The Scarlet Empress

"The Reigning Beauty of the Screen!"

1934 1h 44m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 147

DramaHistoryRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

During the 18th century, German noblewoman Sophia Frederica, who would later become Catherine the Great, travels to Moscow to marry the dimwitted Grand Duke Peter, the heir to the Russian throne. Their arranged marriage proves to be loveless, and Catherine takes many lovers, including the handsome Count Alexei, and bears a son. When the unstable Peter eventually ascends to the throne, Catherine plots to oust him from power.

“The Reigning Beauty of the Screen!”

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Cast

Marlene Dietrich
Princess Sophia Frederica / Catherine II
John Lodge
Count Alexei
Sam Jaffe
Grand Duke Peter
Louise Dresser
Empress Elizabeth Petrovna
C. Aubrey Smith
Prince August
Gavin Gordon
Capt. Gregori Orloff
Olive Tell
Princess Johanna Elizabeth
Ruthelma Stevens
Countess Elizabeth 'Lizzie'

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Josef von Sternberg
Writers: Manuel Komroff, Eleanor McGeary
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

92 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Josef von Sternberg, shot by Bert Glennon. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Josef von Sternberg shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Marlene Dietrich and John Lodge and Sam Jaffe carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The Reigning Beauty of the Screen!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0025746 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Josef von Sternberg directs. Bert Glennon behind the camera. Josef von Sternberg cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
292 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Josef von Sternberg, shot by Bert Glennon. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Editor Josef von Sternberg shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Marlene Dietrich and John Lodge and Sam Jaffe carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "The Reigning Beauty of the Screen!".
7IMDB entry: tt0025746 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 8 themes, including "based on novel or book", "royal family", "biography", "empress".
9Released under 16 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Bert Glennon
Editing: Josef von Sternberg
Costume design: Travis Banton
Runtime: 104 min · 1h 44m
Status: Released
Budget: $900,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Scarlet Empress (1934)

Also by

Josef von Sternberg

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-13
★ 8/10
If anyone was to have actually filmed aspects of the life of the Princess at the time, then they could hardly have come up with anything more authentic than this fabulous Von Sternberg dramatisation of the rise, and rise of Catherine the Great. Marlene Dietrich is superb as the schemed against who becomes the scheming Grand Duchess married off to the imbecilic nephew (played by a superb Sam Jaffe) of the Empress Elizabeth (an imperious Louise Dresser). Through her series of lovers and strategic alliances, she deposes her idiot husband and accedes to the throne. The (lingering) intimacy of the filming of the star - almost bordering on adulation by the camera (and the director!?); the use of light and shadow - particularly the use of candles; and the marvellous Tchaikovsky score all more than compensate for some of the "train set" model scenery and make this a scintillating story of power. Great stuff.

Production companies