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Title: FASCINATING FANTASIA ON THE LIFE OF CATHERINE THE GREAT!
Review: This movie is justly famous for it's bizarre visual style; it's a fascinating excursion into the life of one of history's most notorious women. As a child, Catherine is played by Dietrich's own daughter, Maria Sieber; Dietrich is innocent and naive at the beginning and she slowly becomes a powerful and lusty ruler. Louise Dresser is strangely folksy as the illiterate Empress Elizabeth (who in real life could speak many languages, but her manners were atrocious). John Lodge, who later had a successful career in politics (Governor of Massachusetts) has a very commanding presence and he's astonishingly modern in his playing of Count Alexei. Sam Jaffe is brilliantly eccentric in his playing of Peter the Mad; his performance lingers in the memory. Opulent and beautifully lighted, THE SCARLETT EMPRESS wasn't exactly box-office in it's day (it was ahead of it's time); today it's a visual orgy, fascinating to observe!
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