Every frame, with Marlene Dietrich in it, is a masterpiece of lights and shadows. The artistic marriage of Dietrich and his director Josef Von Sternberg is all consuming and therefore we're trapped, happily so. Look at what the camera does with Dietrich's face when she delivers the iconic line: "It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lilly" I had to rewind immediately and see the moment again, one, two, three times. Dietrich is dressed, lit and photographed like a goddess, the human kind. I wonder if we're ever going to see the likes of her, the likes of them, ever again.
Review of Shanghai Express
