The third of Sternberg's collaborations with Dietrich (a spy
melodrama set during World War I) is not their best, but it remains a
thrilling investigation of the links between sex and death. The
sexuality of the star destroys both others and herself, and in a climax
of magnificent surrealist absurdity, she goes to her death having
beautified herself using a sword as a mirror. The film is a little
stilted in its dialogue scenes, and the pacing is slightly uneven, but
the precision of Sternberg's visual expression of deception and
desire remains enthralling.
