''As You Desire Me'' is a 1932 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

film adaptation of the 1929 play by

Luigi Pirandello Luigi Pirandello (; 28 June 1867 – 10 December 1936) was an Italian dramatist, novelist, poet, and short story writer whose greatest contributions were his plays. He was awarded the 1934 Nobel Prize in Literature for "his almost magical power ...

released by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

. It was produced and directed by

George Fitzmaurice George Fitzmaurice (13 February 1885 – 13 June 1940) was a French-born film director and producer. Career Fitzmaurice's career first started as a set designer on stage. Beginning in 1914, and continuing until his death in 1940, he directed ...

with

Irving Thalberg Irving Grant Thalberg (May 30, 1899 – September 14, 1936) was an American film producer during the early years of motion pictures. He was called "The Boy Wonder" for his youth and ability to select scripts, choose actors, gather productio ...

as co-producer. The adaptation was by Gene Markey, the cinematography by

William H. Daniels William H. Daniels ASC (December 1, 1901 – June 14, 1970) was a film cinematographer who was Greta Garbo's personal lensman. Early in his career he worked regularly with director Erich von Stroheim. Early years Daniels was born in Clev ...

, the art direction by

Cedric Gibbons Austin Cedric Gibbons (March 23, 1890 – July 26, 1960) was an Irish-American art director for the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed the ...

and the costume design by

Adrian Adrian is a form of the Latin given name Adrianus or Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria from the Venetic and Illyrian word ''adur'', meaning "sea" or "water". The Adria was until the 8th century BC the mai ...

. The film stars

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic ch ...

and

Melvyn Douglas Melvyn Douglas (born Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg, April 5, 1901 – August 4, 1981) was an American actor. Douglas came to prominence in the 1930s as a suave leading man, perhaps best typified by his performance in the romantic comedy ''Ninotchk ...

with

Erich von Stroheim Erich Oswald Hans Carl Maria von Stroheim (born Erich Oswald Stroheim; September 22, 1885 – May 12, 1957) was an Austrian-American director, actor and producer, most noted as a film star and avant-garde, visionary director of the silent era. H ...

Owen Moore Owen Moore (12 December 1886 – 9 June 1939) was an Irish-born American actor, appearing in more than 279 movies spanning from 1908 to 1937. Early life and career Moore was born in Fordstown Crossroads, County Meath, Ireland. Along with his ...

and

Hedda Hopper Hedda Hopper (born Elda Furry; May 2, 1885February 1, 1966) was an American gossip columnist and actress. At the height of her influence in the 1940s, her readership was 35 million. A strong supporter of the House Un-American Activities Committ ...

. Its running time is less than 71 minutes, making it the shortest of all Garbo's Hollywood films. The film grossed $705,000 in the USA and grossed $657,000 elsewhere, it altogether grossed $1,362,000 and its profit was $449,000.

Plot

Budapest bar entertainer Zara is a discontented alcoholic who is pursued by many men but lives with novelist Carl Salter. A strange man (Tony) shows up on Salter's estate claiming that Zara is actually Maria, the wife of his close friend Bruno. Maria, Tony claims, had her memory destroyed during a World War I invasion ten years ago. Zara doesn't remember but leaves with Tony to Salter's dismay. Bruno, now an officer in the Italian army, tries to coax Maria's memory back on his large estate. No one is really sure if Zara is Maria, and when Salter shows up with a mental case that he claims is the real Maria, everyone on Bruno's estate is desperately searching for the truth.

Production

This is also the only film in which Garbo appears as a blonde.

Cast (in credits order)

as Zara / Maria *

as Count Bruno Varelli *

as Carl Salter *

as Tony Boffie *

as Ines Montari * Rafaela Ottiano as Lena *

Warburton Gamble Evelyn Charles Warburton Gamble (16 December 1882 – 27 August 1945) was a British stage and film actor. Gamble was born on 16 December 1882 in London and acted on stage professionally as early as 1905. His work on stage included a season o ...

as Baron *

Albert Conti Albert De Conti Cadassamare (29 January 1887 – 18 January 1967), professionally billed as Albert Conti, was an Austrian-Hungarian-born Italian-American film actor. Life Born in the village of Gorizia (now, part of Italy), Conti achieved mode ...

as Captain *

Roland Varno Roland Varno (March 15, 1908 – May 24, 1996) was an American character actor from Utrecht, Netherlands. Varno's father was a tea planter, Martin Fredrick Vuerhard, and his mother was a concert pianist. Although they hoped for him to ha ...

as Albert

References

External links

* 1932 films American drama films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1932 drama films American films based on plays Films based on works by Luigi Pirandello American black-and-white films Films directed by George Fitzmaurice Films set in Hungary Films produced by Irving Thalberg Films about amnesia Films about alcoholism 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{1930s-US-film-stub