Shanghai Express (1932)

1932 marked a year in the golden age of Hollywood before the Hays Code where Paramount Pictures released a film bringing together the director and star team of Josef von Sternberg and Marlene Dietrich creating a fine piece of cinema and a wonderful team of stars. Shanghai Express was a picture with an ensemble that came from all over producing a cast of characters that made a movie about a train going through a war-stricken country exciting, fun, romantic, and entertaining. This would be the fourth of seven films director von Sternberg and actress Dietrich would make together, already becoming a striking team with the international hit The Blue Angel, but Shanghai Express would make a significant mark for the two in their line of work in the United States.

Shanghai Express is the name of a train from Beiping to Shanghai, and as the train makes its way across civil war torn China the passengers are put right in the middle of the military feud, while two former lovers reunite years after their regretful breakup. The film is filled with a ensemble cast of characters, but the focus oif the film is on the mysterious seductress named "Shanghai Lily" (Dietrich) and the British Captain Harvey (Clive Brook), whom after five years after their separation meet once again on the Shanghai Express. "Lily" would be her stage name of sorts as she has become a wealthy escort to wealthy men, while Harvey has become thick skinned and difficult in showing his emotions under his persona of a British Army Captain. The passengers know the multi-day travel across the country could potentially be difficult as war surrounds the land, but when the train is overtaken by rebel soldiers one passenger, Mr. Chang (Warner Oland) is revealed to be the leader of this militia. Chang while looking for a passenger to use to his advantage gets into a mix with Harvey and Lilly as the two former lovers exchange themselves to free the other without the partner knowing. Chang being a powerful leader has his way with the passenegers including a forced evening with a Chinese woman aboard the train named Hui Fei (Anna May Wong). Her humiliation and rage would overcome her as she takes her revenge by killing Chang allowing the train to finish the journey. After reaching Shanghai Harvey and Lily realize their love for each other and Harvey is finally able to express his love for her.

The film is a wonderful movie with two main story lines which intertwine perfectly to keep you entertained with both action and romance. The story is of train passengers containing a large cast of characters from various backgrounds all learning more of each other as the train befalls to the capture of rebel forces. The characters include foretold British Army doctor, Shanghai Lily, and Mr. Chang, and includes the equally mysterious girl Hui Fei, a missionary, a gambler, a French officer, an opium dealer, and a boarding house keeper. Their story is the title of the picture and is very enjoyable, but the love story of Harvey and Lily is the emotional glue that holds it all together. Their complicate history and relationship creates an intrigue as you understand their past, which was a misunderstood moment that broke them up, but the two, mainly Harvey, can't completely get past what they only see of each other directly in front of them, and look deeper into each others hearts. Overall the cast and stories mix very well, completing a fine film.

This picture brought together a fine group of stars in there own rights to one film. Deitrich, director von Sternberg's leading lady, was a veteran to the screen, mainly in Europe, but von Sternberg would create an image for her that made her a superstar for Paramount. Shanghai Express would push her sex appeal in American cinema. Clive Brook would play the straight laced gentleman, the same kind of role that would be used for his most famous films where her would portray Sherlock Holmes. Anna May Wong, first made famous in her role as the exotic woman in The Thief of Bagdad, would be known for her roles as a mysterious women of the east. Warner Oland, who played Chang, would lead the most interesting career. Oland would not seem to be a Chinese name, because he was in fact Swedish with absolutely no Chinese blood. His features and facial hair style would lend him to playing Chinese roles in a time when Hollywood tended not to cast far easterners in main roles. His most well known work came in his long time portrayal of the famous Chinese detective Charlie Chan, a role Oland would play in 16 movies.

Shanghai Express would be a very successful film for Paramount, in fact one of their most profitable films of 1932. The film would be awarded at the Oscars with nominations for best director and even best picture, but only took home the best cinematography statue for Lee Garmes work. Years later it was said that the look and overall quality of the cinematography of the picture was because of von Sternberg's work and Garmes had little to do with the camera work. The wonderful use of contrast between light and dark, the staging of the small spaces in the train cars, and the use of foreground and background, makes the film a great piece of cinematic art in black and white film.

The film's success was also met with some criticism internationally. China, of course, would not take to well to the film, seeing the negative portrayal of their country. The film would in fact be banned in China for a time, along with the exabition of other Paramount films until the studio made an apology and promised to not make films about any kind of Chinese politics. Some Chinese-speaking viewers would notice that the dialect used for the film was Cantonese, a southern dialect of Chinese. Despite the film taking place in the northern part of China, this would be due to the Chinese extras used in Southern California were known to commonly use Cantonese therefore that was what the film used. Other than that small international event the movie was a promising picture that Paramount would try to recreate again in the future. The film's story would be remade twice by Paramount, first in 1943 with Night Plane from Chungking, and again in 1951 with Peking Express, both which would never meet the success of the original.

The picture was an excellent piece of film for anyone to enjoy. It did not have as much trouble with the Hays Code in later years and would stay very much intact. Dietrich would continue to be a star in Hollywood for many years. It would not be often you would find Charlie Chan and Sherlock Holmes on the screen together, even if the actors would be portraying different characters. The movie was a nice mix that simply produced a very good picture and fine example of early 1930s cinema.