Review of The Scarlet Empress (1934) by Dave A — 09 Jul 2008

Overflowing with decadence and depravity, this is director Josef von Sternberg's masterwork; the gothic sets of the Russian palace with its gorgoyles and wedding banquet skeleton are pure fantasy, but a more historically accurate film would have been far less interesting... Marlene Dietrich is radiant - easily her best role, and the soundtrack (a mix of Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn and Wagner) is perfect.

Much of the artistry of photographic techniques developed in the silent era suffered once sound was introduced into film, but this not true for this film; the camerawork is a fullfillment of silent expressionism...