Dinner at Eight (1933 film)


Dinner at Eight is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by George Cukor. Adapted to the screen by Frances Marion and Herman J. Mankiewicz from George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber's play of the same title, it features an ensemble cast of Marie Dressler, John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, Jean Harlow, Lionel Barrymore, Lee Tracy, Edmund Lowe and Billie Burke.
Dinner at Eight continues to be acclaimed by critics; as of August 2020, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports 90% approval among 20 critics.

Plot

New York society matron Millicent Jordan receives word that Lord and Lady Ferncliffe have accepted her invitation to dinner. She is overjoyed by this social coup, but her husband Oliver, a shipping magnate, finds Ferncliffe boring. Their daughter, Paula is preoccupied with the impending return of her fiancé, Ernest DeGraff, from Europe.
Oliver asks Millicent to invite legendary stage actress Carlotta Vance, who has just arrived from Europe. Carlotta comes to his office, and they reminisce: Oliver asked her to marry him the day he turned 21 When she refused, he turned to work. In her heyday, Carlotta's lovers showered her with stock and gems. The Jordan stock was the only one she paid for herself. Now she must sell, but Oliver lacks the funds. His business has been struck hard by the Depression. Magnate Dan Packard, a former miner, agrees to consider helping Oliver, but later brags to his wife, Kitty, that he plans to take over Jordan Shipping.
Oliver convinces Millicent to invite the Packards. Kitty, who is young, beautiful, ill-mannered, and socially ambitious, eagerly accepts. Dan refuses to go but changes his mind when he finds out that Lord Ferncliffe, “the richest man in England,” will attend.
On the morning of her dinner, Millicent loses her extra man. She telephones Larry Renault, a former silent screen star recently profiled in the newspaper, and extends a last-minute invitation, unaware that Paula is in his room.
Paula adores Larry and cannot imagine life with Ernest now. Their affair has lasted almost a month. He wants to break it off. He is 47, Paula 19. He abandoned his first wife; the second, drunk, drove her car over a cliff; he is still married to the third, now a great star. There have been countless affairs. He is burned out. “This is the first decent thing I have done in my life,” he says. Paula refuses to listen, declaring that she will tell her family tonight. Carlotta sees Paula leaving Larry's room.
A hardened alcoholic, Larry is on the brink of collapse. His agent, Max Kane, tells him that the stage play he was counting on has a new producer, Jo Stengel. Stengel has put another actor in the lead but is willing to consider Larry in a character part.
The Jordans' physician and friend Dr. Wayne Talbot has been carrying on with Kitty while pretending to tend to her feigned illnesses. On the day of the dinner, his wife, Lucy, discovers him in a compromising telephone call with Kitty. Lucy still loves him, and he wants to change. They kiss, and Oliver is rushed into the office. Amyl nitrite restores him, but Oliver wisely deduces the seriousness of his illness. Talbot tells his nurse the diagnosis: thrombosis of the coronary artery. Oliver has a few years—or a few days. At home, Oliver tells Millicent that he feels rotten and needs to rest, but she is too hysterical to hear because, among several disasters, the Ferncliffes have canceled.
Meanwhile, Kitty and Dan have a vicious fight. Threatened with divorce, she tells him to choose between his Cabinet appointment and a career-stopping revelation from her about his crooked dealings. He must save the Jordan line—and treat her with more respect. She wins this round because Dan doesn't know the name of her lover. Her maid, Tina, who does, proceeds to blackmail her.
When Max returns. Larry alienates Stengel, who leaves. Max chastises Larry with the truth and leaves; the hotel manager tells Larry to leave tomorrow. Larry turns on his gas fireplace, reclines to show off his famous profile, and waits to die.
The dinner guests arrive at the Jordans'. Carlotta tells Paula about Larry and comforts the weeping girl. Oliver has an attack. Millicent learns about his illness and the business. First, she weeps, then she springs into action, planning their future. Downstairs, Kitty forces Dan to tell Oliver that he has saved the Jordan line.
Going into dinner, Kitty remarks, “ I was reading a book the other day”, and Carlotta does a superb double-take. The book said that machinery is going to take the place of every profession. Carlotta scans Kitty from head to toe and takes her arm: "Oh my dear, that's something you never need to worry about." .

Cast

The cast also includes
TCM.com says that the character of Carlotta was inspired by the popular stage and silent film actress Maxine Elliott, citing the March 13, 1940 obituary in the New York Times.
Marie Dressler died of cancer in July 1934, less than a year after Dinner at Eight was released. She was recovering from surgery when Dinner at Eight began filming.
Joan Crawford was considered for the part of Paula Jordan. Clark Gable was considered for the part of Dr. Wayne Talbot.
The name of Carlotta Vance's dog, Tarzan, was changed from Mussolini by MGM executives afraid of offending the Italian leader.
According to Director George Cukor, John Barrymore created the character Larry Renault using memories of his father-in-law, Maurice Costello, his brother-in-law, Lowell Sherman, and himself.

Reception

Dinner at Eight proved to be popular at the box office. According to MGM records the film earned $1,398,000 in the US and Canada and $758,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $998,000.
In 1933, Dinner at Eight received very high marks from many leading reviewers. Mordaunt Hall, the widely read critic for The New York Times, admired the screenplay's thoughtful but "fast-moving" blend of drama and "flip dialogue", crediting the skillful adaptation of George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber's script from the stage production, which had opened on Broadway the previous year. Hall also praised the performances of the film's star-studded cast, drawing special attention to the work of Marie Dressler, Billie Burke, John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, and Jean Harlow:
In its review, Variety also praised the film's storyline and performances. It highlighted Dressler's role as well, although the influential entertainment trade weekly focused its compliments chiefly on Harlow's portrayal of Kitty:

Awards and honors

In 2000, American Film Institute included the film in the list AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs.

''Come to Dinner'' parody

Come to Dinner, 22 minutes in length, is a 1934 Broadway Brevity parody of Dinner at Eight using look-alike actors. It is included in the 2005 Warner Video DVD of Dinner at Eight.

1989 remake

A television film remake starring Lauren Bacall, Charles Durning, Ellen Greene, Harry Hamlin, John Mahoney and Marsha Mason was broadcast on TNT Channel on December 11, 1989. It was directed by Ron Lagomarsino.