- Directed (and, somewhat uniquely, photographed!) by Josef von Sternberg.
This was (real-life couple…for a time) von Sternberg & star Marlene Dietrich’s final (of 7) film collaborations – a run which included such gems as THE BLUE ANGEL (1930), MOROCCO (1930), & SHANGHAI EXPRESS (1932).
- Based on the novel “La femme et le pantin” (translation: “The Woman and the Puppet”) by Pierre Louÿs. Adaptation by John Dos Passos, with David Hertz serving as “treatment contributor” & Oran Schee as “screenplay construction contributor.” Continuity by S.K. Winston.
(Those are some goofy writing credits. But sure, okay. We’ll go with it.)
- Yes! I love a good introductory title card:
“The action of the story takes place during a carnival week in the south of Spain, at the beginning of the century.”
Marlene as Spaniard. Got it.
- Remember the last time we were in Seville for a carnival week? Y’all, I don’t think I can take another fake execution/real execution/fake execution mishap…that was so much emotional flip-floppery to process, in not a lot of time. (The tale had a badass end – but man, it required a shit-ton of energy, along the way.)
Edward Everett Horton (yes, he’s playing a Spaniard, too)’s instructionary proclamation to begin this one, in which he basically says, ‘Look – last time we had a carnival, our jails and hospitals wound up way too full – I’d much rather all of these messy troublemakers be dead, so like, if you see someone misbehaving, just shoot ’em, ‘kay?’ does not seem encouraging, in this regard.
Yo, police bros – if you see a cat named Don Diego, please just let him go. If you try to kill him, you might think you’ve succeeded – but really, he’s just gonna pop up later & revenge-sass the ever-living shit out of you and run off with the girl you’ve been twerpily lusting after…so like – just look the other way for one hot second, you know???
- Anyhow – our story centers on Concha Perez (Dietrich), a flighty, golddigging basketcase of a singer/dancer – who, along with her incorrigibly bold & greedy mother (Señora Perez, played by Alison Skipworth) – appear to subsist, pretty entirely, on the flirt-encouraged generosity of rich, interested men.
- One such man is Captain/Don Pasqual Costelar (Lionel Atwill), who meets Concha on a train, rediscovers her in a cigarette factory – and is doomed to re-engage with her on repeat for a number of years…always gifting the Perezes sizeable amounts of cash, in exchange for…well, nothing, really. Concha declines his marriage proposals on multiple occasions & refuses to let him touch her (she kisses him once & also at some point claims to love him – each of these instances followed immediately by an absolutely batshit overreaction/retraction on the part of Concha…which can/should only be interpreted as ‘Oh – that was a bold-faced lie and she just wants money NOW‘).
Dietrich does an excellent job playing this totally manic-yet-somehow-still-alluring disposition – her energy is slightly frenetic, but underwritten by a casual confidence that creates an utterly unique character tone.
- Also aiding the narrative tone is the organization & editing of the sequence – as it’s told via flashback – Captain Pasqual to old friend Antonio Galvan (Cesar Romero), following Antonio’s accidental path-crossing with Concha earlier in the day. The flashback tale is not told in the common, all-in-one-chunk manner – but rather in quick, thorough segments grounded back in real time by some brief, interspersed commentary from Pasqual & Antonio. (Editing “credit”: Sam Winston…put in quotations marks because technically, he was left uncredited – which may or may not mean that the film’s cuts & structure are primarily attributable to von Sternberg.)
- Marlene Dietrich is said to have listed this as one of her favorites – if not her very favorite – of all her films, because of how well-photographed she was in it – and…man, do I get it. She is absolutely radiant, perfectly lit, & perfectly framed throughout – and is magnificently dressed, on top of all of that. (Costume credit: Travis Banton.)
- Pasqualito is a straight-up dumbass, y’all. It should take you exactly one time to get monetarily played & disregarded as brazenly as this (mayyybe twice, if we’re feeling generous). After four times (that we’ve seen!), this clown is still going back for more with/from this woman! What. A fucking. Dope!!!
- “That woman has ice, where others have heart,” Pasqualito conclusively warns Antonio. “Forget about her.”
- After this 40+ minute lecture (!), Pasqual peaces out, & Antonio’s like, ‘Okay, bro – you’re right. I will absolutely not go meet this woman, I’m heading back to France tonight. REST EASY, MY DUDE.’
Y’all.…..he fucking goes & meets her. He does not leave on his train for France.
- But then you know what happens?! Even dumber shit. Pasqual also reappears on the scene, pulls a THE NOTEBOOK (2004) Noah & is like, ‘It wasn’t over, it still isn’t over, I LOVE YOU CONCHA’ – and agrees to fucking duel over her affections with BroPal Antonio!
What the fuck, Pasqual. I’m pretty sure you are the worst.
- Governor Don Paquito (that’s Edward Everett Horton’s character) at long last re-emerges within our narrative to cattily yell about umbrellas & attempt to interrupt/stop the Frenemy Duel (spoiler alert: he does not succeed)(and Pasqual winds up seriously wounded in the rainy-ass forest, like the Concha-obsessed quasi-suicidist he is)(was?)(TBD).
- The film ends with Concha securing freedom & a passport out of town for now-criminally-wanted duelist Antonio, via “Paquitito” (yep, he’s One of ‘Em, too) – and then her last-second abandoning Antonio at the train station to “go back” to Pasqualito (who – it has officially been revealed – survived his duel wounds & is currently laid up in a hospital). At this point we recognize this as a very on-brand move by Concha & are exactly 0% surprised by it, when it occurs.
Sigh.
- In the end, very, very little actually happens in this film – though the costumes, set pieces, & magisterial beauty of Marlene Dietrich make it kind of a fun watch. Cesar Romero’s character is a nothing, Lionel Atwill’s performance is decent but bland – and why the hell Edward Everett Horton is there is anyone’s goddamn guess.
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