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Movies / On DVD / Ninotchka
Ninotchka

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Ninotchka (1939)

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Reviews Counted:23

Fresh:23

Rotten:0

Average Rating:8.3/10

Consensus: With Greta Garbo proving her comedy chops in the twilight of her career, Ninotchka is a can't-miss classic.

Runtime: 2 hrs 35 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Ninotchka is a stern, straightlaced Communist Party member sent to Paris to finish the sale of Grand Duchess Swana's jewels for the Soviet government. But, while studying the frivolous materialism... Ninotchka is a stern, straightlaced Communist Party member sent to Paris to finish the sale of Grand Duchess Swana's jewels for the Soviet government. But, while studying the frivolous materialism of Paris, Ninotchka meets Leon, Swana's lawyer and sometime lover, and the two become enamored with one another -- without knowing each other's identity. The Grand Duchess, in the meantime, is suing the USSR for ownership of the jewels. What follows is a delicate web of intrigue and deception as Swana tries to blackmail Ninotchka into leaving Paris. Soon the two lovers have to overcome political hurdles and cross borders just to be together. [More]

Starring: Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas, Bela Lugosi, Ina Claire

Starring: Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas, Bela Lugosi, Ina Claire, Sig Ruman, Felix Bressart, Alexander Granach, Gregory Gaye, Dorothy Adams

Director: Ernst Lubitsch

Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Producer: Ernst Lubitsch
Composer: Werner Richard Heymann

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Sep 6, 2005

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Garbo Talks! proclaimed ads when silent star Greta Garbo debuted in talkies. Nine years and 12 classic screen dramas later, the gifted movie legend was ready for another change. Garbo Laughs! cheered the publicity for her first comedy, a frothy tale of a dour Russian envoy sublimating her womanhood for Soviet brotherhood until she falls for a suave Parisian man-about-town (Melvyn Douglas).
  • Working from a cleverly barbed script written in part by Billy Wilder, director Ernst Lubitsch knew better than anyone how to marry refinement with sublime wit. "At least twice a day the most dignified human being is ridiculous," he explained about his acclaimed Lubitsch Touch. That's how we see Garbo's lovestruck Ninotchka: serenly dignified yet endearing ridiculous. Garbo laughs. So will you.
  • Source: Warner Home Video
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for Ninotchka

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    1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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    The masterpiece among Lubitsch's later films.

    Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy | comment Comment
    11/23/09
    Tim Brayton
    Tim Brayton
    Antagony & Ecstasy

    It is a film that blends pratfalls and a sophisticated comedy of manners.

    Full Review Source: Film4 | comment Comment
    02/03/09
    Film4

    Selection of Ernst Lubitsch to pilot Garbo in her first light performance in pictures proves a bull's-eye.

    Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
    02/03/09
    Variety Staff
    Variety Staff
    Variety
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The satire may be mostly a matter of easy contrasts, but the lovers inhabit a world of elegance and poise that is uniquely and movingly Lubitsch's.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
    02/03/09
    Dave Kehr
    Dave Kehr
    Chicago Reader
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    This was Garbo's first comedy and second last film. And it's a unique role for her, first because she starts off as a dour, cold comrade with no sense of humour, and second because she laughs herself into a love of capitalist vices.

    Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
    04/05/08
    Urban Cinefile Critics
    Urban Cinefile Critics
    Urban Cinefile

    It's Garbo's next-to-last film and first American comedy.

    Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
    02/20/08
    Dennis Schwartz
    Dennis Schwartz
    Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    MGM announced to the world: Garbo Laughs! In a major departure from her screen image, Garbo brings incredibly sensual abandon to her role of a glum, scientifically trained Bolshevik envoy who succumbs to Parisian decadence of romance and champagne.

    Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
    09/11/06
    Emanuel Levy
    Emanuel Levy
    EmanuelLevy.Com

    Garbo laughs ... and the rest of us revel in a comedy delight.

    comment Comment
    03/03/06
    Carol Cling
    Carol Cling
    Las Vegas Review-Journal

    It's still consistently amusing, and Garbo throws herself into the fray with engaging vigour.

    Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
    01/26/06
    Time Out

    ...thanks to Garbo, its supporting cast, and director Ernst Lubitsch's magic touch, it remains one of Hollywood's most sparkling products.

    Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
    09/06/05
    John J. Puccio
    John J. Puccio
    DVDTown.com

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    08/14/05
    Philip Martin
    Philip Martin
    Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

    Garbo does laugh! Delightful political musings.

    comment Comment
    10/30/04
    Steve Crum
    Steve Crum
    Kansas City Kansan

    One of the sprightliest comedies of the year.

    Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
    05/20/03
    Frank S. Nugent
    Frank S. Nugent
    New York Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    10/17/02
    Jeffrey Westhoff
    Jeffrey Westhoff
    Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

    Its legend isn't really justified, but it's good

    comment Comment
    07/30/02
    Ken Hanke
    Ken Hanke
    Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

    one of Garbo's greatest hits, still a treat to watch

    comment Comment
    07/29/02
    James Sanford
    James Sanford
    Kalamazoo Gazette

    While Ninotchka may lack something for the masses, it must be catalogued as a triumph for all concerned.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    06/05/02
    Boxoffice Magazine

    Enchanting.

    Full Review Source: Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies | comment Comment
    04/13/02
    Nell Minow
    Nell Minow
    Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

    The film bubbles merrily throughout.

    Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    TV Guide's Movie Guide

    entertaining and worth seeing for Garbo, one of the first magnetic screen presences

    Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    David Bezanson
    David Bezanson
    Filmcritic.com
     
     
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