The Blue Angel (Blaue Engel, Der) (Directors Suite) (1930)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Alternative Version-English Language Version Audio Commentary-Dr. Adrian Martin Filmographies-Cast-Hollywood Remembers : Marlene Dietrich Theatrical Trailer-Two trailers Featurette-Behind The Scenes-Screen Test : Marlene Dietrich Gallery-Scene Comparison : English and German Version Interviews-Cast-Marlene Dietrich More…-Marlene Dietrich Song Performances
Rating
Year Of Production	1930
Running Time	103:40 (Case: 94)
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Dual Disc Set	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Josef von Sternberg
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	Emil Jannings Marlene Dietrich Kurt Gerron Rosa Valetti Hans Albers Reinhold Bernt Eduard von Winterstein Hans Roth Rolf Müller Roland Varno Carl Balhaus Robert Klein-Lörk Charles Puffy
Case	Amaray-Transparent-Dual
RPI	?	Music	None Given

    The Blue Angel may not have invented the image of smoky, salacious Weimar era nightclubs – but it almost singlehandedly ensured that the cult of Marlene Dietrich would live forever – and provide a comfortable living for the German star right into her old age.

    In fact, such is the power of the impression the film made on audiences in the early 1930's that the image of Dietrich sitting on a chair, crooning Falling in Love Again has become the stuff of eternal homage and parody, most notably Lili Von Stupp in Blazing Saddles, and Grampa Simpson in the Whacking Day episode. In fact, according to the DVD commentary on this Simpsons episode, Grampa was meant to sing that very song, while relating how he posed as a German cabaret singer in World War II, but they couldn't get the rights to it because, according to the people who own the song, "everybody makes fun of it".

    To that end it is difficult to seperate The Blue Angel from its cultural status. Recognising this, Madman Entertainment have put together a two-disc DVD edition of The Blue Angel that goes above and beyond the call of duty. Not only does this extend to a lovingly restored print of the German language version of the film, but also includes English versions, as well as a wealth of documentaries and other features marking the film's cultural significance.

    For the curious or uninitiated, The Blue Angel was directed by Josef von Sternberg (real name Josef Stern) in 1930. It was one of the first talkies and Austrian-American Sternberg filmed it concurrently in English and German. Sternberg was already famous as a director in Hollywood, but he travelled to Germany to film it with the then greatest German star Emil Jannings. Jannings was no stranger to success. He was revered in his own country and was already the recipient of Oscars for his performances in the silent films The Way of All Flesh and The Last Command (trivia buffs note that the former film is the only movie performance to be awarded an Oscar where the film itself has been forever lost).

Although Sternberg and Jannings had argued during the filming of The Last Command, the two reconciled in time to return to Germany to make The Blue Angel. It was a momentous ocasion: two of Europe's greatest exports returning to the homeland to make a film that would not only launch the German sound era, but would make them both truly international stars.

    The experience was ultimately not a great success for Jannings. His thick German accent all but prevented a career in the talkies, and he had to sit back and watch the young upstart Dietrich steal all the acclaim for the film. He remained in Germany during the Second World War, becoming a symbol of Aryan artistic superiority.

    As happens from time to time, where the lead faltered the chorus girl got to shine. The Blue Angel was not Dietrich's first role, but it was her largest to date and overnight it made her a star. More than that, it created a Dietrich character that was to remain with her throughout her life. Finally, the film began a partnership with Sternberg that led to a series of films throughout the 1930's that kept her at the top of the box office and continually in the adoring public's eye.

    The Blue Angel was based on the book Professor Unrat by Heinrich Mann, and freely adapted by writer/playwright Carl Zuckmayer. The professor of the title (Emil Jannings – his name is suited to a German play on words for "rubbish") is a respected teacher at a local college. He is spartan and dignified in his manner and expects respect from his students. He is appalled to find that the students are carrying postcards of a woman Lola Lola (Marlene Dietrich), who is performing at a local nighclub called The Blue Angel. One night he enters the club in high dudgeon, intending to give the proprietor of the club and the debauched Miss Lola a piece of his mind for leading his sudents astray. Of course, he is immediately captivated by the beauty and sexual allure of Lola and finds it impossible to resist returning the next day.

    Displaying less than perfect judgment, he determines to make Lola his wife, bringing himself into serious and immediate conflict with the school, his students having become aware of the relationship. His judgment is flawed because Lola makes no bones about the fact (she even sings about it) that she is the flame to which men are attracted like moths and she can't be held responsible if they get burnt! She is the archetypal femme fatale.

