Blonde Venus

Watch: Blonde Venus

Unrated

9/23/19321h 33m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ What could she do but flee from love? She loved two men at once! ~

Overview:

In an effort to be able to afford expensive treatment for her gravely ill American husband, a retired German entertainer returns to the cabaret as Blonde Venus and catches the eye of a wealthy politician.

Director:

Josef von Sternberg

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Key words:

prostitute
love triangle
germany
nightclub
deceived husband
radium
romance
chemist
pre-code
nightclub singer
motherhood
nightclub entertainer
mother child separation
cabaret singer
kept woman
fallen woman
adulterous wife
wife leaves husband
sick husband

Cast

Marlene Dietrich

~ as ~

Helen Faraday, aka Helen Jones

Herbert Marshall

~ as ~

Edward 'Ned' Faraday

Cary Grant

~ as ~

Nick Townsend

Dickie Moore

~ as ~

Johnny Faraday

Gene Morgan

~ as ~

Ben Smith

Rita La Roy

~ as ~

'Taxi Belle' Hooper

Robert Emmett O'Connor

~ as ~

Dan O'Connor

Sidney Toler

~ as ~

Detective Wilson

Morgan Wallace

~ as ~

Dr. Pierce

Al Bridge

~ as ~

Bouncer (uncredited)

View full cast & crew

Reviews (2)

t
talisencrw
Written 9 year(s) ago
9
It's mesmerizing to watch von Sternberg and Dietrich at work in this melodrama, and fun to watch both her and Cary Grant in early roles before they became household names and cinematic legends. One can't help but sense the parallel between this story (Helen giving up her family to be a star) and her real life, as von Sternberg told her to give up her family and life in Germany as he would take her to America and make her a star.
CinemaSerf
Written 3 year(s) ago
7
Definitely one of Marlene Dietrich's more sensitive and powerful - though not sentimental - performances as a wife and mother whose husband (Herbert Marshall) becomes ill with Radium poisoning. Faced with mounting bills for his expensive treatment in Germany, she returns to her previous work as a cabaret singer and is soon involved with millionaire "Nick Townsend" (Cary Grant). Marshall is heartbroken to discover her infidelity and there ensues a sort of cat-and-mouse game as she and her son flee and try to stay one step ahead of her chasing husband and authorities. The three principals deliver strong performances and who will ever forget "Hot Voodoo" performed in the gorilla costume? The son (Dickie Moore) is quite cute and albeit briefly, contributes to the tensions later in the film quite convincingly. Allegedly, the censors had a field day with this but what is left still flows well under Von Sternberg's able, if not exactly flamboyant, direction.