Nathan, I would go back to the Silent period and start there. Underworld, The Salvation Hunters, The Last Command, and The Docks of New York. Von Sternberg has a great way of dealing with social issues like poverty and crime and creates genuine humanity. I think he did this with films like Blonde Venus and The Blue Angel. The silents I mentioned are amazing examples of cinematography of the period. Watch the extras in the recently released Criterion Collection to see how intricate and innovative he was.
Thanks, Daniel. fgggggg (my cat did that). I’m going to be watching the silent set this weekend, so I’ll read that article when I’m done with those. I’ll read the Shanghai Express article when I get home tonight. I’m glad it covers that particular film, because it’s still fresh in my mind.
I liked the von Sternberg films I’ve seen, particularly the ones with Dietrich. SHANGHAI EXPRESS, BLONDE VENUS, SCARLET EMPRESS, DEVIL IS A WOMAN, They are, if nothing else, stunningly beautiful examples of classic Hollywood black and white production. There’s just something delirious about them, they’re very posed and artificial and yet vibrant and alive in the best way.
The silents, like UNDERWORLD and DOCKS OF NEW YORK, left me much colder, for all their acknowledged visual beauty. Both films felt like dress rehearsals for later, better films. UNDERWORLD for Hawks’ SCARFACE and DOCKS OF NEW YORK for von Sternberg’s later work with Dietrich — the most interesting thing, for me, about DOCKS was watching Betty Compson deliver the performance that Dietrich would be delivering just a few years later.
Nathan, have you had a chance to see any of these in a theater, or just on DVD? I’d say don’t give up on any of these until you’ve had a chance to see them projected properly.
Roscoe – I’ve seen Shanghai Express in the theatre (twice) and Blonde Venus; the others have been on DVD.
Nathan, sounds like you’ve given his work a pretty good shot. Von Sternberg may just not be your cup of tea.
Vitality, emotion, passion, exoticism, sensuality, beauty, visual splendour, physical expressiveness, refined lighting, lust, fetishism, obsession, glamour, bold aesthetics, female sexual empowerment even as object of self-destructive male desire. Dietrich entrances by gesture not speech, and the camera worships her. She is given her own space and commands the sumptuous screen. Sternberg was an influence on Mizoguchi- the veils, screens, textures, importance of physical gestures conveying emotion, lighting effects, fluid camera movement at times. Sternberg has never been taken seriously enough as a major artist.We could do with him now,
@Nathan
I’ve seen The Last Command, The Docks of New York and The Blue Angel.
I think all three films were good, although I didn’t always enjoy watching them (as I have trouble enjoy watching real older films). Still, I think they were solid. I remember The Last Command the least, but the one that I remember is that I felt it held up well over time.
As for the The Docks of New York, I really liked the look of the film and some other things I can’t really remember. (This is not turning out to be very helpful, I see. :)
I guess I just wanted to say a few things about The Blue Angel. First, I think Emil Jannings’ performance is fabulous in this. The way his character evolves from this proud, sophisticated aristocrat to a humiliated shambles is really terrific—maybe one of the best I’ve seen. Dietrich is also great in this—especially her singing the two versions of “Falling in Love Again.” Obviously, these weren’t compelling to you, but maybe you weren’t in the right mood?
I forgot about LAST COMMAND. Easily done, I think.
Nathan, my favourite Sternberg film is probably The Devil is a Woman, but i doubt you’ll find the style much more to your liking than what you’ve tried already, so maybe a 20s silent? Otherwise it may be simply a case of horses for courses.
What a gorgeous confection The Devil is a Woman is! This scene may be a good test of whether you’ll like it. Dietrich is Dietrich: i happen to love her screen persona for Sternberg, it allows for a ravishing wallow in seductive fantasy
It could be the German accent, but I don’t find Dietrich expressive at all. She gives the same coy look over and over – the half smile thing. She’s pretty, but there are other stars from the era that I find far more attractive.
