"An American Tragedy" (Sternberg) - American Beard

...He then attracted attention with ``Downtown,'' a pioneering gangster film, and then made ``New York Waterfront'' (1929), one of the masterpieces of the final period of American silent films.He then traveled to Germany, where he met Dietrich on the set of UFA's first talkie, ``The Blue Angel,'' which became a classic of ``screen erotica.''He returned to Hollywood with her and made six films starring Dietrich, including ``Morocco'' (1930), which showcased groundbreaking sound processing. During that time, he directed films such as "An American Tragedy" (1931), which is said to have infuriated the original author T. Dreiser, and was called "a lyric poet of light and shadow," and was praised for using the camera like a painter's brush or a poet's pen. However, his relationship with Dietrich was likened to that of "Pygmalion and Galatea," and he was criticized for his self-absorbed tendency to glorify the leading actress rather than the work itself. His partnership with Dietrich was also criticized as being strong, as he was involved in scandals in his private life, and his partnership with Dietrich ended after "Spanish Rhapsody" (1935), bringing an end to one of his eras as a "filmmaker." After that, he produced masterpieces of melodrama that are unique to Sternberg, such as "Shanghai Gesture" (1941), in which he revived the splendid "sensual images" in pursuit of the illusion of Dietrich, but they were not successful at the box office, and he ended up with an unfortunate end.

*The following is a partial explanation of the term "American Tragedy" (Sternberg).

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…その後，ギャング映画の先駆けとなった《暗黒街》で注目され，続いてアメリカのサイレント映画末期の代表作の一つ《紐育の波止場》(1929)をつくり，ひき続いてドイツへ出かけて，〈スクリーン･エロティカ〉の古典となったUFA（ウーフア）社のトーキー第1作《嘆きの天使》でディートリヒにめぐりあい，彼女を連れてハリウッドに帰り，画期的な音声処理を示した《モロッコ》(1930)をはじめ6本のディートリヒ主演映画をつくる。その間に原作者のT.ドライサーを激怒させたという《アメリカの悲劇》(1931)などを撮り，〈光と影の叙情詩人〉といわれ，カメラを画家の筆あるいは詩人のペンのように使うと評されたが，ディートリヒとのかかわりを〈ピグマリオンとガラティア〉の関係にたとえられ，作品よりも主演女優を美化する自己陶酔的な傾向が強いとの批判を受け，私生活のスキャンダルもからんで《西班牙（スペイン）狂想曲》(1935)を最後にディートリヒとのコンビが解消され，〈映画作家〉としての一つの時代を終える。その後ディートリヒの幻影を追い求めて華麗な〈官能的映像〉をよみがえらせた《上海ジェスチャー》(1941)のようなスタンバーグならではのメロドラマの傑作を生み出したものの興行的には不成功で，恵まれない末路をたどる。…

※「《アメリカの悲劇》（スタンバーグ）」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

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