Shanghai Express (1931-1932)

The primary appeal of Shanghai Express, nominated for Best Picture of 1931-1932, is Marlene Dietrich, of course. Was there ever a more glamorous actress than Dietrich? Here, as the notorious Shanghai Lily, she wears some of the most fabulous gowns ever captured on film. It's tough to take your eyes off her when she boards the train in a gown capped by long black feathers. Later she's a vision in fur. It's really quite astonishing to think any woman would have gone to such lengths to dress this way for a train ride, even in the 1930s, but who cares so long as it adds to the Dietrich legend?

The story is simple, really. Passengers board a train in Peking during a civil war in China. Among the passengers is an Army doctor, played by the suave Clive Brook, who last saw Lily about five years earlier, when she was known as Magdalen. As she puts it, however, "It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily." Great line. The rest of the passengers debate the merits of having such a woman on board--well, such women, since Anna May Wong is along for the ride as Hui Fei, another woman of questionable morals.

The train is stopped first by government troops, who take a rebel spy off the train. Then it is stopped again, this time by rebels, who force each of the passengers (the main ones, anyway) to undergo questioning. These rebels are led by one of the men who has been on the train all along, Henry Chang, played by the Swedish Warner Oland several years before he gained greater fame as the movies' Charlie Chan. Brook's Doc Harvey is taken hostage, and Shanghai Lily makes a deal to save him that causes her to lose Harvey's trust.

This is a tightly paced film; it moves as swiftly as the train itself does at times. It's beautifully photographed, certainly deserving of its Oscar for Best Cinematography. It's an early classic of the sound era, with some memorable supporting characters and clever wordplay. However, it's Dietrich who will have your attention from the moment that she appears on the screen. Watch and be amazed.