Main Cast: Marlene Dietrich, John Lodge, Sam Jaffe, Louise Dresser, Maria Sieber
Release Year: 1934
Country: US
Run Time: 110 minutes
Plot
Of the two 1934 film versions of the life of Russia's Catherine the Great, Josef von Sternberg's The Scarlet Empress was the most opulent and exotic. Marlene Dietrich plays the German-born Catherine, who is required to marry Russia's mad Grand Duke Peter (Sam Jaffe, decked out in a Harpo Marx wig). As if her joke of a marriage isn't torment enough, Catherine must endure the excesses of her new mother-in-law, Empress Elizabeth (Louise Dresser). Eventually, Catherine finds solace -- and romance -- in the form of Count Alexei (John Lodge). But even this balm is denied her when the ambitious Alexei begins wooing the much-older Elizabeth. When the old Empress dies, Catherine ascends to the Russian throne, knowing full well that her addled husband would kill her at the slightest provocation. Soon her power outstrips Peter's, and the opportunistic Alexei now comes back into her life. The finale finds Catherine emerging triumphant over all her enemies -- and, in the film's least subtle sequence (which is saying a lot!), the new Empress is shown astride a horse, to whom she displays far more affection than any of her human compatriots. The Scarlet Empress has even less to do with accuracy than Paul Czinner's Catherine the Great of the same year, which starred Elizabeth Bergner. Watch for Dietrich's real-life daughter Maria Sieber (aka Maria Riva) as the 7-year-old Catherine in the early scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
The Scarlet Empress is a largely fictional account of the life of Catherine the Great, but that doesn't stop it from being one of the best and most adult biopics of the 1930s. Directed in grand style by Josef von Sternberg, the film is a visual feast, though it is Marlene Dietrich's performance in the title role that has given the film its enduring appeal. A truer account of the life of Catherine the Great probably could not have been made in the U.S. in the 1930s. Nonetheless, The Scarlet Empress is unusually frank and occasionally suggestive. The film was the last of the great collaborations between von Sternberg and Dietrich. She would go on to make well-remembered films for other directors, while von Sternberg's later career would be less successful. ~ Richard Gilliam, All Movie Guide
Cast
Marlene Dietrich - Sophia Frederica, later Catherine II of Russia
Sophia Frederica (Marlene Dietrich), is the daughter of a minor German prince and an ambitious mother. She is brought to Russia by Count Alexei (John Lodge) to marry the half-wit Grand Duke Peter (Sam Jaffe). As if her marriage is not torment enough, she must endure the excesses of her husband's aunt, Empress Elizabeth (Louise Dresser). Elizabeth renames her Catherine and awards her the Order of St. Catherine.
Catherine finds solace with Count Alexei, but he begins wooing the much-older Elizabeth. Catherine finds lovers among the Russian army. When the old Empress dies, Catherine ascends to the Russian throne, knowing full well that her addled husband would kill her at the slightest provocation. Soon her power outstrips Peter's, and the opportunistic Alexei now comes back into her life. The finale finds Catherine emerging triumphant over all her enemies and the new Empress is shown astride a horse, to whom she displays far more affection than any of her human compatriots.
Style
The film is notable for its expressionistart design von Sternberg creates for the Russian palace. In film critic Robin Wood's words:
"a hyperrealist atmosphere of nightmare with its gargoyles, its grotesque figures twisted into agonized contortions, its enormous doors that require a half-dozen women to close or open, its dark spaces and ominous shadows created by the flickerings of innumerable candles, its skeleton presiding over the royal wedding banquet table."[1]
This decor is historically inaccurate, as Grand Duke Peter in fact preferred Neoclassical art and architecture.[citation needed]
