Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

BelSports This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Tymon Sutton The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

ofumalow This giant hunk of perfumed kitsch must have seemed old-fashioned even in 1936. It's more like a mush-talking version of silent Valentino "Arabic" romantic hokum than it is like the Maria Montez "exotica" epics of a few years later, which were more lively and less pretentious. (It's easy to imagine this story working better as a silent, and it probably did-although sadly it doesn't look like Rex Ingram's 1927 version has survived.)It's funny that Dietrich went almost directly from her last Von Sternberg film to this-another movie in which the overriding concern seems to be dressing, plucking, lighting and posing her as if for glamour stills. Richard Boleslawski is no Von Sternberg, however. He made some very good films when given better material, but he can provide none of Von Sternberg's wit, irony or distinctive lunacy to this pretty, empty package. (Sadly, Boleslawski died the next year of a heart attack, aged only 47.) Beyond the flattering photography of Dietrich and young Boyer (as well as some gorgeous silhouetted desert landscapes worthy of "The Sheltering Sky"), the major virtue in this early all-Technicolor film is the handsome color pallet, which is fairly subtle for the era. Otherwise, "Garden of Allah" is very high-end hooey, attesting to the more garish end of producer Selnick's taste, a la "Duel in the Sun." I mean, a desert-set love story between an ex-convent girl and runaway monk? With dialogue like "You come from a land of fire-and I think you are made of fire!" Plus one of those central crises made of pure hot air: The protagonists love each other like no one has ever loved anyone before (or so we're told), but must give one another up because...er, well, because that way they get to experience maximum picturesque torment and heroic sacrifice. This sort of stuff can work despite itself if there's a smidge of conviction at hand. But "Allah" (in which all Arabic spoken is gibberish, a good metaphor for the film's "soulfulness") s all so hokey and artificially high-minded you might think it had been written by Elinor Glin. No wonder it was a giant flop.

JohnHowardReid Although he wrote many later novels (including "The Paradine Case" which was also filmed by Selznick), Robert Smythe Hichens (1864- 1950) never equaled the success of his early "The Garden of Allah" which sold a staggering 800,000 copies in its initial hardcover editions. A well-written book with much accurate, closely-observed detail (too much in fact for modern tastes), it offers not only a grandly romantic story of love and mystery set against a fascinatingly unusual yet breathtakingly picturesque background, but meticulously describes the inner rewards and setbacks of an idealized heroine's self-imposed search for peace, love and fulfillment. As for the title, it is explained by Count Anteoni: "The Arabs have a saying: "The desert is the garden of Allah."The novel was filmed three times: Helen Ware and Thomas Santschi starred in a 1917 version, while Alice Terry and Ivan Petrovich were the leads of an MGM/Rex Ingram film (screenplay by Willis Goldbeck — Selznick's assistant on this one) ten years later.Green and Rosson were handed an Honorary Award by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for their color cinematography. "The Garden of Allah" was the world's 5th three-strip Technicolor feature. Negative cost: $1,447,760. Locations in the Mojave Desert near Yuma, Arizona.The film was originally to star Merle Oberon and Gilbert Roland. Fortunately, Selznick was astute enough to grab Dietrich and Boyer for the leads instead, when they suddenly became available by both walking out on Paramount's "Hotel Imperial" in protest over the firing of director Ernst Lubitsch. COMMENT: Unlike the 1927 version which took considerable liberties with both plot and characterization, this is a remarkably faithful transcription of the original novel. Admittedly a few incidents and characters have been compressed (and one minor player, Domini's maid, Suzanne, omitted altogether); but with one or two exceptions, all the changes — slight as they are — represent distinct dramatic improvements. Not only are atmosphere and suspense heightened, but the exotic romance of the book is perfectly captured.The players are collectively nothing short of superb. Dietrich is brilliantly cast. It's a role calling not only for glamour and allure, but one requiring the actress to express a quality of urgent, desperate seeking. Dietrich's exotic appeal goes without question, but her most fascinating and interesting roles are usually those in which she herself is actively seeking something (Dishonored, The Scarlet Empress, A Foreign Affair, Witness for the Prosecution, Judgement at Nuremberg) rather than being sought (Blonde Venus, Song of Songs, Stage Fright, Rancho Notorious). Her face (especially her eyes) and the accented timbre of her voice convey urgency, energy, drive — even ruthlessness — extremely well. Domini Enfilden is not only an embodiment of all these qualities, but she has a romantic restlessness which Marlene portrays with totally convincing sympathy. It's impossible to imagine any other star in this part. If ever there was a role that seemed completely made to order for Dietrich, this is it.Charles Boyer was also never more perfectly served — although he did have a few other roles the equal of Boris Androvsky in romantic intensity, particularly in Mayerling (his very next film) and Hold Back the Dawn. Boyer would have made an ideal Hamlet. As a romantic character, he is often at the mercy of events. He struggles to extricate himself, sometimes succeeding (History Is Made At Night), often not (Algiers, All This and Heaven Too). Anxiety, restlessness, despair — these are Boyer's stock-in-trade. Most of the support players are not quite so impressively catered for, though Basil Rathbone and Joseph Schildkraut judiciously match their respective characters to those in the book. C. Aubrey Smith, Alan Marshal and Lucile Watson are also ideally cast. John Carradine, however, is so completely unrecognizable — even his voice is different — it's hard to believe it's really him!If it were possible to overshadow the richness of these excellent performances with a wealth of striking production values, producer Selznick and his accomplished technicians certainly give it a rousing try. Director Boleslawski, forsaking the sterile tableau approach he employed in "Clive of India", has directed every scene with admirable deftness and style. He is aided — indeed bested — by superlative Technicolor photography of the film's ravishing sets, costumes and locations.Max Steiner contributed a movingly atmospheric, delightfully captivating score.All in all, a beautifully produced, grandly exotic yet totally engrossing romance. One of my favorite films of the 1930s. Fortunately available on DVD (from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) in a really excellent print.