    Rath marries Lola and joins the travelling burlesque show and so begins a slow and tragic descent into humiliation and despair for him – culminating in a performance as a pathetic clown before his old students amid the reality of Lola's infidelity.

    The film is a triumph for a number of reasons. Sternberg is a great director of mood and drama. The club and the streets of Berlin are rendered so clearly that we can almost smell the beer and cigars. Even though Jannings was eventually overshadowed by Dietrich, he gives a detailed and nuanced performance as the hapless professor. To my mind his performance owes much to the silent era and it is immediately clear as soon as Dietrich walks on that she represents the new and Jannings the old. This is not to take away from his moments, however. The conclusion of the film sees him dig deep to give his clown a depth of anguish that is frightening to behold.

    Rather, it is a reflection of the way in which Dietrich eats up the screen. Her presence is palpable and sexy in a most real and earthy manner. The film has a sexual frankness which is suprising. In fact, most of the action involving her takes place either on stage where she is singing for tips, or backstage, where she is getting in and out of her outfits.

    The film works as a morality tale of sorts, but my only difficulty is that Rath is such a smug and superior character that his decline has always seemed to me to be a reflection of his weakness rather than an indication of the depravity of Lola. Perhaps tastes have changed over the years, but I found it hard to be more than passingly sypathetic to Rath. This doesn't effect, however, the sheer impact of the movie and Dietrich in particular.

    First time viewers may be suprised that although her character and songs from the film were to be replayed and reworked over the years, the gruff vocal one associates with Dietrich and so often parodied and impersonated (usually by males), is not to be found in this film. That voice came later. Dietrich in this film is a young sexy woman who sings just like a young sexy woman should.

    As said, this DVD set includes the English version as well as the German version. The quality of the transfer is not as good in the English version and, to be honest, it is often quite difficult to understand what some of the actors are saying in the English version, so thick are their accents. Dietrich is fine, although Jannings sounds every inch the professor. Some characters, such as the leader of the troupe, still speak in German. The interest in watching the two is to see how the film was cut (it is about five minutes shorter) to remove some of the more salacious elements. A side by side comparison shows that the phrasing of the English version avoids double entendres and lingering too long on Dietrich's creamy thighs.

    All in all it is less fun but still a fascinating watch.

    The Blue Angel is not only one of the better European films from the period, it is also one of theose rare moments in cinema where you can see the genie let out of the bottle. Dietrich was to play variants of Lola Lola with great success for a further 40 years.

Video

    The Blue Angel was filmed using 35mm film at an original aspect ratio of 1.20:1, though some sources say 1.19:1.

    This transfer (both English and German) comes full frame with black bars at the edges to bring it in from the 1.33:1 standard.

    This is a film from Europe at the very dawn of cinema. It is therfore not suprising that despite the best efforts of the restoration crew, the film still looks its age. The telecine wobbles around like a drunken Blue Angel patron. The Blue Angel was no doubt put together from various sources and there are noticeable differences in the look from scene to scene and shot to shot. There is a flicker, and some scenes are very soft. Damage appears at various points, too.

    There is an appreciable amount of grain and a constant parade of artefacts present, from scratches to blobs to lines on the print. Whilst the restoration work in putting the film together is to be commended, no one should approach this DVD assuming it reaches the heights of the other 1940's restorations, such as Casablanca.

    There are no compression or digital problems to speak of.

    Although the print quality is poor at times, it is still remarkable that the film even exists, and I expect that fans of the movie and cinema buffs in general would be overjoyed that it is even available on home video in a complete form.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

   The Blue Angel comes in Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound in both language versions, with both running at 224 Kb/s.

    The film itself is an example of early cinema. The soundtrack is positively from the dawn of time. The two tracks are thin and carry an appreciable amount of hiss. I didn't have problems with the German version (because I don't speak the language and relied on the subtutles), but in the English language version I constantly found myself straining to catch what was being said irrespective of the volume. The sound was recorded live (quiet on set!) and sometimes Dietrich is difficult to hear.

    The music score also sounds thin, but I suspect this won't worry fans of the film. Although more could have been done to beef up the audio quality, I imagine this would have made it sound out of keeping with the quality of the visuals.

    All in all a good transfer given the age of the film.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

    This double-DVD edition comes in a nice slipcase with a barload of extras.

Alternative Version-English Language Version

    As mentioned, the film carries an English language version which varies noticeably in script though not in performance. Specific references, such as the joke surrounding the word Rath and how easily it can be transformed to Unrat (rubbish), are lost.

