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The Scarlet Empress

  • Dir: Josef von Sternberg

  • USA, 1934, 105 minmins, DCP

  • Cast: Marlene Dietrich, John Lodge, Sam Jaffe

A palace of gigantic grotesque gargoyles; skeleton presiding over the banquet table; ominous shadows under the flickerings of candles… in a hyperrealist atmosphere of nightmare, an ostensibly naïve German princess who fails to find love in her halfwit husband turns herself into the all-powerful Empress of Russia, Catherine the Great. Painted as an adventuress coated in luxurious furs, Dietrich transforms her sexuality into a political weapon, toning her enigma of innocence and brutality in Sternberg’s visual extravaganza mixing legend, romance and fairytale.

USA National Board of Review’s Top Ten

    Screening:

    In-theatre Screening

    Remarks

    1. Screenings at ALL commercial cinemas : tickets are available at URBTIX till 5pm one day before respective screening, after which tickets will be available only at the box office of the respective venue on the day of screening, subject to availability.

    2. Screenings at HK Arts Centre and M+ Cinema : tickets are available at URBTIX outlets until one hour before the screening, after which tickets are available at URBTIX website and mobile app. On-the-day tickets will also be available at the Self-service Ticketing Kiosk of the respective venue, subject to availability.

    3. Unless otherwise stated, all films (except English-speaking films) are subtitled in English.

    4. While it is the HKIFFS’s policy to secure the best possible print of the original version for all its screenings, the HKIFFS appreciates its patrons’ understanding on occasions when less than perfect screening copies are screened.