Greta Garbo at her best.

Fantastic, amazing, the more you think about it the better it gets

"There will be fewer but better Russians!" Nothing better encapsulates the Soviet attempt to "perfect" man as that line, delivered in absolute deadpan by Miss Garbo! Fun Fact: While Melvyn Douglas played the witty, urbane, and lecherous lead in this film, about two decades later he'd give a completely different performance as a God-fearing Texas cattle rancher opposite Paul Newman in the drama "Hud."

The chemistry between all the actors is great and Garbo is fabulous.

Its not false advertising to claim that "Garbo laughs" in this film (it happens on more than one occasion) but she's also endlessly charming and surprisingly funny.

All Time Classic. Douglas & Garbo steal the show and have incredible chemistry and charm in every scene they are in. The film starts out solid enough the whole way but once Garbo arrives the film takes a big jump and never lets up with the incredibly smart, witty, and politically charged humor that hits pretty much every time. Even whne Garbo is playing it straight she is really funny somehow. The camera knows also Douglas & Garbo are the best asset in this and doesn't need to get super fancy. Most of the time it just is long takes focused on the two and its amazing to watch the chemistry and witty lines exchanged. The only real issue is the music is good but isn't that memorable on its own and isn' used that much throughout, but this somehow never feels dry either. This blends a Rom-Com with a politically charged backstory/humor beautifully. As much as this makes fun of Communism for 60% of the time, it also suprisingly makes fun of Capitalism also and is just as funny. This is super witty, clever, and even though the plot is ridiculous it never really matters because its very clear this isn't meant to be taken as a serious political thriller and succeeds big time at it. Anyone should give this a try once.

Considering the time it was made... Ok.... A lot of anticomunist propaganda, very obvious theme, wrapped in a kind of romcom

My first Greta Garbo. I couldn't get past the aritificiality of what she found attractive about him. the entertaining aspects were how she was portrayed as a communist,which, has many analogs to an AI/Robot!

This movie is still a delight and it's suggested for people who are confronted by the new generation of politically correct bozesses (the female equivalent of the "bozos,") The references to Joe Stalin and his "workers paradise" may require a moment of explanation in the twenty-first century. Mention the situation in China and in today's cultural politics in America. After that, proceed with the movie. Greta Garbo is wonderful.

The only word to describe this Ernst Lubitsch comedy is: sparkling. Tremendously sweet and funny in that gentle way that was unique to Ernst Lubitsch comedies, "Ninotchka" features a winning Greta Garbo as a Soviet envoy dispatched to Paris to check up on the work of her comrades. They have been sent to sell the confiscated jewels of a Russian countess, played haughtily by Ina Claire. She refuses to let them go without a fight, and enlists the help of her attorney and playboy (Melvyn Douglas) to win them back. Unfortunately for her, he falls under the charms of Ninotchka, as do we. I have never been a fan of Garbo or the moody brooding she was always asked to do in her films. Lubitsch completely understood the image she had in the public's collective mind, and so for the first half of this movie, Garbo presents a parody of herself, refusing to crack a smile despite Douglas's herculean efforts to make her. But then Ninotchka gradually begins to fall under the spell of Paris, its good food and fashionable hats, a pratfall involving Douglas is finally enough to make her laugh, and from that moment on, she's a delight. For an example of just how good a comedienne Garbo could be, watch Ninotchka's face as Douglas's character tells her corny joke after corny joke in an attempt to win a smile from her; or the scene set in a nightclub when Ninotchka discovers the capitalist wonders of champagne.

It has all the charm that you would expect of a Lubitsch movie with a clever and witty script by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder. We are also privileged to see the full depth of character in Greta Garbo's portrayal of Ninotchka. There is also the historical significance of seeing the Stalinist world collide with western capitalism along with the foreshadowing of the rise of Nazism. In hindsight it is also pretty clear that Ninotchka should have been taking home the 1939 Oscars rather than being shut out by Gone with the Wind.

I did enjoy the witty dialogue, such as "Never complain, never explain."

A bona fide classic of the thirties. Funny in places, heart warming, tinged with pre Cold War McCarthyite propaganda but a neat and charming film from another age that never feels a strain to watch.

*Pulling yolk out of a jacket pocket* "Comrades, I'm out of the omelette." A solid romantic comedy made better by Garbo's performance, Ninotchka may not be heavy on substance or character development but compensates through plenty of tongue-in-cheek jabs at Soviet communism and its stereotypical seriousness and austerity. Garbo's humorously stern character breaks all too easily in the hands of Douglas' Count Leon, and that's one of the film's main flaws, even if the film leans somewhat heavily towards the comedy half of the romcom formula. One of the film's greatest strengths is actually its capability to integrate the comedy elements more consistently and thoroughly than might be expected; the entirely censored love letter, and the trio of hapless Soviet diplomats (who end the film with one of their number protesting their jointly held restaurant via clapboard after defecting) are great, and sometimes incorporated at serious moments instead of confined to the sidelines. That said (while she is still good here as she virtually always is), I'm not sure that the format plays to Garbo's talents at their most profound, as she was always known for her dramatic roles, though her comedy chops are plenty fleshed out. Ninotchka is certainly far from sincere in its exploration of politics on the eve of World War II, but it's still plenty funny. (3.5/5)

My favorite Garbo movie.

One of the best movies I've ever watched

Garbo is great and the story is really interesting.

terrifically amusing. Garbo turns in a surprising, perfect comic performance. great script.

Rubych Touch plays the finest rhythm and harmony in this movie. "Do not say that you want pictures, because I do not want being put in drawers," Garbo whispers in Husky is beautiful even in Moscow marching.

Garbo's dead pan delivery to Melvyn Douglas' flirtations are comedic gold. The 3 supporting Russian emissaries are just perfect. A great Rom-com and send up of soviet communism.