wes-connors After her father expires, moody Marlene Dietrich (as Domini Enfilden) leaves her convent to seek solace from God in the Sahara Desert. Meanwhile, chaste Charles Boyer (as Boris Androvsky) abruptly leaves his monastery. After taking his sacred vows, he's off to find "love" in the desert. They seem like a match made in Heaven, but don't be fooled. The copulation turns out to be an affront to God. Even worse, for lovers of liqueur, Mr. Boyer takes with him the secret recipe of an alcoholic drink, handed down from monk to monk. "God will not punish us," declares Ms. Dietrich, "if we can trust Him to show us the way..."Although "The Garden of Allah" drew viewers into cinema seats, there weren't enough to justify the cost. The film helped studios decide stars like Dietrich and Boyer looked more profitable in black-and-white. Classic performers did not always appear in color; a major star's paycheck already upped the budget. Herein, Dietrich models and Boyer pouts... The film's main strength is the outstanding achievement in color photography, by W. Howard Greene and Harold Rosson. A fine supporting cast helps, especially fast-talking Joseph Schildkraut (as Batouch). And, dancer Tilly Losch (as Irena) make a great first impression.***** The Garden of Allah (10/15/36) Richard Boleslawski ~ Marlene Dietrich, Charles Boyer, Joseph Schildkraut, Basil Rathbone

ccthemovieman-1 Audiences back in 1936 must have been stunned at what they were watching: a full-fledged, beautiful full-length Technicolor film. I can't say for sure, but this might have been the first one (3-strip). At any rate, it still looks beautiful over 70 years later on DVD. In fact, just how good it looks is amazing.Kudos for that have to go out to Director Richard Boleslowski, Director Of Photography Virgil Miller, Selznick International Pictures and, for the DVD - MGM Home Entertainment. All of them combined to give us one of the best-looking films of the classic-era age.I thought the story was so-so: excellent in the first half, stagnant in the second. It gave a nice message in the end, even though a lot of people might not have been happy with it. I can't say more without spoiling things.Marlene Dietrich never looked better, I don't believe, and certainly never played such a soft-hearted character ("Domini Enfilden"). Heart-throb Charles Boyer was the male star and Domini's object of affection, but some of the minor characters were the most interesting to me. People like Joseph Schildkraut as "Batouch;" John Carradine as "The Sand Diviner;" The most memorable, to me at least, was the dancer "Irena," played by Tilly Losch. Wow, there is a face and a dance you won't soon forget! I've never seen anything like it in the thousands of films I've viewed. Just seeing her do her thing was worth the price of the DVD. Looking at her IMDb resume, she was only in four movies, but they were all well-known films.Basil Rathbone, the actor who really became famous for playing "Sherlock Holmes," also is in here as is C. Aubrey Smith, another famous British actor of his day. Schildkraut, by the way, will be recognized by classic film buffs as the man who played the arrogant sales clerk in the big hit, "The Shop Around The Corner," with Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullivan.The beautiful direction, photography and color, and Tilly's dance, are the things I'll remember best about this movie which is a lot of good and not-so-good things all rolled into one. Had the last half hour been better - although I admire the ending - I would have rated it even higher. It's definitely one film collectors want to add to their collection.