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Marlene (1984) 
 
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085905/

Marlene, also known in Germany as Marlene Dietrich - Porträt eines Mythos is a 1984 documentary film made by Maximilian Schell about the legendary film star Marlene Dietrich. It was made by Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) and OKO-Film and released by Futura Film, Munich and Alive Films, (USA).

This film has been unavaiable and hard to find for many years, but during my research for this I discovered that Kino Video has plans to release a new DVD version in October 2010.

Marlene Dietrich and Maximilian Schell had worked together on Judgment at Nuremberg in 1961. Dietrich had become a virtual recluse in her Paris apartment on the Avenue Montaigne. Schell tried to persuade her for years to participate in a documentary about her life. She continuously refused. In 1982, she eventually agreed to participate in the project on condition that she did not appear. The film therefore consists of an audio commentary and the visuals illustrate her career by showing film clips and stills from her films, as well as newsreel footage. She was contracted for "40 hours of talking" as she reminds Schell during one of their exchanges. The film consists of voice interviews between Schell and Dietrich in which she often ignores his questions, makes acerbic comments about, among other things, some of the people she has worked with and some of the books written about her life and films. In the process, she touches on the subjects of life and death, reality and illusion and the nature of stardom. By her very reluctance to reveal much about herself, she gives one a much deeper understanding of her character than if she had participated in a more conventional format.

“Marlene” has as much to say about its director, Maximillian Schell, as it does about its enigmatic subject, the incomparable Marlene Dietrich.

For many years before she died, Dietrich had pitched the idea of making a documentary about her life to prominent friends and various directors, including Billy Wilder and Orson Welles. Whether she pursued the idea purely out of ego, a desire to set the record straight oe some other reason has been the cause of minor debate. But nothing ever came of her initiatives until the early 1980s when Schell, whom Dietrich knew personally (she had appeared with him in “Judgment at Nuremberg”), agreed to undertake the project.  What happened next is much more than a historical cinematic footnote—the making of the documentary became nearly as interesting as the documentary itself, which turns out to be the magic aspect of Schell’s film that adds to its uniqueness and interest.

After spending considerable time (and financial resources) researching and preparing for the six days of interviews that would form the basis of his documentary, Dietrich informed Schell that she would not be appearing on camera.  Stunned and angry at the last minute change of plans, Schell turned what could have been a devastating, project-killing development into a stroke of genius by using Marlene’s obvious on-screen absence to fashion an unusual and unconventional treatment of his subject, giving it a sense of mystery befitting the Dietrich myth, a quality it might not otherwise possessed.

It wasn’t the approach Dietrich had in mind, but the curve ball Schell threw her in response to her refusal to appear on camera added layer of insight and on-screen excitement from the obvious tension it creates between subject and filmmaker, which erupts into frequent arguments and bouts of name-calling that are entertaining and revealing.

Yet “Marlene” is more than a mere 97-minute argument, and the clashes slowly bring Dietrich and Schell closer together in a way not often achieved in documentaries, giving viewers a unique glimpse into the creative process and the hearts and minds of two exceptionally talented people.

The result is a one-of-a-kind experience that completely captures the legend of Marlene Dietrich and the momentous history of her life and times on and off the screen. It also provides a rare look at her contributions to the U.S. war effort and the profound impact it had on the remainder of her life.

In the end, it wasn't the filmmaking strategy Schell had intended, which becomes apparent as the documentary unfolds, but he was smart enough to know it was a good one to follow, ultimately earning him a much-deserved Academy Award nomination for his effort and ingenious exposé.