Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Shanghai Express (1932)




Academy Awards, USA
YearResultAwardCategory/Recipient(s)
1932 Won Oscar Best Cinematography
Lee Garmes
Nominated Oscar
Best Director
Josef von Sternberg
Best Picture
(Paramount Publix).


Paramount
Directed by Josef von Sternberg
My rating: 2 stars out of 4
IMDb
(Turner Classic Movies)

A train full of wealthy passengers attempts to travel from Peking to Shanghai during a revolution. However, Warner Oland is actually the leader of the rebels. He stops the train and takes British officer Clive Brook hostage. Marlene Dietrich is still in love with old flame Brook, and he with her, but they struggle to acknowledge their feelings. I thought Marlene's dialogue and delivery was self-conscious and unintentionally hilarious. Every time she uttered a sentence I was in stitches. There is almost no chemistry between her and the stoic Brook, so the basic premise of the film falls apart.

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