian pilot of the imperial air-force, Alexis Rosanoff who is celebrated for his flight through the German Lines to bring in important messages. Mata Hari does not know that Alexis actually possesses the documents that Andriani had asked her to procure. She falls for the dashing officer and has an affair with him.



Soon she comes to know about the papers and darkens the room distracting Alexis, enabling others to photocopy the papers before returning it to the rightful owner. Andriani is disappointed in Mata Hari's involvement with Alexis. He kill Carlotta, another spy for daring to fall in love with her target. He threatens Mata that the same fate awaits her.
Dubois on the other hand in search of evidence gossips about her affair with Alexis to her ex-lover Shubin. An enraged Shubin confronts Mata Hari and threatens to expose her. Scared of Shubin's anger, Mata Hari even shows the photographs she stole from Alexis. But blinded by rage Shubin places a call to the embassy to have Mata Hari arrested. Mata shoots him and is on the run. She almost boards the plane to Amsterdam, when information about the fatal accident involving Alexis reach her. In-spite of Andriani's warnings she meets Alexis and is duly arrested by Dubois. A blinded Alexis does not know the situation and thinks that Mata is severely ill and is confined to a sanatorium.
Mata Hari is tried and convicted for spying against France. She is condemned to death and her last wish is to see Alexis. A blind Alexis meets her thinking the prison to be a sanatorium. She informs him not to grieve her death and walks out to meet the waiting firing squad. This movie was a huge success and is responsible for the cult following of Mata Hari. This movie is largely a fictionalized account and completely romanticizes the spy she was. Greta Garbo's beauty and talent makes this movie a notch above all.