DINNER AT EIGHT (DVD/1.37/1933/ENG-FR-SP-SUB) DVD

Dinner at Eight
Based on the Broadway hit by George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber, Dinner at Eight is a near-flawless comedy/drama with an all-star cast at the peak of their talents. Social butterfly Mrs. Oliver Jordan (Billie Burke) arranges a dinner party that will benefit the busines of her husband (Lionel Barrymore). Among the invited are a crooked executive (Wallace Beery), who is in the process of ruining Jordan; his wife (Jean Harlow), who is carrying on an affair with a doctor (Edmund Lowe); a fading matinee idol (John Barrymore), who has squandered his fortune on liquor and is romantically involved with the Jordan daughter (Madge Evans); and a venerable stage actress (Marie Dressler), who since losing all her money has become a "professional guest." Nothing goes as planned, due to various suicides, double-crosses, compromises, fatal illness, and servant problems. But dinner is served precisely at eight. The script by Herman Mankiewicz, Frances Marion, and Donald Ogden Stewart is a virtual enclyopedia of witty lines and scenes, right down to the unforgettable closing gag. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Marie Dressler as Carlotta Vance John Barrymore as Larry Renault Wallace Beery as Dan Packard Jean Harlow as Kitty Packard Lionel Barrymore as Oliver Jordan Billie Burke as Mrs. Oliver Jordan Lee Tracy as Max Kane Edmund Lowe as Dr. Wayne Talbot Madge Evans as Paula Jordan Jean Hersholt as Joe Stengel Karen Morley as Mrs. Wayne Talbot Louise Closser Hale as Hattie Loomis Phillips Holmes as Ernest DeGraff May Robson as Mrs. Wendel, The Cook Grant Mitchell as Ed Loomis Phoebe Foster as Miss Alden Elizabeth Patterson as Miss Copeland Hilda Vaughn as Tina, Mrs. Packard's Maid Harry Beresford as Fosdick Edwin Maxwell as Mr. Fitch, the Hotel Manager John Davidson as Mr. Hatfield, the Assistant Manager Edward Woods as Eddie George Baxter as Gustave the Butler Herman Bing as The Waiter Anna Duncan as Dora the Maid

Crew Fred Hope - Art Director Cedric Gibbons - Art Director Hobe Erwin - Art Director Adrian - Costume Designer George Cukor - Director Ben Lewis - Editor Dr. William Axt - Composer (Music Score) William H. Daniels - Cinematographer David O. Selznick - Producer Hobe Erwin - Set Designer Fred Hope - Set Designer Donald Ogden Stewart - Screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz - Screenwriter Frances Marion - Screenwriter George S. Kaufman - Play Author Edna Ferber - Play Author

Dinner at Eight
Dinner at Eight is, above all else, about changes: changes in society where graceful old money is about to be supplanted by the new and crass; changes in the motion picture business where talkies turn silent stars into alcoholic has-beens; and changes in industry, where, according to Jean Harlow's brassy Kitty Packard, "machines are taking the place of every profession." After which observation, of course, Marie Dressler, as the grand Mrs. Patrick Campbell-like stage diva, delivers one of the screen's most memorable closing lines, "That my dear," she intones, giving the bleach blonde the once-over, "is something you never need to worry about!" It is a delicious moment in a film positively giddy with such bon mots and brimming with performances as fresh today as they were in 1933. Were Dressler, Harlow, Billie Burke, or the Barrymore brothers ever better? Although director George Cukor and producer David O. Selznick deserved much of the credit, they were, of course, heavily indebted to a sparkling screenplay penned by Frances Marion, Herman J. Mankiewicz, and Donald Ogden Stewart. It is to the credit of all these talented professionals that Dinner at Eight manages to amuse and delight even the jaded audiences of today, in contrast, perhaps, to its equally famous predecessor, the rather overstuffed and decidedly dated Grand Hotel (1932). Although no embarrassment, the 1989 television remake starring Marsha Mason, Lauren Bacall, and Harry Hamlin seemed merely unnecessary. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
 

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General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: DD1: Dolby Digital Mono Additional Features: cc Documentary profile Harlow: The Blonde Bombshell, hosted by Sharon Stone Comedy short Come to Dinner Theatrical trailer Subtitles: English, Français & Español DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 111 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Credits [2:00] 2. The Jordans [4:54] 3. Carlotta's Woes [4:26] 4. Bygone Days [4:28] 5. Down to Business [4:30] 6. Kitty Packard [4:51] 7. Go Lay an Egg [3:59] 8. Doctor Darling [2:19] 9. Extra Man [2:43] 10. Larry Renault [5:13] 11. The Loves of Larry [4:00] 12. Pushover Part [7:06] 13. Short of Cash [3:13] 14. Dr. and Mrs. Talbot [:06] 15. Jordan's Condition [5:46] 16. Servant Trouble [3:23] 17. Fateful Transactions [1:42] 18. Half Out of Her Mind [5:29] 19. Gasbag vs. Alley Cat [2:31] 20. Bitter Truth [7:53] 21. Down and Out [6:50] 22. Final Curtain [2:56] 23. Guests Arrive [3:30] 24. Terribly Final News [5:12] 25. We'll Economize [3:47] 26. Not Every Profession [5:04] 1. Introduction and Credits [3:22] 2. Pushed Into Movies [3:12] 3. Hell's Angels [5:23] 4. The Beast of the City [2:05] 5. Red-Headed Woman [4:33] 6. Paul Bern Scandal [4:50] 7. Reckless [3:05] 8. Red Dust [2:06] 9. Dinner at Eight, Bombshell [4:19] 10. Changing Image [4:45] 11. Libeled Lady [2:08] 12. Saratoga... and Tragedy [4:10] 13. Forever Young [2:00] 14. End Credits [:56]