''Hotel Imperial'' is a 1927 American silent

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by Mauritz Stiller and released by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

. The film is set in

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and starring Pola Negri as a hotel chambermaid. It is based on the 1917 Hungarian play of the same name by

Lajos Bíró Lajos Bíró (; born Lajos Blau; 22 August 1880 – 9 September 1948) was a Hungarian novelist, playwright, and screenwriter who wrote many films from the early 1920s through the late 1940s. Life He was born in Nagyvárad, Kingdom of Hunga ...

.Progressive Silent Film List: ''Hotel Imperial''
at silentera.com

Plot

Officer Paul Almasy is separated from his unit behind enemy lines and hides in the Hotel Imperial in Lemberg (nowadays

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

), where chambermaid Anna disguises him as a waiter. The invading Russian troops make the hotel their headquarters. Paul later kills the Russian spy Petroff and Anna arranges the room to depict the death as being a suicide. Later, when the Russians accuse Paul of the killing, Anna provides an alibi by saying that Paul was instead with her in her room and while so doing rips the fine clothing that General Juschkiewitsch has provided her. She later helps Paul elude the Russians and leave the hotel so that he can rejoin his unit. After Austrian troops regain the city, the lovers are reunited and their bravery is recognized.

Cast

* Pola Negri as Anna Sedlak * James Hall as Lieutenant Paul Almasy * George Siegmann as General Juschkiewitsch *

Max Davidson Max Davidson (May 23, 1875 – September 4, 1950) was a German-American film actor known for his comedic Jewish persona during the silent film era. With a career spanning over thirty years, Davidson appeared in over 180 films. Career Born i ...

as Elias Butterman *

Michael Vavitch Mikhail Vavich () was a Russian actor, operetta and singer. Biography Mikhail first performed in 1905 on stage at St. Petersburg in a private operetta of Petr Tumpakov. He received recognition in 1906 after performing the role of the Viscount Ca ...

as Tabakowitsch * Otto Fries as Anton Klinak * Nicholas Soussanin as Baron Fredrikson *Golden Wadhams as Major General Sultanov *

George Berrell George Berrell (December 16, 1849 – April 20, 1933) was an American actor of both the 19th and early 20th century stage and of the silent film era. He appeared in numerous stage plays as well as more than 50 films over the course of a care ...

as Old Man with White Hair * Josef Swickard as Austrian General (uncredited) * Carl von Haartman as Russian Soldier (uncredited)

Production

The film used the same exterior town square set from Negri's film '' The Spanish Dancer'' (1923).

Commentary

In a departure from her former vampish roles, and Negri depicted Anna as tense and fidgeting, experiencing the anxiety of war time noncombatents, a woman surrounded by foreign army men in the hotel. She watches carefully and, when she sees the need, takes decisive action to avoid sexual assault and save her lover and, indirectly, her nation.

Preservation

''Hotel Imperial'' is one of Negri's few Paramount films to survive and is preserved in several film archives.The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: ''Hotel Imperial''
Retrieved December 11, 2014

References

External links

* * * 1927 films 1927 war films American silent feature films American black-and-white films American films based on plays Films directed by Mauritz Stiller Films set in hotels Films set on the Austro-Hungarian home front during World War I World War I films set on the Eastern Front Films set in Austria Films set in Lviv Films set in Poland Films set in Ukraine Films with screenplays by Jules Furthman Paramount Pictures films Films produced by Erich Pommer 1927 drama films 1920s American films Silent American war drama films 1920s English-language films 1920s war drama films English-language war drama films {{WWI-drama-film-stub