#Der blaue Engel

[bitter69uk]

“Paramount, which signed her [Marlene Dietrich] in a tizzy after viewing a rough cut of The Blue Angel, was the only studio that actually liked weird directors; Sternberg was the champ of weird. Stop the projector during a medium shot in any of his films and you’ll see a crammed picture, every piece in it doing something. Graffiti, toys, masks, light fixtures, bowls of things: the sets are alive.”

/ From Movie Star: A Look at the Women Who Made Hollywood by Ethan Mordden, 1983 /

If visionary director Josef von Sternberg (Jonas Sternberg, 29 May 1894 - 22 December 1969 – born 131 years ago today) was the Leonardo da Vinci of cinema, then German glamourpuss leading lady Marlene Dietrich was his Mona Lisa. The seven films the duo made together between 1930 and 1935 were dark, erotic, witty and sublime works of art / fleurs du mal in which they honed Dietrich's complex, sultry and feline persona and brought a whiff of genuine Weimar decadence to mainstream Hollywood. Once Dietrich and Sternberg’s personal and professional relationship imploded his career went into a steep decline (Sternberg’s “artistic temperament” burnt a lot of bridges!) but I love his later post-Dietrich films The Shanghai Gesture (1941), Macao (1952) and Anatahan (1953). The intense and fruitful creative union between Sternberg and Dietrich arguably created a template for the likes of Michelangelo Antonioni and Monica Vitti, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Hanna Schygulla, John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands, Pedro Almodovar and Carmen Maura (or Penelope Cruz) – and John Waters and Divine! Pictured: in the beginning - Sternberg and Dietrich in Germany in 1930.

[anitapallenberg]

The Blue Angel / Der blaue Engel (1930) | Dir. Josef von Sternberg

[schwarzwaldmaidle]

Blaue Augen…

Als wäre es mein Schicksal mich in ihnen zu verlieren.

So war es schon bei unserem ersten Augenkontakt.

Ich habe direkt die Kontrolle verloren und bin dir hoffnunglos verfallen.

Jetzt bin ich wohl der Idiot von uns beiden.

Aber so ist das wohl

mit blauen Augen…

[spellboundcinema]

[kittieshauntedourfantasy]

The Blue Angel is a movie /pos

[marlenedietrichuneenfantdusiecle]

[noel-goober]

The Blue Angel is NOT about Professor Rath. He may be the main character, but he’s only there to tell the story that repeats itself. The protagonist is Lola Lola. Rath is the villain.

He’s an angry man; someone who rules by fear. He finds the best way to teach is to intimidate. Because of this his students hold no real respect for him. It’s framed as if his relationship (can you really call it that?) with Lola causes him to lose his job. It’s not. If his students respected him they wouldn’t have acted out either way. And for them to respect him, he would have to behave… not like a toddler who needs a nap.

His death elicits no sympathy from me. It feels deserved.

[no-more-hide]

Falling in love again Never wanted to What am I to do? Can’t help it

Love’s always been my game Play it as I may I was born that way Can’t help it

Men flock around me Like moths around a flame And if their wings burn I know I’m not to blame

Falling in love again Never wanted to What am I to do? Can’t help it

Love’s always been my game Play it as I may I was born that way Can’t help it

Men flock around me Like moths around a flame And if their wings burn I know I’m not to blame

(Frederick Hollander / Sammy Lerner)

[rwpohl]

der geheimnisträger, franz josef gottlieb 1975

[bitter69uk]

“Paramount, which signed her [Marlene Dietrich] in a tizzy after viewing a rough cut of The Blue Angel, was the only studio that actually liked weird directors; von Sternberg was the champ of weird. Stop the projector during a medium shot in any of his films and you’ll see a crammed picture, every piece in it doing something. Graffiti, toys, masks, light fixtures, bowls of things: the sets are alive.” / From Movie Star: A Look at the Women Who Made Hollywood by Ethan Mordden, 1983 / If visionary director Josef von Sternberg (Jonas Sternberg, 29 May 1894 - 22 December 1969 – died 55 years ago today) was the Leonardo da Vinci of cinema, then German glamourpuss leading lady Marlene Dietrich was his Mona Lisa. The seven films the duo made together between 1930 and 1935 were dark, erotic, witty and sublime works of art / fleurs du mal in which they honed Dietrich's complex, sultry and feline persona and brought a whiff of genuine Continental decadence to mainstream Hollywood. Once Dietrich and Sternberg’s personal and professional relationship imploded his career went into a steep decline (Sternberg’s “artistic temperament” burnt a lot of bridges!) but I love his later post-Dietrich films The Shanghai Gesture (1941), Macao (1952) and Anatahan (1953). (I’m the first to admit, I haven’t seen any of his earlier silent movies). The intense and fruitful creative union between auteur Sternberg and muse Dietrich arguably created a template for the likes of Michelangelo Antonioni and Monica Vitti, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Hanna Schygulla, John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands, Pedro Almodovar and Carmen Maura (or Penelope Cruz) – and John Waters and Divine! Pictured: where it all began – Sternberg and Dietrich during production of their first collaboration together, The Blue Angel (1930).

[anitapallenberg]

The Blue Angel / Der blaue Engel (1930) | Dir. Josef von Sternberg

[ulrichgebert]

Wir konnten dann sogar einen Geburtstagsfilm für Marlene anbringen, diesmal sogar endlich wieder den unter Bildungbsürgern als bedeutsam geltenden (der Bruder des Autors der Romanvorlage erhielt den Literaturnobelpreis!) und besonders wirkungsmächtigen, der aber wenn man ehrlich ist, so weit von The Devil Is A Woman auch nicht weg ist. Für das Männermordende-Vamp-Fach ist Marlenes hier letzmals verwendete Piepsestimme recht ungewöhnlich.

[marlenedietrichuneenfantdusiecle]

Der blaue engel

[fabiansteinhauer]

[schadenfreudich]

Yesterday I was asked what kind of movies I watch and for some reason I could only think of one, but I wasn't going to say "There is this one movie from 1930." Because while it's still hovering through my mind and I keep thinking "... man" when it gets close enough, I can't say that. That's not even a kind of movies, that's just one.