DER BLAUE ENGEL - Marlene Dietrich - Analyse eines Phänomens

No one could have known it, but they suspected it: "The Blue Angel" from 1930 made Marlene Dietrich suddenly famous and within a very short time turned her into a screen goddess, a legend. Unique, one could say, were it not for Greta Garbo. Dietrich's film partner Emil Jannings was right in his fear: Josef von Sternberg's adaptation of the novel "Professor Unrat" by Heinrich Mann did not become an Emil Jannings film because Marlene stole the show. The scene in which Marlene Dietrich, as Lola Lola, sits on a barrel and sings the hit "Ich bin von Kopf bis Fuß auf Liebe eingestellt" (I'm all set up for love from head to toe) made film history, has been quoted countless times (probably best of all by Helmut Berger, as Marlene herself admitted) and is ultimately far more famous than the entire film, which is by no means a masterpiece. The novel's actual message has been distorted, Jannings grimaces to the point of unbearableness, and Sternberg is not yet a perfect visual magician. "The Blue Angel" is a fairly simple film, with a very moral message and little to do with art. One can fairly safely assume that it would have long since been forgotten in the abyss of film history if not... But what exactly? Is it Dietrich, or the hit song, or the scene staged with perfect imperfection, or all of the above? What makes the event special? The cinema is a mythical place. However cool and objective the analysis of a film may be, however sharp the eye, it seems to admit of a certain something that is difficult to grasp and yet immediately palpable. Hildegard Knef sang of her friend Marlene: "She served her fate, a long life long...", thus hinting at the greatness of the legend that was bigger than life. "Take Only My Life" is the logical title of Dietrich's autobiography, which – with Prussian discipline – was willing to forgo life for the sake of the image on screen. In an age of attention-seeking, constantly chattering, and exhibitionistic selfie stars, this is an incredibly remarkable attitude. Watch the video to learn more! TWITTER:   / schmittjunior   FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/wolfgangm.sc...