Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)

This film is noteworthy because of the unique, mysterious, and wonderful screen presence of Greta Garbo. She is thoroughly convincing as the vulnerable young woman at the beginning of the film, and as her character becomes more worldly but still vulnerable she remains convincing. Occasionally she might lapse into acting that would seem to the modern viewer to be overly dramatic, but overall she is brilliant. Clark Gable is okay, but the construction of the film from a plot standpoint left something to be desired. Some things needed to be explained better. This seems to be a common problem with many early sound films as most of the 1928-31 sound films that I have seen are at times disjointed, leaving the viewer wondering why something occurred. That said, I recommend this film because of Garbo.

GRETA GARBO fans will undoubtedly forgive the screenplay which has Greta and CLARK GABLE romantically involved in an on again/off again relationship that is the basis for the whole movie. And, of course, Garbo's favorite cinematographer, William Daniels, is behind the camera making sure that she gets her fair share of lush close-ups.

It starts out promisingly enough as a Gothic melodrama with Garbo fleeing the advances of a drunken fiancé ALAN HALE and rushing out into the storm. She seeks shelter in a barn but is discovered by CLARK GABLE who promptly takes a shine to her and invites her to take shelter under his roof. The opening scenes with Garbo and Gable have an innocent charm that makes them delightful to watch, with Gable giving a more natural performance than Garbo who already has a bag of transparent acting tricks.

The plot thickens when Susan Lenox is forced to flee Gable's residence when her strict father and fiancé show up to bring her home. She ends up taking refuge on a circus train and ends up being "kept" by one of the managers. When she's reunited with Gable, it begins a series of misunderstandings. Garbo plays her role like the real diva she was, even pronouncing Gable's name--"Rodney"--in a melodramatic way.

It's strictly downhill into pulp romance territory for the rest of the way. It's Gable who gives one of his most likable performances and sustains interest in the story's development--not Garbo.

Summing up: Only for die-hard Garbo fans. Noteworthy for a very fine beginning which soon lapses into mediocrity.

Although this film is often ignored in documentaries and facts about Greta Garbo, SUSAN LENOX foremost boasts of her magnificent, magical presence. While Garbo's filmography would surely be equally great without this film, SUSAN LENOX without Garbo would be forgotten now. Yet, it still remains one of the films of the silver screen worth viewing...in what way?

SUSAN LENOX based upon the novel by David Graham Phillips marks a significant aspect of cinematic history and of the old contract Greta Garbo had signed with MGM. Filmed in the period when the budget was considerably low, there is hardly any opulence nor grandeur. As a matter of fact, the story does not require lavishness which, meanwhile, appears more in MATA HARI (1931). Here, it seems to be enough we have Garbo...she speaks for all the merits of the film because...her performance becomes quite distinct and very genuine.

She is no longer any spy, vamp nor femme fatale but a peasant girl, Helga, a novel buff who flees from the monstrosity of hardship, from marrying a monstrous Mondstrum (Alan Hale) into the 'unknown' where she meets the love of her life, Rodney Spencer (Clark Gable). The servant Helga transforms into independent Susan. Their genuine feeling will, however, need to experience a harsh test before she will finally make him believe in her...

This is a film which, in a way, occurs to be similar to many other Garbo films because of the wonderful wardrobe by Adrian and subtle cinematography by William H. Daniels...old staff seemingly, many similarities, almost identical details. However, the major difference and a real revelation appears to be Garbo's leading man - a rising star of the time whose greatest roles were still ahead of him - Clark Gable. This is the first and the only movie where Ms Garbo plays opposite Mr Gable - what are the impressions?

According to the audience of the time and many critics, it was rather a successful pairing. MGM even prepared for the couple another project, RED DUST...yet, Garbo's answer was quite unpredictable...she refused and, as a result, she never again appeared with Mr Gable. The role was taken by Jean Harlow. And since then, the opinions have differed. People who have not been a particular fans of Greta Garbo tend to say that they are a very fine couple on screen. They even do not hesitate to say that there IS a chemistry between the 'Swedish Sphinx' and the 'King.' Garbo's fans see it a bit differently and tend to say that this pairing was not very successful. Why? Because truly the 'King' considered the 'SPHINX' a 'SNOB' while the 'Sphinx' considered the 'KING'---'WOODEN.' Anyway...

...there are some very nice moments they have together on the screen where there is wit, where there is tension and attention achieved. The scene of fishing is one of them when Rodney's lovely, charming dog called Boy comes in between them and 'a little fish'... Yet, what we find in many Garbo biographies, the two did not like each other very much...their pairing is a revelation as a fact; yet the mutual acting is flawed, in my opinion. While Ms Garbo holds a great power in MYSTERIOUS EXPRESSIVE FACE, Mr Gable holds a power of TALKATIVE LONGSTREAM CHAT. Quite diverse...

