Seven Sinners (1940)

Banished from various U.S. protectorates in the Pacific, a saloon entertainer uses her femme-fatale charms to woo politicians, navy personnel, gangsters, riff-raff, judges and a ship's doctor in order to achieve her aims.

Director:

Tay Garnett

Writers:

John Meehan (screen play), Harry Tugend (screen play)

Stars:

Marlene Dietrich, John Wayne, Albert Dekker

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marlene Dietrich	...	Bijou
John Wayne	...	Dan
Albert Dekker	...	Dr. Martin
Broderick Crawford	...	Little Ned
Anna Lee	...	Dorothy
Mischa Auer	...	Sasha
Billy Gilbert	...	Tony
Richard Carle	...	District Officer
Samuel S. Hinds	...	Governor
Oskar Homolka	...	Antro (as Oscar Homolka)
Reginald Denny	...	Captain Church
Vince Barnett	...	Bartender
Herbert Rawlinson	...	First Mate
James Craig	...	Ensign
William Bakewell	...	Ensign

Storyline

Bijou, a saloon singer with a reputation for inciting brouhahas, is one of several deportees from a south Pacific island to arrive at another U.S. protectorate, Boni Komba. She becomes very popular with U.S. navy men by performing at the 'Seven Sinners'. A navy Lieutenant is attracted to Bijou despite the Governor's machinations to keep them apart, and the competing affections of local mobster, Antro. Will the Lieutenant give up the navy for Bijou, and will he survive Antro's forces?

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Plot Keywords:

femme fatale | 

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Taglines:

OUT-LOVING...OUT-FIGHTING Anything On The Screen! (1953 reissue poster)

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Original working title: "Tropical Sinners"

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Goofs

John Wayne's commanding officer (Captain Church) is addressed throughout the film as Captain, but he wears the shoulder rank insignia of a US Navy Commander.

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Quotes

Lt. Dan Brent: Imagine finding you here.
Bijou: I'm the type of girl you're liable to find anywhere.

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Hist-o-Rama: John Wayne (1961)

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Soundtracks

I Can't Give You Anything But Love
(1928) (uncredited)
Music by Jimmy McHugh
Lyrics by Dorothy Fields
Sung by Marlene Dietrich

User Reviews

John Wayne as a co-star. Not his best.

NEver heard of this film before & just watched it today. I was expecting something akin to the quality of "The Spoilers" & "Pittsburgh" given they are also a Dietrich-Wayne combo. Sadly "Seven Sinners" is first, only a reference to the dive bar where Dietrich works. The story, if you can call it that, is really just a mish mash of running around, bar fights & lackluster characters. There really is no story, no sympathy for any of the character & the Duke himself has actually very little to do in this film. This seems to have been one of those "quickie" Universal productions where they were trading on Dietrich's name only & didn't bother with anything else. John Wayne had just reached real stardom the year earlier in John Ford's "Stagecoach" but was still sort of a "newbie" even though he had been making movies since 1928 & playing repetitive cowboys at poverty row studios all through the 1930's. This film & his much later "The Conqueror" where Wayne was miscast as Ghengis Khan are his two worst films ever made. Advice? You can avoid this one & not feel that your Wayne filmography watching is incomplete.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 October 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Seven Sinners

Filming Locations:

Saugus Airfield, Saugus, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$760,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1