Review of The Scarlet Empress (1934) by Veronique K — 11 Dec 2007

Another dietrich/sternberg collaboration which highly emphasizes the supreme feminism through emanicipated sex charisma as means to dominate over men, maybe over the entire russian nation deflected upon the lens of a promiscuous historical woman figure "catherine the great" who has been re-incarnated by the husky deviously attractive marlene dietrich.

The flamboyant visuality of bizarre architectures and palace inner embellishment is amazingly inked with the signature of the usual sternberg's pompously lushness, particularly the ancient russia backset relentlessly provides sternberg with grand material to carve incisively with raw exotica.

Maybe the pace of this story is a bit protracted with too many passages on catherine's loss of puberty innocence. as you observe upon an inadequate marlene dietrich with girlish curly bang over her forehead, swiving pupils with lips ajar, sighing over the irreversiblility of her youthful rosy dreaminess. could you imagine that?

The akwardness declines as dietrich reappears as her usual luscious self who lays her eyes to select her liason candidates among juicy young soldiers, dressed in warrior armour with big furry beret conquering russia with her military worshippers, exuberating sensuality even thru masculine outfits, no other woman could have that sort of luring duplicity interwoven with ambundant individuality to accomplish such task as dietrich.

You could parellel "scarlett empress" with greta garbo's "queen christina" exemplified as feministic assertions. that sort of connived appreciation over female aggression might only be reserved in an ambiguous decade like 30s with conservative audience simmered with lecherous smolder underneath.

As dietrich chooses riding on the horse to wave the mass in celebration of her successful domination, garbo's queen christina would rather denunciate her crown for private liberaty(she just wants to be alone! left alone!). both cases also reflect the living attitude of this two legendarily adrogynous actresses.