GRADE: 8
A cabaret singer and a Legionnaire fall in love, but their relationship is complicated by the results of his womanizing and due to the appearance of a rich man who wants her for himself.
Director: Josef von Sternberg
Country: USA
THOUGHTS:
The plot is slim, but the details are exquisite and von Sternberg’s direction is pure poetry. The most memorable sequence involves Marlene Dietrich in pre-code, androgynous cabaret garb, singing and giving a lady in the audience a kiss! But the final scene, with Dietrich making a determined march in the sand to follow Cooper and the Legionnaires, trailing off into the distance as the music fades away and the desert wind takes over, is pure cinematic magic, instantly elevating everything that came before it.