tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post6380106410249842867..comments2024-02-05T21:23:49.249-08:00Comments on Lady Eve's Reel Life: SUMMER UNDER THE STARS: LA FEMME MARLENEThe Lady Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-63735158922539609782017-06-29T05:09:08.207-07:002017-06-29T05:09:08.207-07:00I don't get how all else is dated please do el...I don't get how all else is dated please do elaborate... Frankly its like Rita Hayworth, Ginger and Mae West did pretty good timeless too.LoveAudreyy1827https://www.audrey1.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-19128338441357127052015-09-11T08:10:02.337-07:002015-09-11T08:10:02.337-07:00I agree completely, Dietrich and von Sternberg wer...I agree completely, Dietrich and von Sternberg were a perfect match. She did work under a lengthy list of formidable directors - I featured Hitchcock and Wilder here and you also mentioned Lang and Welles. She also starred in a lesser known Ernst Lubitsch film titled "Angel" (1937), which I haven't seen yet. The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-55052927792698475142015-09-11T03:00:41.920-07:002015-09-11T03:00:41.920-07:00Von Sternberg was the perfect film director for Di...Von Sternberg was the perfect film director for Dietrich's allure. He was a visually stunning filmmaker and she was his perfect muse. She was fortunate enough to work with other great filmmakers too like Wilder, Lang and Welles and they were fortunate enough to work with her.John/24Frameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14719659042858962026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-39359985517933829232015-09-02T12:39:59.045-07:002015-09-02T12:39:59.045-07:00Thank you for your comment. Obviously, I agree tha...Thank you for your comment. Obviously, I agree that this film deserves more attention and respect than it generally gets. Though it has its very dark moments, it is lighter than one might expect of a film titled "Stage Fright."<br /><br />One complaint frequently lodged against the film is its misleading opening flashback. I don't believe that a film-making rule exists that requires a murder suspect to be truthful when retelling, through flashback, his version of events. I don't think it should surprise any fan of Hitchcock, who loved to toy with the viewer, that he might do such a thing.<br /><br /> The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-30266314777040657732015-09-02T11:44:00.295-07:002015-09-02T11:44:00.295-07:00I enjoyed seeing Dietrich featured during "Su... I enjoyed seeing Dietrich featured during "Summer Under the Stars". I had not seen "The Blue Angel" in years and I was delighted to find it as moving as I remembered. <br /><br />I think "Stage Fright" is underrated and it's definitely a film that merits being seen more than once. It's very entertaining and surprisingly light in tone, a factor that may throw off some Hitchcock fans. I always enjoy Jane Wyman's performances (she had great range and very effective screen presence) so it's a shame that she felt so intimidated by Dietrich that she let it affect her portrayal. Then again, who can blame her? Hitchcock had a fondness for glamorous female movie stars (he always lamented that he never had the chance to work with Norma Shearer) and "Stage Fright" provides a fine showcase for Dietrich's silky glamour.Shawn Cullenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18270423231633162242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-60335067258488762662015-08-26T18:18:27.876-07:002015-08-26T18:18:27.876-07:00Dietrich is always in her element as a nightclub (...Dietrich is always in her element as a nightclub (or clip joint) performer but she is so much too gorgeous/glamorous/sophisticated for Manpower's blue collar scenario (all that mud!) that she seems like a creature from another planet. I do like her scenes with Eve Arden and Joyce Compton (both always so good in supporting roles) and you're right, it's rare that she has gal pals in her films. The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-89778911235189003822015-08-26T12:52:35.609-07:002015-08-26T12:52:35.609-07:00What did you think about the inclusion of Manpower...What did you think about the inclusion of <i>Manpower</i> in the Summer Under The Stars marathon? It's one of the more "off-the-beaten-path" Dietrich movies, I'd say! She has a friendly rapport with the other women in that clip joint, which is not common in most of her other films, and she's totally immersed in a '40s blue collar environment.<br />--JosephLast Goddess Bloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17807656748381355102noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-71898447644217733692015-08-21T23:58:06.354-07:002015-08-21T23:58:06.354-07:00Marlene was famous for her work ethic and the care...Marlene was famous for her work ethic and the care she took to maintain the Dietrich image. I have to wonder if she understood that the legendary persona she (and, at the beginning, von Sternberg) created would live on as it has. I'm sure she hoped for it.<br /><br />Today, the ladies on the red carpet look uber-glamorous. Off the red carpet, they look like urchins. But who among them has true mega-watt star power? I can't think of anyone. They come, they go...The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-38031606215580017202015-08-21T22:40:49.545-07:002015-08-21T22:40:49.545-07:00A very insightful and penetrating look at la Marl...A very insightful and penetrating look at la Marlene, some of her great films, and her enduring image. Such is the power of Hollywood in the hands of masters like von Sternberg and sirens like Dietrich. Yet she worked as hard as anybody, rivaling Crawford in her obsessive attention to her dress and image. For all the megatronic attention paid to certain stars today, where is her like? <br /><br />Thanks for covering Marlene and her coming films Lady Eve.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07407056803955925235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-33175362582962781772015-08-21T20:30:18.507-07:002015-08-21T20:30:18.507-07:00Of the "silver screen goddesses" from th...Of the "silver screen goddesses" from the '30s and '40s, Dietrich alone stands the test of time. Mr. von Sternberg had much to do with this, since it is the films they made together that established the persona that defined her throughout the rest of her life. He consistently presented her as an archetypal femme fatale, enigmatic and out-of-reach. And she maintained that persona into her 70s, until she disappeared behind the door of her apartment in Paris. Two things that enhanced her timeless appeal: von Sternberg was a visual stylist who cared little about dialogue, and Dietrich's generally low-key approach to acting seems understated in comparison to the overly melodramatic style popular then and employed by most leading ladies of the time.<br /><br />"Shanghai Express," "The Scarlet Empress" and "The Devil is a Woman" are the strongest and most beautiful of the 6 American films Dietrich and von Sternberg made. The last two pure artistry. (You might find this, from The Film Sufi, interesting - http://www.filmsufi.com/2008/08/joseph-von-sternberg.html )<br /><br />From what I can tell, von Sternberg was an obsessive and it would seem encountering Dietrich inspired him to explore the theme of obsession - as well as his own obsessions. The Lady Evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11963115499930520653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8509825018139758536.post-80376327204809646462015-08-21T18:45:48.186-07:002015-08-21T18:45:48.186-07:00Dietrich is timeless. Thanks for the great article...Dietrich is timeless. Thanks for the great article, and also for calling attention to the upcoming TCM showings of "Shanghai Express" and "Stage Fright", which I haven't seen; I expect the prints to be beautiful, as usual - I will definitely watch. I'm especially looking forward to "Shanghai Express" as I appreciate Dietrich's work with Von Sternberg in "The Scarlet Empress" and "The Devil Is A Woman" (over-the-top beautiful). If a director is looking for an actress to be the focus for the theme of obsession, Von Sternberg definitely discovered the right woman. I wonder which came first - was it the theme of obsession, or was it the woman who inspired the theme?Motorcycle Boynoreply@blogger.com