The Garden of Allah (1936)

Director:

Richard Boleslawski

Writers:

Robert Hichens (novel)
W.P. Lipscomb (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

19 November 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

They loved each other with the fierceness of those who have been denied love!

Plot:

The star-crossed desert romance of a cloistered woman and a renegade monk.

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Monk | Monastery | Oasis | Secret

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win

Cast

Marlene Dietrich	...	Domini Enfilden
Charles Boyer	...	Boris Androvsky
Basil Rathbone	...	Count Ferdinand Anteoni
C. Aubrey Smith	...	Father J. Roubier
Joseph Schildkraut	...	Batouch
John Carradine	...	Sand diviner
Alan Marshal	...	Capt. De Trevignac
Lucile Watson	...	Mother Superior Josephine
Henry Brandon	...	Hadj
Tilly Losch	...	Irena

Runtime:

79 min | West Germany:75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor High Fidelity System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #2405)

Filming Locations:

Buttercup Dunes, Imperial County, California, USA

Company:

Selznick International Pictures

Trivia:

This is the movie that Cyndi Lauper is watching at the beginning of the video for "Time After Time".

Quotes:

Boris Androvsky: There are things in a man's life it's best to forget. There are dark places which should be left dark.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind (1988) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Ave Maria, Op.52 No.6

The Bottomless Trunk of Clothes!

Marlene Dietrich and Charles Boyer give solid performances in this beautiful but empty film. The irony is that Dietrich plays a woman with a beautiful but empty life. Truly gorgeous cinematography and sets, and yes Dietrich's bottomless trunk of clothes are also fabulous. She look great; Boyer looks young and trim.

Story of a woman seeking meaning and an ex-priest seeking life seems pretty stale, but set against such unreal sets and skies it somehow works, given the two stars, the terrific score by Max Steiner, and a good supporting cast. The film runs like 76 minutes and seems badly edited, plus certain characters just appear or disappear.

Joseph Schildkraut is funny as the Arab guide, C. Aubrey Smith is the old priest, Lucile Watson the mother superior, Tilly Losch the dancer, John Carradine the diviner, and Basil Rathbone plays.... well I'm not sure. He just rides in from the desert and spoils everything! As others have noted, John Gilbert was slated to star with Dietrich. I can't help but think he would have been wonderful. The role of world-weary Boris would have suited the great Gilbert quite well. And after the success of Queen Christina (with Garbo), his career might have gotten back on track.

I can't think of any other 30s film Dietrich did in color. She looks great and wears some terrific clothes. My favorite is the Valentino as The Shiek-like outfit she wears by the pool.

Certainly worth a look for the lush sets and color and the two great stars.