Really smashing far eastern train romance-adventure whose romantic half is clobbered and left for dead by the awful, tedious, entirely sour character portrayed by Clive Brook.
Sadly, the entire story hinges upon the tumultuous affair between he and Dietrich's "Shanghai Lily." The artifice of their relationship sinks what should have been a classic film, as it is impossible to believe that the high living 'coaster' Shanghai Lily would ever love the pompous stuffed shirt Captain Donald Harvey. (Even if she was once a more proper lady named Madeline!)
And it's a shame, because the movie is loaded with great photography, wonderfully detailed shots of the train chugging through "China," an excellent (if entirely stereotyped) cast, and a crisp story and direction.
Dietrich and Anna May Wong (as Hui Fei) steal one wonderful shot after another, Dietrich with her fetching, clipped English wafting through billowing cigarette smoke and the plumage of her ornate hats; Wong with her cool humored temperament and truly striking exotic beauty.
The dialogue is a occasionally dated (and be forewarned, as racist/sexist as you might expect for the period) but in the hands of Dietrich and Anna May Wong, it's difficult to find much fault with the somewhat trite lines they speak.
So mind your way through the dense fields of hokum, and see the film for the ravishing Dietrich and Wong..and oh, yes..the rest of the scenery!
Sadly, the entire story hinges upon the tumultuous affair between he and Dietrich's "Shanghai Lily." The artifice of their relationship sinks what should have been a classic film, as it is impossible to believe that the high living 'coaster' Shanghai Lily would ever love the pompous stuffed shirt Captain Donald Harvey. (Even if she was once a more proper lady named Madeline!)
And it's a shame, because the movie is loaded with great photography, wonderfully detailed shots of the train chugging through "China," an excellent (if entirely stereotyped) cast, and a crisp story and direction.
Dietrich and Anna May Wong (as Hui Fei) steal one wonderful shot after another, Dietrich with her fetching, clipped English wafting through billowing cigarette smoke and the plumage of her ornate hats; Wong with her cool humored temperament and truly striking exotic beauty.
The dialogue is a occasionally dated (and be forewarned, as racist/sexist as you might expect for the period) but in the hands of Dietrich and Anna May Wong, it's difficult to find much fault with the somewhat trite lines they speak.
So mind your way through the dense fields of hokum, and see the film for the ravishing Dietrich and Wong..and oh, yes..the rest of the scenery!