The legend is correct; Dietrich never appeared quite so incredibly beautiful as she does in this film. As ever, the star of the show is her face, made up and lit to perfection and effortlessly dominating every shot. Sternberg floats this face amidst a surreal, slightly out of focus, backdrop of carnival streamers and dark clothing which brings to mind the claustrophobic fantasy of 'The Red Empress'.
What a pity that all this (somewhat excessive!) cinematography is wasted on such paper-thin characterisation and melodramatic plot. Atwill and Romero play their stock roles adequately enough and resist the temptation to ham it up while Dietrich does her usual 'scene stealing via the eyes' routine. However her character is more caricature than three dimensional human being and you are left half wishing that Atwill had shot her instead of firing into the air.
Sternberg was obviously obsessed with Dietrich and devoted himself to displaying her as the most sublimely beautiful representation of womanhood that he could manage. Looking this wonderful, she ought to have broken the hearts of every man and woman in the audience and with a decent plot, a more believable character and less cluttered cinematography then it could have happened. What a waste!
What a pity that all this (somewhat excessive!) cinematography is wasted on such paper-thin characterisation and melodramatic plot. Atwill and Romero play their stock roles adequately enough and resist the temptation to ham it up while Dietrich does her usual 'scene stealing via the eyes' routine. However her character is more caricature than three dimensional human being and you are left half wishing that Atwill had shot her instead of firing into the air.
Sternberg was obviously obsessed with Dietrich and devoted himself to displaying her as the most sublimely beautiful representation of womanhood that he could manage. Looking this wonderful, she ought to have broken the hearts of every man and woman in the audience and with a decent plot, a more believable character and less cluttered cinematography then it could have happened. What a waste!