Desire (1936)

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

The first must-see film of the year.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

This is a delightful Ernst Lubitsch comedy romance, and the second of two films in which Dietrich and Cooper were co-starred. Frank Borzage is listed as director but producer Lubitsch has the signs of his sly romantic comedy all over this film.This was an important film in both stars' careers. It was important for Marlene because this was her first feature film released after ending her association with director Josef Von Sternberg. And this polished, light, breezy affair couldn't be more of a contrast to her previous outings with that director, with Dietrich demonstrating a droll ability with sophisticated comedy. It was an important film for Cooper, too (though Mr. Deeds Goes to Town was just around the corner for him, a film with a bigger impact upon his career). Cooper, though, showed that he, too, could play screen humor very well here, with, in my opinion, one of his most engaging and personable performances. The subtle skill of Cooper's humorous performance, in fact, may surprise those who think of him mainly as a tight lipped western star.The plot involves Coop as an innocent abroad American on vacation in France when he encounters Dietrich on the road (literally). She is beautiful and sophisticated. He is smitten, of course, but doesn't realize that the charming lady is also a jewel thief. I'll stop there, except to say that that this film is a polished delight, and the two stars have great chemistry.One aside- John Gilbert, Dietrich's current lover, had been slated for the role of Deitrich's suave cohort in crime. However, the role went to John Halliday instead. Deitrich had helped Gilbert stop drinking, but losing the role and news of Deitrich's affair with Cooper caused Gilbert to hit the sauce hard once again and he was soon dead of a heart attack. The role could have been a game changer for Gilbert. Too bad we shall never know.

No doubt of it, in Desire Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich were definitely fated to be together from the first time they had that fender bender in Paris before Coop got a good look at Dietrich and those celebrated gams.Marlene Dietrich is a countess, but one of those members of the nobility upon whom hard times have fallen. She and a partner John Halliday support themselves through some clever jewel robbery. In fact she pulls one classic scam on jeweler Ernest Cossart and psychiatrist Alan Mowbray and winds up with a valuable pearl necklace.The getaway proves to be a bit of a problem and she hooks poor innocent Gary Cooper at the customs inspection between France and Spain. She slips the swag into his pocket and at that point she's stuck with him. But it soon proves to be a very pleasant experience.Desire was produced by Ernest Lubitsch and directed by Frank Borzage. There's definitely more Lubitsch than Borzage in this film. Borzage normally directed heavy duty romantic tragedies and his favorite leading lady was Margaret Sullavan in films like Three Comrades and The Mortal Storm. It's unusual for someone not die in one of his films. I'm not sure Lubitsch didn't direct a lot of this himself.This was Dietrich and Cooper's second teaming, the first being the far more serious Morocco in which Dietrich made her American film debut. For some reason Desire was something the American movie public wasn't all that crazy about. I'm not sure why it's light and entertaining and should have done better.

if you liked Lubitsch's Trouble in Paradise, this is a lesser but still quite enjoyable version. Directed by Borzage and produced by Lubitsch, it is difficult to find but features a marvelous Dietrich and adorable Coop. The opening scenes quickly show you why Paris by Paramount was often considered better than Paris as itself. Charming lines like 'I'm going to put my hand in your pocket' were clever ways to overcome the Hays era constraints. The elegance of the era is well presented here combined with the straight up-ness of the 'good American' culture. There are also poignant references to the oncoming WWII through lines like 'Don't underestimate America, it's a big country', quite prescient since this was still 1936. If you like American Romantic Comedy of the 30's, you will enjoy this film...a shame they don't make 'em like this anymore.

Dietrich is a sexy jewel thief who robs (and lives) by manipulating every male in her vicinity. Cooper, as an auto engineer on a vacation in Spain, proves no different, as he unwittingly carries the stolen gems for her across the Spanish border, but she soon falls for his energetic sincerity (not to mention his tall, broad shoulders) but must continue to lie to him to avoid arrest and disgrace. Eventually, instead of turning thieves together (which would have been more interesting), they decide to go straight and return the jewels. This is the type of thing that started to pop up in these kind of films after the reforms of the early thirties. The film's second half is thus less fun than its first, but it emerges as a solid comedy/romance package.