Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

TheLittleSongbird The partnership of actress Marlene Dietrich and director Josef Von Sternberg was a justifiably famous one, and could even be seen as iconic (personally do consider it so). They did seven films together, starting with 1930's 'The Blue Angel' (perhaps the most historically significant) and ending with 1935's 'The Devil is a Woman', all of which ranging from good to outstanding.'Dishonored', from 1931, is not their best collaboration, personally put 1932's 'Shanghai Express' and 1934's 'The Scarlet Empress' above it. Nor is it their weakest, to me the uneven but still good 'Blonde Venus' from 1932. Of their collaborations, of which this is their third, 'Dishonored' is perhaps their most overlooked, while it does have its drawbacks (well, two big ones) it's still a fine film with a lot to admire.It is let down by two things. 'Dishonored' does contain some of the weakest writing of any of the Dietrich/Sternberg films, there is some witty spark here and there but other parts are distractingly sluggish and melodramatic with a cornball tone that can get annoying and repetitive too.Am also of the opinion that Victor McLaglen is unconvincing, the role calls for a more restrained nature compared to his usual roles but McLaglen's performance is far from that, he's too bland for a love interest while mostly his performance feels very odd tonally, with the idiotic constant grin amongst other things McLaglen was like some over-enthusiastic overgrown child or something.However, cannot fault Dietrich at all here. She is positively luminous in her erotic sensuality, and not only is she fun to watch she also gives a vulnerability that helps the character come over as compellingly real. Nor can one fault the terrific performance of Warner Orland, or Sternberg's as ever accomplished direction that boasts many striking images visually and a way of telling the story that the film remains engaging throughout, script flaws aside.One can always count on a Sternberg film to be visually beautiful, and 'Dishonored' does not disappoint. Not just the striking use of light and shadow lighting and the sumptuous settings and costuming but especially the cinematography, which is often enough to take the breath away. The music score is stirring yet not intrusive.Cannot not mention the climactic execution either. A scene that stays with the viewer forever with its emotional impact and gut wrenching power, openly admit to crying here the most for any film in a while. The story is absorbing and goes at a cracking pace on the most part, with the odd bump when the dialogue gets stuck.In conclusion, a fine overlooked film. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Kirpianuscus one of old fashion films who, using the story only as pretext, gives magnificent cinematography. a war story, remembering Mata Hari biography, it is the scene for brilliant, fascinating, ambiguous, charming performance of Marlene Dietrich. not a real surprise. only delight. because each word, each gesture, each dialogue becomes a Persian carpet of details. the clothes, the music, the piano, the cat, the attitude of a woman who covers her patriotic feelings in a refined form of hedonism, her forbidden love story who has the only sin to not give to her the right partner to be easily credible, the last scene who gives to death new nuances are the ingredients of great example of high cinematography. and that does Dishonored memorable.

nandoferrer 'Dishonoured' comes off to me as perhaps one of my favourite among Von Sternberg/Dietrich's movies together, his style and treatment of black and white shading adding enormously to the film's whole atmosphere and cinematography.It also encompasses the continuous creation of Dietrich's movie 'persona' around this time,the femme fatale who apparently betrays everything but her final, ultimate love, paying the price for it with her own life. The film also shows Dietrich or the director's increasing concern with her own image and the result is so irresistible one can't avoid thinking of it as a masterpiece.Dietrich also transforms herself into something quite different, a plain waitress, almost unrecognizable, showing how through image and acting talent something like that could be achieved in the 30s, once again reminding us how Dietrich was such an incredible actress when it was allowed or wanted. Dietrich's final scenes, after the character's detention and sentencing, are unforgettable as is the cinematography and direction of the movie by Von Sternberg.The scenes leading to the execution scene and the final execution scene itself are unforgettable and leave a lingering effect of sadness and melancholy after the word The End appears on screen. The film's beauty is furthered by the exceptional musical score, and as Dietrich courageously faces the execution platoon arranging herself and retouching her make up the simultaneous surrealism and reality of the scene is a true example of the director and actress's talents and pure magic.

ceichler Never saw this Dietrich film before. It is wonderful, considering that it was made 41 years ago. Two sequences stand out--- the party sequence (catch the costume in all the splendor black and white can provide) and the hilarious Dietrich/peasant scene. I couldn't believe it was Marlene at first. This film is a small gem!