Marlene (VHS) [1984] Maximilian Schell

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Marlene (1984)


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085905/

Marlene, also known in Germany as Marlene Dietrich - Porträt eines Mythos is a 1984 documentary film made by Maximilian Schell about the legendary film star Marlene Dietrich. It was made by Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) and OKO-Film and released by Futura Film, Munich and Alive Films, (USA).

This film has been unavaiable and hard to find for many years, but during my research for this I discovered that Kino Video has plans to release a new DVD version in October 2010.

Marlene Dietrich and Maximilian Schell had worked together on Judgment at Nuremberg in 1961. Dietrich had become a virtual recluse in her Paris apartment on the Avenue Montaigne. Schell tried to persuade her for years to participate in a documentary about her life. She continuously refused. In 1982, she eventually agreed to participate in the project on condition that she did not appear. The film therefore consists of an audio commentary and the visuals illustrate her career by showing film clips and stills from her films, as well as newsreel footage. She was contracted for "40 hours of talking" as she reminds Schell during one of their exchanges. The film consists of voice interviews between Schell and Dietrich in which she often ignores his questions, makes acerbic comments about, among other things, some of the people she has worked with and some of the books written about her life and films. In the process, she touches on the subjects of life and death, reality and illusion and the nature of stardom. By her very reluctance to reveal much about herself, she gives one a much deeper understanding of her character than if she had participated in a more conventional format.