The Page of the Hotel Dalmasse: A Charming, Low-Stakes Romp

Is it worth your time?

If you're a sucker for 1930s charm and cross-dressing hijinks, you’ll probably find this delightful. It’s light, breezy, and moves faster than you’d expect. If you’re looking for deep character studies or gritty realism, look elsewhere. You will absolutely hate this if you find old-fashioned farce annoying or if you just can't stand the suspension of disbelief required to buy that nobody notices she’s a girl.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of The Page of the Hotel Dalmasse (1933) through its definitive frames.

Dolly Haas is the whole show here. She plays the role with such a wink and a nudge that you stop caring about the plot holes after about ten minutes. There’s a specific scene in the lobby where she’s trying to balance a tray while eavesdropping on a conversation, and the way she just trips over her own feet to stay invisible is perfect. It feels real, or at least as real as this kind of movie ever gets.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of The Page of the Hotel Dalmasse (1933) through its definitive frames.

The plot is standard issue for the time—three American crooks looking to swindle a baron. It’s not exactly Penthouse in terms of stakes, but it works. The Americans are played with such exaggerated gusto that they almost feel like they wandered in from a cartoon. Sometimes the movie stops dead just so they can scheme in a corner, which is… a choice.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of The Page of the Hotel Dalmasse (1933) through its definitive frames.

Odd bits and pieces:

• The hotel set looks like it’s made of painted cardboard, but in a way that feels warm and inviting.
• There is a moment involving a misplaced luggage cart that feels like it went on for at least three seconds too long. It’s awkward, but I kind of loved it.
• Nobody in this hotel seems to have any actual work to do other than loitering near the protagonist.
• The German baron character is so incredibly oblivious that you start to wonder how he even managed to check into the hotel without help.

It’s not trying to change the world. It’s just trying to fill an hour with some smiles and some light suspense. Watching this made me think of the breezy energy in The Girl at Home, even if they are totally different beasts. It’s a bit messy, the lighting is occasionally questionable, and the pacing hits a few dead spots in the second act.

But then Haas does something funny with her hat, and you're back in it. 🎩 Honestly, sometimes that’s enough. Just don’t expect a masterpiece and you’ll walk away feeling pretty good. It’s a nice, simple movie for a Sunday afternoon when your brain needs a break.