The Last Command (1928)

Director:

Josef von Sternberg

Writers:

Lajos Biró (story)
John F. Goodrich (writer)

Release Date:

24 September 1928 (Finland)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

EMIL JANNINGS -- World's finest dramatic actor in a brilliant successor to "The Way of all Flesh" -- and "Variety." You'll be amazed with Janning's tremendous role of the mighty general!...with men...women...a whole nation at his feet! Through flaming love...adoration...hate! To...! The most terrific climax the screen has ever known!

Plot:

A decorated, aristocratic Czarist General is reduced to penury after the collapse of Imperial Russia...

Plot Keywords:

Russian Revolution | Film Extra | Film Industry | Revenge | Humiliation

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Emil Jannings	...	Gen. Dolgorucki / Grand Duke Sergius Alexander
Evelyn Brent	...	Natalie Dabrova
William Powell	...	Lev Andreyev
Jack Raymond	...	Assistant director
Nicholas Soussanin	...	The adjutant
Michael Visaroff	...	Serge (the valet)
Fritz Feld	...	A revolutionist

Runtime:

Germany:85 min | USA:88 min

Country:

USA

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Based on the life of General Lodijensky, a former general in the Russian army of Czar Nicholas, who fled Russia after the 1917 Communist revolution and wound up in Hollywood, where he worked for a while as a movie extra.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Cinema Europe: The Other Hollywood" (1995)

One of History's Great Might-Have-Beens

Americans know something about the history of Russia as Tsarist Empire, Soviet Union, and (now) struggling modern democracy. But we don't know everything. We barely understand the blows to the Russian psyche that World War I brought - they were as harsh as those brought to Germany by it's defeat in the same war.

For defeated Russia was....and by true treachery. German inspired treachery. At the start of World War I spy networks weakened most of the states in middle Europe. Austria Hungary's head of counter-intelligence, Colonel Alfred Redl, was first blackmailed and then bribed into turning over secrets to the Russian military regarding the armies of the dual monarchy. Although exposed and forced to commit suicide in 1913, Redl had done serious damage, and Austria was nearly defeated by Russia. But Russia's Commander in Chief, Marshall Sukhomlinov, was undoing the success of the espionage wing by selling out Russian military secrets to Wilhelmine Germany (he needed money to placate his insatiably greedy but gorgeous wife). And German secrets were being carefully revealed by British agents like Sidney Reilly. It would be terribly funny, but the deaths of millions of men would be due to the same idiots who allowed so much corruption and incompetence in the armies and governments of Europe. When people talk of the more civilized aura of the Pre-1914 Europe - "The Proud Tower" of Barbara Tuchman's history - they are overlooking the very unattractive, corrupt, inequal, racist undertones of it.

Russia, due in part to Sukhomlinov's treason, was weakened when the war began, but bravely pushed forward to show it's ally France that it was fully willing to sacrifice for their alliance. Unfortunately the two commanders of the first Russian advance, Rennenkampf and Samsonov, were personal enemies and incompetents. They lost the battle of Tannenburg to Hindenburg and Ludendorff, thus allowing the best battlefield team of the war to appear (only it was a German team). To add to the huge loss of thousands of Russian troops in East Prussian swamps, Samsonov road off and committed suicide. It seemed to summarize what to expect of Russian military leadership in World War I.

There was one exception. In 1916 General Alexei Brusilov managed to deliver a remarkably effective campaign in Hungary against Austria, almost knocking it out of the war. Unfortunately, Rumania saw an opportunity for quick loot and declared war on Austria and Germany. Brusilov had to slow down his offense when only two thirds done, in order to give the new ally assistance.

It enabled the Germans to beat back the offensive, and to conquer Rumania.

