Marlene

Released Mar 2, 1984

1h 35m

Documentary

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100%

Tomatometer

8 Reviews

95%

Audience Score

100+ Ratings

Directed by German actor Maximilian Schell, this film focuses on the life and career of screen star Marlene Dietrich. The famous actress declined to appear in any new interviews, so much of the documentary consists of the notoriously private Dietrich talking to Schell off-screen over film clips and photos of her legendary Hollywood heyday. Among the movies featured in the production are "The Blue Angel" and "Judgment at Nuremberg," a film that included both Schell and Dietrich in the cast.

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Geoff Brown

Times (UK)

Marlene, then, is infuriating, but rarely boring: Dietrich herself makes sure of that.

Apr 14, 2020

Full Review

Melissa Anderson

Village Voice

A shrewd summa of stardom and late-life legend-burnishing, wearily but no less admiringly acknowledging its irascible subject's perverse genius

May 31, 2017

Full Review

Bill Weber

Slant Magazine

The bilingual parrying between the withholding diva and her frustrated chronicler often seems like Sunset Boulevard re-imagined as a radio play, with sex removed from the equation but marlenus interruptus aplenty.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 5, 2009

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Joe Bittmann

Washington Blade

Schell’s film is therefore an achievement, building on the heterodox, oblique-angled technique of Marcel Ophuls to reconstruct Dietrich’s life like a mood piece.

May 24, 2022

Full Review

Michael W. Phillips, Jr.

Goatdog's Movies

I think we learn much more about Dietrich than we would have if she had submitted to the usual paint-by-numbers, fawning Biography Channel type of film.

Rated: 4/5

Oct 26, 2009

Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

The result is a fascinating document, not only of the star herself, but also of the documentary as personal process.

Oct 10, 2009

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georgan g

Interesting but difficult to follow as half was in German so had to read subtitles that were not left on for long. Marlene Dietrich said her career meant nothing, nor does she care for sex or love. What *does* she care about?

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/06/24

Full Review

david f

A riveting documentary featuring the disembodied voice of Marlene Dietrich speaking over clips of her performances and giving her take on her storied life. Has a meta approach of commenting on its production which I liked very much.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

One of the best documentaries for its' subject matter. Completely new, inventive, and engaging from beginning to the end.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

Of course the famously reclusive Marlene Dietrich refused to appear on camera in a documentary film about her life. The real surprise was that she agreed even briefly to be filmed by Maximilian Schell. He got very lucky, since the off camera interviews combined with footage from her career led to on...read moree of the most acclaimed documentaries of the 1980s. Dietrich was a real German patriot by denouncing Hitler and actively supporting the Allies throughout World War II, for which she was an outcast for many years in her home country. And while she might not like the comparison, Dietrich is so combative and strong-willed, this makes a fascinating double bill with The Wonderful, Horrible Life Of Leni Riefenstahl who was forever on the wrong side of history but refused to admit it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/02/23

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Audience Member

Dietrich's last interview turned into a really fascinating, controversial documentary. Grumpy yet humble Marlene does her best to keep her star facade intact but fails measurably...

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

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Audience Member

One really has to give Schell credit. After Dietrich more or less torpedoed the documentary, he went back and reconceived the whole project, with results that are probably far more impressive than the original film would have been. Amazing, and, oddly enough, no disservice to his subject.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

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Maximilian Schell

Director

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Synopsis

Directed by German actor Maximilian Schell, this film focuses on the life and career of screen star Marlene Dietrich. The famous actress declined to appear in any new interviews, so much of the documentary consists of the notoriously private Dietrich talking to Schell off-screen over film clips and photos of her legendary Hollywood heyday. Among the movies featured in the production are "The Blue Angel" and "Judgment at Nuremberg," a film that included both Schell and Dietrich in the cast.

Director: Maximilian Schell
Production Co: Braun Entertainment Group, Bayerischer Rundfunk
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 2, 1984, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 1, 2016
Runtime: 1h 35m

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