Angel (1937)

Director:

Ernst Lubitsch

Writers:

Melchior Lengyel (play)
Guy Bolton (adaptation) ...
(more)

Release Date:

29 October 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

I want love - and I'm going to get it!

Plot:

Woman and her husband take separate vacations, and she falls in love with another man. |

Plot Keywords:

Arc De Triomphe Paris | Racetrack | One Word Title | Horse Racing | Comedy Of Manners

Cast

Marlene Dietrich	...	Maria 'Angel' Barker, aka Mrs. Brown
Herbert Marshall	...	Sir Frederick Barker
Melvyn Douglas	...	Anthony 'Tony' Halton
Edward Everett Horton	...	Graham
Ernest Cossart	...	Christopher 'Chris' Wilton
Laura Hope Crews	...	Grand Duchess Anna Dmitrievna
Herbert Mundin	...	Mr. Greenwood
Dennie Moore	...	Emma MacGillicuddy Wilton
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ivan Lebedeff	...	Prince Vladimir Gregorovitch (scenes deleted)
Leonard Carey	...	Barker's Footman (uncredited)
Louise Carter	...	Flower Woman (uncredited)
Phyllis Coghlan	...	Maria's Maid (uncredited)
Gino Corrado	...	Assistant Hotel Manager (uncredited)
George Davis	...	First Taxi Driver (uncredited)
Duci De Kerekjarto	...	Violinist (uncredited)
Herbert Evans	...	Lord Davington's Butler (uncredited)
James Finlayson	...	Barker's Second Butler (uncredited)
Bobby Hale	...	News Vendor (uncredited)
Gerald Hamer	...	Barker's Footman (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Man at Club (uncredited)
Arthur Hurni	...	Second Taxi Driver (uncredited)
Olaf Hytten	...	Consolidated Press Photographer (uncredited)
Suzanne Kaaren	...	Girl Who Gambles (uncredited)
Carl M. Leviness	...	Nightclub Guest (uncredited)
Gwendolyn Logan	...	Woman With Maria (uncredited)
Lionel Pape	...	Lord Davington (uncredited)
Joseph Romantini	...	Club Headwaiter (uncredited)
Michael Visaroff	...	Gregori, the Grand Duchess' Butler (uncredited)
Eric Wilton	...	Barker's Chauffeur (uncredited)

Directed by
Ernst Lubitsch

Writing credits
Melchior Lengyel		(play "Angyal")
Guy Bolton		(adaptation: English play) and
Russell G. Medcraft		(adaptation: English play) (as Russell Medcraft)
Samson Raphaelson		(screenplay)
Frederick Lonsdale		(contributor to screenplay construction) uncredited

Produced by
Ernst Lubitsch	....	producer

Original Music by
Friedrich Hollaender		(as Frederick Hollander)
Werner R. Heymann		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Charles Lang		(as Charles Lang Jr.)

Film Editing by
William Shea

Art Direction by
Hans Dreier
Robert Usher

Costume Design by
Travis Banton

Production Management
John Hammell	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Joe Lefert	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
A.E. Freudeman	....	interior decorator

Sound Department
Louis Mesenkop	....	sound recordist
Harry D. Mills	....	sound recordist (as Harry Mills)
Louis Mesenkop	....	dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Farciot Edouart	....	special photographic effects
Lloyd Knechtel	....	photographic effects (uncredited)
Harry Perry	....	photographic effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Eric Locke	....	photographer: second unit, Europe (uncredited)
Harry Perry	....	photographer: second unit, Europe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Harvey Johnston	....	assistant cutter (uncredited)

Music Department
Boris Morros	....	musical director
Maurice Lawrence	....	music supervisor (uncredited)
John Leipold	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)

Other crew
Adolph Zukor	....	presenter
Alain Delorme	....	subtitles: French version (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Paramount Pictures (as Paramount Pictures, Inc.)

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1937) (USA) (theatrical)
• MCA/Universal Pictures (1958) (USA) (TV)
• Actions Cinémas/Théâtre du Temple (2004) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Paramount Pictures (1937) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Paramount Pictures (1937) (France) (theatrical)
• Paramount (1937) (France) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures (2006) (UK) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures (1998) (USA) (VHS)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (re-rating) (2006) | UK:12 | France:U | Finland:K-16 | Portugal:M/12 | USA:Approved (PCA #3399)

Filming Locations:

Santa Anita Park - 285 West Huntington Drive, Arcadia, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Paramount paid $8,500 for Melchior Lengyel's play. The film length was gradually cut from 2916.94m (11 reels) to 2478.33m (nine reels) after pre-release showings in New York City and six California cities from 25 July 1937 to 13 September 1937.

Quotes:

Maria: What's the matter, darling? Is it France?
Sir Frederick: No, no. It's Yugoslavia.
Maria: Oh, I see.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Le cinéma passe à table (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Barber of Seville

How has it been overlooked?

Lubitsch is recognized as one of the great directors of the 30s, and yet this wonderful film is not on any of the usual critical lists of notable films. Perhaps it was too modern for its time. It is perhaps Dietrich's best English performance (though even here she could be a bit more subtle), but the real star is the director, shining in the shots he composes and performances he coaxes from his actors. Lubitsch is a master of subtlety, and when he places important moments off-screen, it is in such a way as to heighten their impact. Since the censorship code is in effect, the sexual elements are cleverly concealed. For example, Halton and Barker discover that in Paris they both visited the same... seamstress. The naive Hays Office must have thought that was the joke, but the real joke is on them for it is clear--at least today--that the two did not visit her to get their sewing done. The sophistication of the film is unusual for its time.

Pages could be written about this film. Suffice it to say that if you like 30s film at all, see this. In certain moments, it feels perfect. Probably one of the top 25 of the decade.