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The Blue Angel

Original title: Der blaue Engel
  • 19301930
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 44m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
15K
YOUR RATING
Marlene Dietrich and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
Trailer 1
Play trailer1:34
1 Video
99+ Photos
DramaMusic
An elderly professor's ordered life spins dangerously out of control when he falls for a nightclub singer.An elderly professor's ordered life spins dangerously out of control when he falls for a nightclub singer.An elderly professor's ordered life spins dangerously out of control when he falls for a nightclub singer.
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
15K
YOUR RATING
    • Josef von Sternberg
  • Writers
    • Heinrich Mann(adapted from a novel by)
    • Carl Zuckmayer
    • Karl Vollmöller
  • Stars
    • Emil Jannings
    • Marlene Dietrich
    • Kurt Gerron
    • Josef von Sternberg
  • Writers
    • Heinrich Mann(adapted from a novel by)
    • Carl Zuckmayer
    • Karl Vollmöller
  • Stars
    • Emil Jannings
    • Marlene Dietrich
    • Kurt Gerron
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 117User reviews
    • 96Critic reviews
    • 88Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    The Blue Angel
    Trailer 1:34
    Watch The Blue Angel

    Photos156

    Marlene Dietrich and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Marlene Dietrich and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Wilhelm Diegelmann and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Marlene Dietrich, Hans Albers, and Rosa Valetti in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Kurt Gerron and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Carl Balhaus, Emil Jannings, and Roland Varno in The Blue Angel (1930)
    Gerhard Bienert, Wilhelm Diegelmann, and Emil Jannings in The Blue Angel (1930)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Emil Jannings
    Emil Jannings
    • Professor Immanuel Rath
    Marlene Dietrich
    Marlene Dietrich
    • Lola Lola
    Kurt Gerron
    Kurt Gerron
    • Kiepert, Zauberkünstler
    Rosa Valetti
    Rosa Valetti
    • Guste, seine Frau
    Hans Albers
    Hans Albers
    • Mazeppa
    Reinhold Bernt
    • Der Clown
    Eduard von Winterstein
    Eduard von Winterstein
    • Der Schuldirektor
    • (as Eduard V. Winterstein)
    Hans Roth
    • Der Pedell
    Rolf Müller
    • Angst
    Roland Varno
    Roland Varno
    • Lohmann
    • (as Rolant Varno)
    Carl Balhaus
    • Ertzum
    • (as Karl Balhaus)
    Robert Klein-Lörk
    • Goldstaub
    Károly Huszár
    Károly Huszár
    • Der Wirt
    • (as Karl Huszar-Puffy)
    Wilhelm Diegelmann
    Wilhelm Diegelmann
    • Der Kapitän
    Gerhard Bienert
    Gerhard Bienert
    • Der Polizist
    Ilse Fürstenberg
    • Raths Wirtschafterin
    Die Weintraub Syncopators
    • Group Cast Performers
    • (as The Weintraub Syncopators)
    Friedrich Hollaender
    Friedrich Hollaender
    • Pianist
    • (uncredited)
      • Josef von Sternberg
    • Writers
      • Heinrich Mann(adapted from a novel by)
      • Carl Zuckmayer
      • Karl Vollmöller
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      There are various accounts of why Marlene Dietrich was cast as Lola Lola, but the one given by director Josef von Sternberg in his autobiography is that Dietrich came to test for the film with a bored, world-weary attitude because she was convinced she wasn't going to get the role and was merely going through the motions - and Sternberg hired her because that world-weary attitude was precisely what he wanted for the character.
    • Goofs
      When the professor returns to his class and the boys burst out in uproar, the drawing on the blackboard shows three lines with Lola's name. The director, drawn by the noise, enters the class and now there are only two lines. After the class is dismissed, the third line has returned.
    • Quotes

      [singing]

      Lola Lola: Falling in love again, never wanted to. What's a girl to do? I can't help it. What choice do I have? That's the way I'm made. Love is all I know, I can't help it. Men swarm around me like moths 'round a flame. And if their wings are singed, surely I can't be blamed.

    • Alternate versions
      Simultaneously shot in two versions (English and German) with the same cast; the German (with English subtitles) version is more popular because of the heavy German accents of the cast in the English language version. English lyrics for the songs were written by Sam Lerner.
    • Connections
      Edited into The Double-Headed Eagle: Hitler's Rise to Power 1918-1933 (1973)
    • Soundtracks
      Ich bin von Kopf bis Fuß auf Liebe eingestellt
      (uncredited)

      Written by Friedrich Hollaender

      Performed by Marlene Dietrich

    User reviews117

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Descent Into Hell
    I think this is more a commentary on the human condition than it is a movie review. von Sternberg presents Professor Rath as pompous, rather inflexible and naive, and then reduces him gradually to a pitiful, self-debasing wretch - much like Tyrone Power's character in "Nightmare Alley". Rath, appears to me, not so much the victim as a drunken jaywalker who wanders out into traffic and is totally shocked when he is hit by a truck. Emil Jannings, without doubt, delivers everything that von Sternberg could have asked for.

    I have never been a big Marlene Dietrich fan, but I have to admit that, in this early effort, her utter sexuality and the casual way she dispenses it is hypnotic. Her character is also complex. Between her first encounter with Rath and those final scenes, her attitude toward him changes from amusement and ridicule to concern, pity, and even affection. His return to his home town and his descent into total degradation is painful to watch, yet she chooses this opportunity to humiliate him even further by offering herself to Mazeppa while he watches. I'm baffled.

    The corruption and hopelessness of the German cafe circuit is a perfect backdrop for this study of the human condition. When one reaches their absolute nadir - like Rath - there are few choices left. Suicide, violent hostility, or if you are lucky - the determination and will to climb out of the cesspool. Rath was a day late and a reichsmark short. I would like to think that if he had more time he would have made it.
    helpful•38
    8
    • howdymax
    • Jan 7, 2002

    FAQ7

    • What is 'The Blue Angel' about?
    • Is 'The Blue Angel' based on a book?
    • Who is 'the blue angel'?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 5, 1930 (United States)
      • Germany
      • German
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Berlin, Germany
    • Production companies
      • Universum Film (UFA)
      • UFA Tonfilm
      • Universum Film (UFA)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 44 minutes
      • Black and White
      • Mono

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