Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Josephina Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

wilderthanbilly I had read up on this movie before watching it. A lot of people said it was boring and I have to agree with them. I really enjoyed the colouring and even the title of the film. Really I should be giving this film a 3/10. But I'm going to do that. I watched this movie only because Boyer and Dietrich were in it. I'd give this movie a 10/10 solely for Charles Boyer's face because it was a masterpiece in this film. We've always been used to the black and white Boyer but this film truly brings out the fullness of his face. The tortured, painful and sometimes almost pouty made his face even better. So literally watch it for its historical significance and Boyers gorgeous face. Oh yeah, and Marlene was beautiful, as always.

earlytalkie This film, based on an old novel and several silent treatments is dramatically pretty good, with Charles Boyer and Marlene Dietrich meeting and romancing in the desert. Tilly Losch's exotic dance is but one visual highlight in what has to be one of the most gorgeous pictures of the 1930s. The Technicolor photography at this early date is beautiful to behold and the print on the DVD has been astonishingly well preserved. What a revelation this must have been to audiences in 1936. As one of the first three-color Technicolor features, the contrast between this and the old two-color systems gives a vivid life-likeness to experiencing this film. A must for students of early color.

tentender As a great admirer of Marlene Dietrich, I had to (finally) watch this very, very dull picture. It is Miss Dietrich's first color film, and the world's most beautiful blond is a redhead! Bad start. The story is a tremendous bore, involving a subject which itself bores bores me stiff: religious guilt. (Who needs it???) Suffice it to say, perhaps, that of all Dietrich's films (and I have seen most, including "Pittsburgh") this is the only one where even her performance is barely worth watching. The color photography is OK (this is a very early Technicolor release), but to no purpose. Ridiculous casting: C. Aubrey Smith, Basil Rathbone (enough said?). The only thing of any interest at all is John Carradine's outlandish caricature of a performance as "The Sand Diviner," who foretells all that will happen. The supposed "happy ending" is one of the most depressing ever conceived. Yet another example of David O. Selznick's highly inflated reputation (did he ever make a really good film? -- other than That One?) And, for one final annoyance, the soundtrack of the MGM DVD is a mess, with volume levels seemingly randomized. Highly unrecommended.

movingpicturegal Gorgeous Techicolor production telling the unusual tale of the romance between a woman of strong religious faith and a Trappist monk who has left his monastery, breaking his vows. The film opens at a convent in Europe, where a former student prays - a lonely beauty in black named Domini (Marlene Dietrich). She is advised by the Mother Superior to go to the desert and "find herself", and lose her grief over her father who has recently died. In the train car on the way into the Sahara she sits opposite a very, very troubled man (Charles Boyer) - our former monk. She's soon at a hotel near a palm-treed oasis where she again sees our mysterious troubled man as he is stumped over what to do when confronted by a very seductive dancing girl. Domini becomes friends with him, though knows nothing of his past - romance soon to follow.This film is sentimental, melodramatic, and different (in a way, almost surreal and even a bit campy) - I found it to be quite fun and entertaining. The photography in this is really interesting - it is full of extreme facial close-ups and beautiful color shots of caravans of horses crossing the desert, silhouetted figures against a sunset sky. Marlene Dietrich gives a nicely done, though restrained, performance here and looks gorgeous. Charles Boyer - not usually one of my favorites - is actually pretty good in this, I think the part sort of suits him and he looks quite young and handsome too. Basil Rathbone is fine here, except given very little to do. Another great orchestral score by Max Steiner helps keep the drama rolling - all in all, a very enjoyable film.