The film being not that long is a nice and a memorable cinema production thanks to some wonderful attention viewers pay to the character of Susan. The film is in no way any intense psychological insight where you would be left with many reflections (sometimes too many) but a pleasant linear story which, in the long run, becomes a nice thought provoking picture. The events of Susan, her final decision make us like her, sympathize with her and help us, unlike in Susan's cruel upbringing, get memorable notions in our heads - significant decisions, forgiveness, treatment of life as an ongoing process of changes.

Therefore, I rate this film 7/10 - despite some flaws, it is a nice choice for a calm afternoon to view once again after all these years, and let oneself be mesmerized by Greta Garbo whose screen presence is always breathtaking no matter what movie we view and what generation of movie buffs. Recommended from a Garbo fan as I am.

I had to watch SUSAN LENOX - HER FALL AND RISE several times because I just couldn't wrap my mind around it. It's such an odd film, mostly because it was obviously cut here and there, down to a paltry 75 minutes long film, and because what occurs in the movie is such a smorgasborg of melodramatic situations squeezed in in such a brief amount of time, that the film becomes truly surreal.

The film starts broodingly enough, with the illegitimate birth of Helga (soon to be Susan Lenox, of Lenoxville) seen in shadows. We see her grow in her miserable life in shadows and the next thing we see is Helga is sent to live/marry a man she doesn't know. She runs away from the creepy ugly man and ends up with Rodney (Clark Gable) and the two fall in love overnight(!). When Rodney leaves for a business trip, Helga comes across her evil family and runs away from town, only to end up in circus, where Helga becomes known as Susan Lenox, is forced to work as a performer (a belly dancer of sorts) and is under the control of the circus boss Burlingham. After an ill-fated meeting with Rodney at the circus, Holga runs away (yes, again) and becomes a socialite in New York. After another ill-fated meeting with Rodney at a party, the two fight and separate again. Holga still goes after him, all the way down to South America(!) where she works in a seedy bar (keeping men company)and where she waits for him.

Got that? Anyway, the movie is like one of those action packed serials, but instead of showing a hero going from one pitfall to another, SUSAN LENOX is a melodramatic serial, where our heroine goes from one melodramatic pitfall to another, with very little time to digest one situation from the next.

The fast pace and wonky style is actually endearing, keeping the sometimes questionable subject matter light and airy. Notice the scene when Garbo undresses at the circus when she meets Rodney again, with the kooky music, giving a cartoony feel to the whole moment.

If there was a theme in SUSAN LENOX, it's how women are constantly used and abused in society. But the film never becomes too depressing because Garbo gives weight and importance to a character that's not easy to play, a character forced to do unpleasant things. Susan is hopelessly naive yet determined, all this beautifully played by Garbo.

Gable is good too but his character is a little too dense to be likable. I don't hate Rodney but he should have been a bit more understanding about Susan's circumstances or her background.

There are some great bits of dialogue in SUSAN LENOX. My favorite line (and one of my favorite lines in any movie)is uttered by Garbo: "This hurt we have inflicted upon each other. It's become a bound. Nothing can break it. We're just like two cripples. Twisted. Only together can we ever become straight." Brilliant. That lines basically surmises the whole movie: two beautiful losers, miserable in the company of others and only happy with each other, yet they can't seem to be able to live together because of wonky circumstances.

And to think that the two only met each other for one night. Arf! Is SUSAN LENOX a great movie? No, it's not. But in its odd way (sorta like Susan and Rodney), it's infinitely watchable and endearing.

I'm usually against remakes but I believe they should remake SUSAN LENOX. Obviously, no one can top Garbo as Susan Lenox of Lenoxville, but this odd story, in the hands of a director like David Lynch, would be amazing.

(update: I recently read the Taschen book Icon series on Garbo and according to it, this film had 21 writers! No wonder it's so wonky!)

This film could be summarized as 'just another Garbo redemption yarn'... well, it is and it isn't. If you're familiar with the Garbo films (silents & talkies), you'll find yourself knowing the script before it happens onscreen, so, yes, indeed, Garbo will fall first then unwillingly rise from the gutter, sit on top of the world, then fall again, willingly or not. Some have written very intelligent lines on the subject (Mick Lasalle in 'Complicated Women' for instance) so I won't ad lib on this.

But this particular film adds another element: its photography. Splendid throughout all of Susan's cahotic life, the images crafted by Bill Daniels are simply amazing and on par with any Sternberg film - yes, that good. I can't remember precisely at the moment but the film was almost entirely redone before being released, either by R.Z. Leonard or by somebody else and R.Z. kept the credit...

Whatever. If script-wise quite predictable, this film should be seen if only for the sake of its images. Also, Garbo gives a performance worthy of the one she had in Grand Hotel - glimpses of eternity perhaps.

Too bad the big guys think this one's not worth more than a crappy VHS - photography on this level IS art... And Garbo's face eludes all possible descriptions.