Product Description

Filmmaker-svengali Josef von Sternberg escalates his obsession with screen legend Marlene Dietrich in this lavish depiction of sex and deceit in the 18th-century Russian court. A self-proclaimed "relentless excursion into style," the pair's sixth collaboration follows the exploits of Princess Sophia (Dietrich) as she evolves from trembling innocent to cunning sexual libertine Catherine the Great. With operatic melodrama, flamboyant visuals, and a cast of thousands, this ornate spectacle represents the apex of cinematic pageantry by Hollywood's master of artifice.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65122 in DVD
• Brand: Image Entertainment
• Released on: 2001-05-08
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 104 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
The radiant Princess Sophia Frederica (Marlene Dietrich) gets taken to Russia, renamed Catherine, and married off to the Grand Duke Peter. Peter is "a royal half-wit" with all the physical (and intellectual) appeal of a halibut. Luckily, even before the wedding Sophia-Catherine-Marlene has already fallen in lust with the handsome, womanizing emissary Count Alexei, the first of many uniformed conquests. Melodrama doesn't come any more melo than this, and Dietrich doesn't really do much, except swivel those enormous searchlight eyes from one man to another, but this is one of her sexiest and most memorable roles. It culminates with her escaping from the Palace--and stealing the throne of Russia from the halibut (who by now is Peter III)--all dressed in Cossack uniform. The Empress, Peter's aunt, is played--somehow appropriately--with the accent and social grace of a New Jersey chambermaid. Great music, great lighting, and great camera work, all directed with an odd mixture of campy humor and glaring bombast by Josef von Sternberg. Scarlet Empress has (to quote the titles) "a supporting cast of 1,000 players"; at least 950 of them look exactly like Rasputin. They don't make movies like this anymore; what a pity. --Richard Farr

Customer Reviews

Great Film, Terrible Print...
Of all the Sternberg/Dietrich films this is my favourite, a perverse and decadent vision of history with performances to match the stunningly bizarre art direction.

I could hardly wait to open this DVD after I was soundly impressed by Criterion's Third Man disc with it's great print and oodles of extras...

Unfortunately this disc has proved the most disappointing DVD I have ever purchased. Alleged to be "A luminous transfer, with restored picture and sound" this only is the case if the restorers were trying to reproduce the standard of a third generation VHS tape. With countless missing frames and splices, frequent audio drops and sizzles and a picture grain which looks like you're watching the film through sand, this is not what I expect from Criterion.

Considering the only other Dietrich movie on DVD - the so-so Garden of Allah - is a gorgeous transfer at a bargain price, this is a huge let down.

Considering most film collectors purchase Criterion DVD's on the strengh of the label alone this is an outrage that they can release such a low quality disc with such a little amount of extra features to compensate...which was the least they could have done.

A great film...a lousy transfer.
After seeing this film On Turner Classic Movies, several months ago, I became a big fan of its grotesque imagery, and the mysterious, surreal, and almost comical, world it created for the viewer. I found it to be a strange and fascinating film. With that experience, I was more than anxious to get the DVD. So when I read the back of the case, where it said "Luminous transfer, with restored picture and sound", you can imagine how I was salivating, as I ripped the plastic off, and got it in my player. My wife and I prepared to see the magical results of digital technology.

Then I hit the PLAY button.

My disappointment was beyond words. What we saw was anything but "luminous". It was more like watching a colony of flesh-eating bacteria, wandering all round Marlene Dietrich's face, and a swarm of locusts chewing up the scenery. I kept waitng for everything to calm down, so we could really see the beauty of the film. Occasionally, that happened. But by and large, this was a big let-down.

I've seen excellent transfers before, and own them. "Grand Illusion" and "The Seven Samurai" are marvelous examples. But this was nowhere near those efforts. The specks and flecks were too distracting, to fully enjoy this masterpiece. And that's a shame, considering the other otherwise great reputation Criterion has had, in terms of image quality.

I'm a little confused about how one customer could say "...the print is stunning". (Maybe that person was "stunned" by how bad it looked.) I sympathize more with the reviewer who thought that Criterion should be held accountable for its mediocre duplication of this film, and the false advertising. You got it right! Five stars for the film, and the Robin Wood essay. One star for the transfer.

Is it or isn't it?
In a previous review I remarked on what a terrible print of the film was used for this DVD - GREAT FILM, terrible print.

Anyone who disagrees, or feels this may now be the best quality print on offer should take a look at the Martin Scorsese/BFI series "A Personal Journey Through American Movies". There you'll find a some gorgeous clips of the Scarlet Empress with sharp audio and virtually perfect picture (no horrible "dupe print" grain or frame damage like this DVD). The film simply shimers. Presumably this was a BFI print, but it may have been from Paramount - either way, a far better print exists and therefore I'm sad to say that this is proof that Criterion have rather short-changed the buying public this time around.
Still, it's better than not having it on DVD at all, isn't it?