Ninotchka

Ninotchka is a 1939 American comedy film made for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer by producer and director Ernst Lubitsch and starring Greta Garbo and Melvyn Douglas. It was written by Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett, and Walter Reisch, based on a screen story by Melchior Lengyel. Ninotchka is Greta Garbo's first full comedy, and her penultimate (second-to-last) film.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) It is one of the first American movies which, under the cover of a satirical, light romance, depicted the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin as being rigid and gray. Here they compare it with the free and sunny Parisian society of pre-war years.
 * 2) The clever film satirizes the Communist political system with the right amount of sexual humor.
 * 3) Ernst Lubitsch is once again an amazingly talented director with his famous "Lubitsch touch". Although it can feel oppressive at times, he mostly remains discreet, giving the actors plenty of room, letting the story unfold at an unforced pace, using an unobtrusive camera and quiet fades to punctuate scenes. An especially notable aspect is successfully playing Garbo as earthier than her romantic rival Ina Claire, playing a Grand Duchess.
 * 4) The title character is a great protagonist considering she's a whip-smart, selfless, and by-the-book Russian
 * 5) While Greta Garbo was a critic's favorite, she was a mysterious figure to mass audiences with her face being a semi-immobile mask that viewers could impose their own thoughts and feelings onto her expressions. After a series of highbrow romances that failed to find sizable audiences, she was recreated to be "humanized" for this film, or at least brought down to the level of Americans. Garbo does a surprisingly near-perfect job playing against type in her first official American comedy.
 * 6) Reviewers appreciated Garbo's willingness to spoof her screen persona, especially the robotic monotone she uses in her opening scenes. Garbo plays the titular Ninotchka as an utter naïf, and her bewilderment at the consumer charms of Paris, her consternation at how easily her comrades are corrrupted, and her gradual thawing in the face of love show how accomplished a performer she was.
 * 7) Screenwriters Brackett and Wilder's biggest contribution -- aside from their typically biting jokes -- was to shape Ninotchka as a Cinderella tale and develop the roles of the three low-level Russian envoys (played by Sig Rumann, Felix Bressart, and Alexander Granach). Similar to Dorothy Gale's trio of companions, the envoys here would bring the titular Ninotchka to Paris, introduce her to a French lover, and arrange for the story's happy ending. Brackett and Wilder also supplied much of the film's consistently marvelous dialogue. Even throwaway lines are memorable.
 * 8) The rest of the cast pull of great performances as well including Melvyn Douglas as one of the lead roles. Even Bela Lugosi of Dracula fame appears in the film. Even if it is only in the film's final ten minutes.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) While Greta Garbo's scenes as a naïf and mellowing down are very memorable, her more romantic scenes, where she wears ill-advised evening gowns and succums to Melvin Douglas' wooing aren't nearly as enjoyable.