The Scarlet Empress

1934

Action / Drama / History / Romance / War

9
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 86% · 29 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 85% · 1K ratings
IMDb Rating 7.5/10 10 7591 7.6K

russia based on novel or book royal family biography empress royalty

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Plot summary

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.

Director

Josef von Sternberg Photo
Josef von Sternberg

Top cast

Edward Van Sloan Photo
Edward Van Sloan as Herr Wagner
Marlene Dietrich Photo
Marlene Dietrich as Princess Sophia Frederica / Catherine II
Jane Darwell Photo
Jane Darwell as Miss Cardell, Sophia's Nurse
C. Aubrey Smith Photo
C. Aubrey Smith as Prince August
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU
858.05 MB
988*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles
23.976 fps
1 hr 44 min
Seeds 2
1.64 GB
1472*1072
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles
23.976 fps
1 hr 44 min
Seeds 11

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by blanche-2 6 / 10

Sumptuous

Perhaps I was simply not in the mood, but for me, The Scarlet Empress was one big, overblown von Sternberg production.Opulent, with amazing set pieces and costumes, the film stars, the great Marlene Dietrich as Catherine the great. Dietrich's own daughter, Maria Riva, plays Sophie, renamed Catherine, as a child.Sophie was 15 when she was sent to Russia to become the bride of Peter II and give Russia an heir to the throne. Peter was a half wit, and evidently their marriage was not consummated for several years.Sam Jaffe, the baby boomer Dr. Zorba Casey, is Peter, with a big idiotic smile. You can imagine how beautiful Sophie felt meeting this guy. Not only that, but having to deal with his dictatorial mother, played by Louise Dresser.Dietrich was 33 at the time of this film. In the beginning, she is wide-eyed and speaks in a near whisper. Later, with hairstyles, different makeup, and a mature attitude and voice, she really transforms into a sexual seductress. This is the Marlene we knew.However, other than the spectacle - and there was plenty - there isn't much to this film, the story told mostly with title cards.Of interest, the hunky Alexi was played by John Lodge, related to Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, ultimately entered politics.
Reviewed by bigticket-36199 8 / 10

There is no emperor. There is Marlene.

The Scarlet Empress is a historical romantic drama, loosely based on the life of Russian Empress Catherine the Great.Christian August, a prince from East Prussia, sends his daughter, Sophia Frederica, to Russia at the request of Empress Elizabeth, who wants her to marry her nephew, Grand Duke Peter. Sophia is escorted by the cunning Count Alexei, and during the journey she begins to suspect that her welcome won't be a fairy tale. Still, she resolves to play the part of the innocent and obedient bride before the Empress. Elizabeth changes her name to Catherine and demands that the new wife bear a male heir to the throne. This proves to be a near-impossible task, as her husband spends his time with his mistress, his soldiers, or his toys...Director Josef von Sternberg employs a Gothic visual style to heighten psychological tension, plunging us into a world of obsessive, repressive games, woven into a series of uneven but gripping episodes. He uses light sparingly-just enough for a candle flame to reveal a lurking shadow. Statues of saints in agony and frozen, screaming figures perfectly mirror the behavior of the characters, should they ever remove their noble masks and show their true selves.The protagonist's transformation is so explosive that the audience may struggle to believe it-yet at that very moment, the director lays down his erotic cards and fully exposes the political mechanisms of control, making them both effective and ironic. The costumes are carefully designed, visually tracing the contrast between darkness and light. The dialogue is sharp, ambiguous, and flirtatious-just like the gendered power play simmering beneath the political surface.This is not an overtly feminist story, but one devoted to the inner metamorphosis of a woman discovering power within a cruel and dangerous system.Marlene Dietrich plays Catherine as both fire and ice-sensual and cold, naïve and dangerous-all at once. Her journey is thorny, erotic, and commanding: from fragile princess to a woman who realizes where real power lies in the halls of empire. In her gaze lie seductions, conspiracies, and revolutions.Sam Jaffe's Peter III is portrayed as a degenerate idiot and a misogynist whose every move exudes discomfort and instability. He symbolizes a world with no future. Louise Dresser delivers a solid performance as Empress Elizabeth, a woman who believes she holds the reins of political power. John Lodge (Count Alexei) and Gavin Gordon (Captain Orlov) serve as twin mirrors of Catherine's seductive strategies and shifting alliances.The Scarlet Empress is not a traditional historical romance. It is a film about power-concealed behind the gaze of a woman who, while setting fire to the old empire, begins building a new one. As she herself says: "I possess a weapon far more powerful than any political machine."
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