Nathan, I can agree about Ms. Dietrich’s occasional limitations. That persona of hers can get rather choking. For me her least effective moments are those in THE SCARLET EMPRESS when her young Catherine comes off as some weird parody of innocence.
I think there’s more to her than a “coy” look over and over. I’m always impressed by her warm graciousness to that French officer in SHANGHAI EXPRESS which turns to real cool indifference during her scenes with Warner Oland. That half smile gives way more than once, as it does in SHANGHAI EXPRESS during those closeups when her desire for her lover really takes over during that scene on the back of the train, and later those remarkable closeups she’s really not sure what’s going to happen, if she’s going to get her man or not.
Sternberg – Master of light and shadow, mise-en-scene, exoticism, eroticism. Extraordinary.
Dietrich – beyond iconic. Extraordinary.
I strongly recommend Sternberg’s memoir, Fun in a Chinese Laundry, an easy-to-read compendium of anecdotes and wisdom.
Please see this list by my friend Robert Regan.
Nathan said, “She’s pretty, but there are other stars from the era that I find far more attractive.”
Greta Garbo, for me.
I can understand a John Ford fanatic finding Sternberg wanting. Ford had as rich a texture but never sacrificed story for it. And Ford could film dialogue, which Sternberg never could. Still, Sternberg is a great idiosyncratic. He occupied a small space and a small time, but did so brilliantly.
Revisiting virtually all of JVS’s surviving films, including the ephemera, while working on the list so kindly plugged by my friend Arsaib, was for me a thrilling and entertaining experience, but when it comes to Cinema, love is anything but blind. He is not to everyone’s taste! For that matter, who is?
Let me add my recommendations of Mr. Kasman’s excellent Notebook pieces and Sternberg’s Fun in a Chinese Laundry, not always factually reliable, but still one of the best ever books on films and filmmaking.
And, while I’m sounding off here, let me add that for my taste, Dietrich is a bit too distant and, frankly, Garbo’s usual suffering and moaning give me a royal pain!
And, while I’m sounding off here, let me add that for my taste, Dietrich is a bit too distant and, frankly, Garbo’s usual suffering and moaning give me a royal pain!
I agree.
Langlois: “There is no Garbo, there is no Dietrich, there is only Louise Brooks.”
Brooks’ modern quality surprised me, but I’d take Garbo over her anyday. I have no problem with her moaning.
To each his, her, or its own.
For me, Dietrich and Garbo come off as something like two sides of a coin. Generally, both seem to be more aware and basically just superior to everyone else around them as if they were as closely related to the gods as to mortal men. For Garbo this is a curse in that she often suffers from the foolishness of mortals as she can never find a suitable match, Dietrich seems eternally bemused by the foolishness of those around her even if she occasionally slips up and lets one of the lesser folk get the better of her. Brooks, on the other hand, just seems to be above it all and unaware of the potential for failing until it is too late, and even then, what the mere mortals do doesn’t seem to touch her as something that is beyond them is what she has been responding to all along. A sort of movie mythology that used to be major part of the form when it came to stars, almost all of them were to be seen as bigger than life and carriers of a set of ideal values of a sort.
As usual, Greg, you hit the nail on he head.
I want to thank everyone for their participation in this thread. I’d really like to crack the nut if I could. If nothing else, I’d like to get to a place where I can appreciate what he did and how he influenced others, even if I don’t find a lot of personal enjoyment in his work.
Generally, both seem to be more aware and basically just superior to everyone else around them as if they were as closely related to the gods as to mortal men.
Nice—especially the part about being related to the gods.
Nathan M.
This thread is an APB to all Josef von Sternberg fans. So far, I’ve seen five of his films – The Blue Angel, Morocco, Shanghai Express, Blonde Venus, and The Scarlet Empress – and none of them have really held any appeal for me. Outside of Marlene Dietrich (and actress that I’ve never cared for), what do you like about his films?
My guess is that I’ll be able to appreciate him more when I move away from the collaborations with Dietrich, but I want to hear your thoughts before I completely give up on that period of his career. Non-fans need not comment. This is a von Sternberg appreciation thread.