Those reviewers who have complained that this movie lacks plausibility or has problems of construction are missing the point. This is a wonderfully camp romance, with plenty of Play, gypsies! Dance, gypsies! music, that both sends up exotic love stories and celebrates them. Buttoned-up Ray Milland makes an amusing foil for a Dietrich with black hair, tattered scarves, and tons of jewelry. The character's eagerness to feed Milland and look after him more closely resembles the good German hausfrau Dietrich was off the set than her mannered vamp roles. Censorship being in force, it's made clear that they share a caravan on platonic terms only, with Milland fighting off Dietrich's advances with a determination remarkable for a heterosexual bachelor who might be killed any day. His only excuse is that she smells, so perhaps a stuffy, fastidious Englishman might indeed be put off.

In the small role of Milland's young companion on his secret mission, Bruce Lester adds a note of camp of a different kind. We are told at the beginning that he hero-worships Milland, and indeed he rather fawns on him. When, after they are separated, he meets Milland, now transformed into a brown-skinned gypsy with a shirt open to the waist, his glowing appreciation of the disguise even further suggests that not only Dietrich is romantically infatuated with Milland.

Despite the wonderfully improbable characters and sequence of events, the growing love of Milland for Dietrich and his acceptance of the non-rational aspects of life is rather touching. And when, on their last night alone before he escapes, he says that each of them now contain half of the other, the two have become one, and then darkness falls, I think we can assume that the censor decided to give them a break! One goof--at the beginning, Milland, who is supposed to be English, refers to a lieutenant, using the American pronunciation. (The English say "leftenant.") Since Milland was British, he must have been saying it that way because the American movie-makers feared that American audiences would be distracted and confused by the British style.

Marlene Dietrich plays an European Gypsy woman in Pre-World War II Europe. Ray Milland played the British officer Denistoun who is on a mission. Ray Milland and Marlene Dietrich are excellent, entertaining, and enjoyable in the film. The story is fine and could have used more work but the Milland's British gentleman turned Gypsy in order to escape the Nazis does a fantastic job. It's interesting to see a character like Denistoun to transform into a Gypsy. The ending is worth watching the film. The film doesn't address the Nazi war crimes. European Gypsies were also targeted and persecuted by the Nazis during World War II. Still, this film is entertaining to watch and suspenseful. The cast is first rate in the Hollywood studio system factory where films were made faster even with mediocre scripts. Still, this film is one of my favorites with Marlene Dietrich.

The film opens in a stuffy British men's club full of gents in leather chairs smoking cigars. This is Denistoun's world. A messenger delivers a small box to him which he opens to find a pair of gold earrings. The site of the earrings sets off a reminiscence about the time he spent in the company of gypsies. The rest of the film is flashback.

Golden Earrings has been a long time favorite of mine and is probably the most romantic movie I know. Dietrich plays against her usual type. Here she's dark-haired, earthy and not in the least bit mysterious. Instead of a femme fatale, she'a tower of strength and energetically sets out to use all her resources to help Denistoun survive and reach his goal. To make sure that he's a really convincing gypsy, she pierces his ears and has him wear her dead lover's golden earrings. With his clothes and some grease, she transforms him from an effete British gentleman into a wild and sexy looking man.

When I was growing up I used to hear the song "Golden Earrings" which is sung in the film. I think the tune is hummed a little by Dietrich. /There's a story the gypsies know is true /That when your love wears golden earrings /She belongs to you.