Marlene (1984) on Netflix
NR19841h 34mBiographyDocumentary
Marlene Dietrich, a screen diva who lives as a recluse in a Paris apartment, agrees to a television documentary about her career. She will talk, but her face is never photographed.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb7.6/10893 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes100%
Plot summary
By the late 1970s Marlene Dietrich rarely left her apartment in Paris, and money troubles led her to plan a television documentary about her own work. Her first choice to direct it, a friend, was unavailable, and she said yes to a filmmaker who spoke both German and English. She signed for forty hours of interviews. In them she frequently brushes aside his questions, remarks acidly on books about her career, and pushes back when he tries to criticize people she knew. She speaks about stardom and about what is real and what is an illusion. Because she does not wish to be photographed, the film is built from her voice, film clips, stills and newsreel footage.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Marlene (1984)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Marlene Dietrich was rankled by the raw and vulnerable portrayal of her in Marlene, which she had thought would be an ordinary documentary, and did not speak to director Maximilian Schell for a year; after the film was nominated for an Academy Award, she reconciled with him.
- Because Marlene Dietrich did not wish to be photographed, the film Marlene is built from her audio commentary over visuals taken from clips and stills of her films and newsreel footage.
- In 1982 Dietrich agreed to take part in what she intended to be a television documentary, but director Maximilian Schell had other ideas and their sessions turned into a feature film instead.
- Dietrich was contracted for "40 hours of interviews" with Schell, a figure she reminds him of during one of their exchanges in the film.
