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Information

A.k.a.
The Blue Angel
Year
1930
Runtime
104 min.
Director
Josef von Sternberg
Genres
Drama, Music
Rating *
7.7
Votes *
9,891
Checks
4,324
Favs
380
Dislikes
25
Favs/checks
8.8% (1:11)
Favs/dislikes
15:1
* View IMDb information

Top comments

  1. Siskoid's avatar

    Siskoid

    There's a strong bird motif set up early in The Blue Angel - birds in a cage stop singing and die, and all that - but the twist is that Marlene Dietrich's burlesque singer isn't the bird in question. Rather, it's the stuffy moralistic professor who falls for her. As we track his degradation and loss of dignity, he will be forced to play the chicken for the cabaret players as well. Dietrich's character is mercurial and cruel, and perhaps a little unknowable. We're squarely with Emil Jannings' Professor Rath, but he's not necessarily sympathetic. Only in the way that fools are. What's the message? That show folk are a dangerous lot? That the women you are warned away from really are a menace to morals, enlightenment and the Patriarchy? Or should we go deeper to see Rath's foolishness for what it is - hubris. The Blue Angel is a tragedy in the classical sense where one man's self-importance, perhaps his notion that he can "save" the woman he loves, or that he can resist the corruptive influence of the world she lives in, is what draws him into the abyss. You can tell this is an early sound film because it tries to use sound to it advantage. I don't think the musical numbers are well served by the recording technology of the day, but the demented bird cries of the climax are well worth it. 5 years 1 month ago
  2. abmannetje's avatar

    abmannetje

    It was good to see a very old movie with this kind of quality.
    But you should be in the correct mood to see this. Take your time.
    11 years 4 months ago
  3. Dieguito's avatar

    Dieguito

    Brilliant masterpiece. Emil Jannings performance is incredible. 12 years 1 month ago
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  1. campion and dwilkin checked this movie 2 days 6 hours ago
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In 18 official lists

  1. This movie ranks #4 in Stanley Kubrick, Cinephile
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    Stanley Kubrick, Cinephi…

    4
  2. This movie ranks #7 in Kinemathekverbund's The 100 Most Important German Films
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    Kinemathekverbund's The …

    7
  3. This movie ranks #8 in Taschen's 100 All-Time Favorite Movies
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    Taschen's 100 All-Time F…

    8
  4. This movie ranks #27 in iCheckMovies's 1930s Top 100
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    iCheckMovies's 1930s Top…

    27
  5. This movie ranks #45 in IMDb's Music Top 50
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    IMDb's Music Top 50

    45
  6. This movie ranks #50 in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
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    50
  7. This movie ranks #68 in BFI's 360 Classic Feature Films Project
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    BFI's 360 Classic Featur…

    68
  8. This movie ranks #73 in Amos Vogel's Film as a Subversive Art
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    Amos Vogel's Film as a S…

    73
  9. This movie ranks #79 in Harvard's Suggested Film Viewing: Narrative Films
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    Harvard's Suggested Film…

    79
  10. This movie ranks #89 in David Thomson's Have You Seen?
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    89
  11. This movie ranks #102 in Jonathan Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema
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    Jonathan Rosenbaum's Ess…

    102
  12. This movie ranks #108 in The Guardian's 1000 Films to See Before You Die
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    The Guardian's 1000 Film…

    108
  13. This movie ranks #112 in Time Out's 1000 Films to Change Your Life
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    Time Out's 1000 Films to…

    112
  14. This movie ranks #130 in Halliwell's Top 1000: The Ultimate Movie Countdown
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    Halliwell's Top 1000: Th…

    130
  15. This movie ranks #180 in Eureka!'s The Masters of Cinema Series
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    Eureka!'s The Masters of…

    180
  16. This movie ranks #404 in UNESCO's Memory of the World
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    UNESCO's Memory of the W…

    404
  17. This movie ranks #538 in Sight & Sound's The Greatest Films of All Time
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    Sight & Sound's The Grea…

    538
  18. This movie ranks #562 in TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest Films
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    TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest F…

    562
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