Tarfumes.com - Shanghai Express

Sternberg's films make no sense to most movie fans, who skim a film for its story or for its stars or its "realism". Sternberg's stories are usually slow, the stories trite or perverse, his inattention to casting and acting can be almost shocking, and realism is nowhere to be found.

But his ultra-stylized mises en scene are unique, his feeling for exotic, poetic, and sensual visual effects is without equal. He is a visual stylist, more of a painter than a filmmaker, but on top of that he touches on subtle emotions rarely expressed in other films... Like very, very few other directors, Sternberg was truly a poet.

This film is probably the most famous of the Sternberg/Dietrich collaborations in the U.S. It shows both of them working at the top of their game...

SHANGHAI EXPRESS stands as one of the best of Marlene Dietrich's performances with Josef von Sternberg as director. What I also find especially intriguing about this classic gem are the appearances of Warner Oland and Anna May Wong in important supporting roles.

Although he is best remembered as Charlie Chan, the Swedish actor Warner Oland had in addition a distinguished film career playing a variety of heavies. He was Colonel von Hindau in DISHONORED with Marlene Dietrich in 1931. This movie was also directed by Josef von Sternberg.

Anna May Wong had an equally illustrious career. One early success before sound was her role as a Mongol slave in THE THIEF OF BAGDAD with Douglas Fairbanks in 1924.

Exotica is the one word that constantly comes to mind when viewing "Shanghai Express". It's not so much the storyline (which in actual fact while entertaining is rather trite) that holds your attention so much as the ever more amazing series of "photographic images" that are made of Marlene Dietrich throughout the film wrapped up as she is in exotic furs, black feathers or shrouded in cigarette smoke or partial shadows. They truly are what Hollywood glamour at this time was all about and they were responsible for creating some unforgettable visual images of Dietrich that have gone down in Hollywood folklore. "Shanghai Express" tells the story of a disparate group of passengers on the express train travelling to Shanghai during the Chinese civil war. Along the way we get to findout abit more about each of the passengers before the train is hijacked by a warlord who is travelling on the train. Dietrich plays one of her most famous characters in Shanghai Lily, a lady of ill repute who makes the memorable statement that "it took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily". On board the train she encounters her great love from 5 years previous Capt. Donald Harvey (Clive Brook) a man who has never got over his great passion for her. Brook as other reviewers have mentioned is a strange choice as the romantic lead here as he is obviously too old for the role while still being a capable actor. Despite the lack of real chemistry between them they nevertheless work well and make the scenario of them rekindling their love and Shanghai Lily being willing to sacrifice herself to ensure Donald's safety when he is in the hands of the warlord that bit more believable. The film is peppered with other great performances. Anna May Wong plays the spunky partisan Hui Fei and since very little of her work is available for viewing these days her presence in "Shanghai Express" is a reat treat. She was a wonderfully gifted actress and here her presence is vital to the plot development which finds her being raped by Warlord Chang and then seeking her own revenge for the injustice done to her by fair means or foul. Warner Oland, famous as one of the actors to play Charlie Chan here plays the devious Henry Chang a man of mystery on the journey who turns out to be a vicious warlord who hijacks the train when one of his supporters is arrested. There has been criticism of a westerner playing the role of Chang however Oland is wonderful in the role and really gets his teeth into the character of the ruthless warlord. The memorable Louise Closser Hale, a veteran of so many 1930's melodramas scores here as the elderly busybody Mrs. Haggerty who's main concern is looking after her little dog and who strongly disapproves of everyone and everything on the train. Her bossy nature contrasts beautifully in her scenes with Warner Oland and she is definately a match for him in the bossy stakes. Eugene Pallette is also memorable in his usual gruff way playing Sam Salt the compulsive gambler on board who tries to continually place bets on anything that is occuring.

Working in collaboration with Joseph Von Sternberg Marlene Dietrich had a dream run at Paramount in the early 1930's. Her work with Von Sternberg is certainly what she is most remembered for but it's easy to forget that all the expertise at Paramount was responsible for creating the "Dietrich look". Camera work is the vital selling point in this film as I have mentioned creating so many unforgettable images of the Dietrich glamour. Costumes are also a stand out here as Marlene, dressed unforgettably by Travis Banton wears a series of exotic gowns that no other actress of this time, with the possible exception of Garbo could have worn. The overall look of the film is a beautiful feast for the eyes and the scenes of the Chinese markets, and the station were the passengers are held at are filled with atmosphere and are first rate in their execution.

A huge success on its release in 1932 "Shanghai Express" is still a movie treat and clearly illustrates how the mystic of Marlene Dietrich was born. She is perfect in the role, mesmerizing in actual fact, and is the main reason for enjoying repeated screenings of this classic. It is my favourite Dietrich film and really points out what Hollywood glamour was all about. Enjoy.

The story, in fact, is rather lackluster. And for my taste, many of the actors are rather stiff and wooden in a way that one finds in many films of the early thirties. Clive Brook is so ramrod straight that one might imagine his spine were fused from top to bottom. Indeed, his character is such a prig that one has trouble imagining that Dietrich's character could ever had been interested in him, or is interested still. The other principal character I had trouble with was Warner Oland, a Swedish actor who made a career portraying Asians. Today, many viewers are bothered by the almost constant string of Europeans and Americans who portrayed Asians and Native Americans in Hollywood films. I am one of them. The problem is that Oland is just not convincing as an Asian. Even as Charlie Chan, he always comes across as a European portraying an Asian. On the other hand, while two of the main actors are weak, there are several excellent or even superb performances to balance the cast. This is truly one of Marlene Dietrich's great film. She shines as Shanghai Lily, and while one has trouble accepting that such a riveting woman could be in love with such a hunk of wood as Clive Brook, one has no difficulty believing in the attention she is able to create as she walks through the film. Interestingly, she did not sing in this film as in her previous von Sternberg films. Anna May Wong was one of the very rare exceptions to the practice of Europeans playing Asians in films. She was, with only one or two exceptions, one of the few Asians to ever have a significant career in Hollywood. Eugene Pallette is one of my favorite character actors, and enlivens nearly every scene he is in as Sam Salt, who, as he puts it, is willing to gamble on anything. One of the most interesting characters in the film is Lawrence Grant as Mr. Carmichael, who appears initially to be a Victorian clergyman, but who turns out to be one of the most human and sympathetic characters in the film.

The plot is not terribly interesting. The primary purpose, as with most von Sternberg films, is to provide a background for him to construct one exquisite shot after another. It is the visual dimension of this film that makes it a masterpiece, and one of the must-see films of the first few years of the talking film.