Audio Commentary-Dr. Adrian Martin

    Dr Martin, Senior Research Fellow, Film and Television Studies, Monash University and Co-editor of Rouge Magazine is no stranger to commentaries on classic films released by Madman Entertainment. His commentaries are usually thoroughly researched and engagingly presented, and this effort is no exception.

    Dr Martin has a keen interest in the history of cinema and has prepared this commentary well, drawing facts and ideas from a variety of sources. He covers the history of the stars, including Kurt Gerron, who lived a tragic life as a concentration camp internee forced to make a propaganda film about the camp for the Nazis.

    Fans of the film can expect a wealth of information from the commentary track, but also some in-depth examination of the cinematic techniques of Sternberg and the themes of the movie. Thankfully, Dr Martin's style is fresh and talky and steers clear of stuffy academic lecturing. A worthy listen.

Filmographies-Cast-Hollywood Remembers : Marlene Dietrich 25.04

    Wherever I have seen an installment of the Hollywood Remembers, series (and Madman puts a lot of them on their classic Hollywood DVD's), I have been roundly critical. This one falls into the same category as the others. Cheesy narration, flimsy facts, and footage culled from trailers rather than the films themselves. There are some interesting moments in this rather short featurette, including some wartime footage from the time when Dietrich entertained US troops. Ultimately, however, it is unsatisfying. Being culled from trailers means that we get nothing of her from the featured segments of Touch of Evil. Further, and unforgivably, the Sternberg years are brushed over without so much as a mention of Blonde Venus and The Scarlet Empress.

    Better than nothing, but only just!

Theatrical Trailer-Two trailers 3.34/3.02

    These date from the era when the term trailer meant "show as much of the film as you can". They are intersting to watch once if only to see how quickly the focus of the film shifted from Jannings to Dietrich.

Featurette-Behind The Scenes-Screen Test : Marlene Dietrich 3.39

    Given the acres of screen test footage that exists today, it is strange that so little of it finds its way onto DVD extras.

    Junebug is the only recent film I can think of that has audition material. However, this footage is the mother lode. Dietrich as an unknown singing You're the Cream in my Coffee in English, all the while pretending to berate the piano player for inept playing. Although short, it is something that every fan of the film should watch and enjoy.

Gallery-Scene Comparison : English and German Version 3.21

    This feaqture sets the English language version of the film alongside the German version in a short scene early in the film, when Rath goes into his class to find that one of the students has drawn on his lecture book. The comparison does show very different editing, but it would have been nice to have some information about the apparent reasons for the differences.

Interviews-Cast-Marlene Dietrich 1.27

    This is a short extract from an interview with Dietrich and two very tall men, who stand either side of her whilst firing qustions at her. She talks about the failure of German studio UFA to offer her a contract, and relates how she was leaving Germany the night of The Blue Angel's premiere on a ship bound for America, when cables sent to her on board relayed the success of the film. She also says that Emil Jannings was the intended star of the film, not her.

More.-Marlene Dietrich Song Performances

    Marlene performs three songs connected to The Blue Angel. The songs are really a great bridge for Dietrich lovers from her very beginnings in film to her cabaret career.

    You're the Cream in my Coffee (3.32). Dietrich tells in the intro how as a student, she came to audition for The Blue Angel. She was told to bring along a "naughty song", but was so convinced she wouldn't get the part that she didn't bother. Sternberg asked her to sing a favoutrite. The test screening is the result.

    Lola (2.15). There's something vaguely disturbing about a very old German woman singing They Call Me Naughty Lola but be that as it may, this is a spirited performance of the song.

    Falling in Love Again(3.30) is taken from a concert – sources say it was recorded in Stockholm in 1963. Dietrich looks great for a woman in her 60's, although the song itself is really just a curtain closer with much clapping and throwing of flowers.

    The other songs apparently date from a concert in London in 1972. They are in colour, whereas the earlier footage is in black and white.

    The film has been put out in the USA as a Region 0 release and in Germany Region 2 (it is now in UK Region 2 with an identical feature set to the German version).

    The extras for both are almost identical to our version, except that the commentary is different – it is by Werner Sudendorf of the Berlin Film Museum. They also contain a photo gallery, including behind-the-scenes stills, costume illustrations, and posters.

    Despite the additional material, I would still lean towards the Region 4 edition.

    The Blue Angel is a classic film marking the birth of one superstar and perhaps the decline of another.

    The video and audio transfers belie the age of the film.

    The extras vary in quality, but Madman are to be congratulated for the extent of the offerings.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall