Academy Awards, USA 1940
| Nominated Oscar | Best Picture |
| Best Actress in a Leading Role Greta Garbo | |
| Best Writing, Original Story Melchior Lengyel | |
| Best Writing, Screenplay Charles Brackett Walter Reisch Billy Wilder |
MGM
Directed by Ernst Lubitsch
My rating: 1.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)
Ice cold Russian Garbo travels to Paris to negotiate over the ownership of some jewels. Her heart is warmed by playboy Melvyn Douglas, the lover of a French Duchess who claims the jewels as her own. In the pivotal scene, Douglas tells some awful jokes which eventually gets Garbo to loosen up and even laugh. Soon, she ditches her stern Russian ways and dons evening gowns, a stupid hat and gets drunk on champagne. The Duchess contrives to send her back to Russia for awhile, but the two lovers reunite for the inevitable happy ending. A dreadful comedy laced with dated anti-Communist propaganda. Garbo is wooden and Douglas is smarmy. Even the famous "Lubitsch touch" can't redeem this one.
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