Brusilov though was a good officer (he survived the Revolution by joining it, rising in the Red Army, and dying in 1926 while still a high ranking general). Most Russian General were not that good, and not that lucky. An example of an unlucky one was General L.G. Kornilov, an efficient general who did not like the moderate Kerensky government (that briefly preceded Lenin's). In the summer of 1917 Kornilov attempted a coup d 'etat. He was narrowly stopped. Later he would lead "White" Russian armies against Lenin and Trotsky's forces, but would die in battle.

I suspect that when Josef von Sternberg's script writers created the character of Grand Duke Sergius Alexander in THE LAST COMMAND, they had several of these men in mind. Like Kornilov, Sergius has the ability and authority to attempt to keep the unhappy army in check, and possibly (like Brusilov) the brilliance to win the battle. But he can't stop the tide of history, as there are traitors around him, such as his unpleasant little thief of a valet, as well as the woman he loves (Evelyn Brent). He watches helplessly while his staff of officers are murdered by mutinous, revolutionary soldiers. He watches as he is degraded by the men he lorded it over. But if he lorded it over them he also truly cared for them. Von Sternberg keeps reminding us that Sergius understands what his soldiers stand for - they are the only hope for Russia. Witness that in the film when Sergius gets a telephone message from the Tsar (a double for Nicholas II does appear in one scene to review the troops). Sergius is asked by Nicholas to arrange for some of the men to charge a fake machine gun nest for the edification of Nicholas and his court. Sergius sternly rebukes the Tsar that his men are not there for entertainment.

Brent understands Sergius. She initially is there to spy on him and help undermine him, but she falls for him due to his patriotism and basic decency. And she also saves him, pretending to execute him, but actually throwing him safely off the madly careening train they are on. Symbolic of the Revolutionary Russia that overthrows Sergius, the train falls off a bridge into an icy river, killing everyone (including Brent) aboard her. But Sergius sees this, and it helps rob him of his last shreds of sanity.

In real history the Germans allowed Lenin and the Bolsheviks back into Russia (they were in Switzerland), and they overthrew the Kerensky government. Lenin and Trotsky tried to keep the army from collapse, but it was weakened by years of corruption and mismanagement. In 1918 the Germans won half of World War I, when they forced Lenin and Trotsky to sign the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. It gave up huge amounts of Russian territory in eastern Europe, and independence to Poland, the Unkraine, Finland, the Baltic States. It was a humiliating treaty, even though Lenin and Trotsky realized that it was only a temporary set-back (Germany had to beat France and Britain quickly to make it permanent, before tens of thousands of American troops arrived to make German victory impossible). As we know, Ludendorff's western front offensive certainly was effective, but it petered out by the summer of 1918, and American troop strength cracked the German forces -leading to German defeat in November 1918. Lenin and Trotsky had guessed correctly.

Unfortunately, even with the defeat of Germany the treaty could not be undone. Trotsky (with the help of Brusilov) rebuilt the Russian army into the modern Soviet army, but he could not win back Poland, Finland, and the Baltic States. Stalin would get back the Baltic states and Poland in World War II, although he allowed Polish "independence" after that war was over. Only the Ukraine was reconquered by the new Soviet army in 1921. Now all of them are fully independent of Russia - but only since the late 1980s.

Could it have been avoided - could Russia have not fallen under the terror of the Bolsheviks, and the humiliation of Brest-Litovsk. It's doubtful. Churchill had tried in World War I to save Russia with his Dardanelles Campaign, and it failed. Russia too isolated, backward, corrupt...it just should not have allowed itself to be pulled into the war.

Von Sternberg's movie suggests that a commander like Sergius (Kornikov?) might have made a difference, if he had instilled his patriotism into his men. It's nice to think so, but no Russian commander ever had that kind of affection from the general troops. But the film ends with Sergius, goaded into a final fury by a malicious enemy now a director (William Powell), gets the chance to show on the Hollywood set what he might have done. It only provokes a stroke that kills him. However, his last sacrifice does move his old enemy Powell. "Did we win?", the dying Sergius asks. "Yes," lies Powell, "We won."