Producer Karel Dirka tried for more than two years to convince Marlene Dietrich to let him make a film project about her life. She rejected all the directors he suggested, including Werner Schroeter, Volker Schlöndorff, Peter Bogdanovich, Billy Wilder and Orson Welles. That a joint contract was finally signed on 5 April 1981 was mainly due to two facts. For one, her agent Terry Miller gave her a drastic account of her financial situation. Equally important for her was this clause: “The intervention of Miss Dietrich will be only commenting and answering questions orally, and no image shooting or singing will be asked of her.” It was agreed that Maximilian Schell would be the director. An interview with Dietrich was to be recorded over a total of ten working days (excluding Saturday and Sunday) in a maximum of 40 hours. Dietrich sent him a list of film clips that she wanted to comment on – no more, no less. After three days of filming, Schell breaks off the interview, completely exasperated by her obstructive attitude. He was also unable to persuade her to make a personal statement in front of the cameras. The project seemed doomed to failure. But Schell creates a congenial portrait of Dietrich’s old age from the available material. The film won several awards and was even nominated for an Oscar for best documentary in 1985. This success also reconciled Dietrich with Schell. However, the artist’s performance, which was not rendered due to the interruption of filming, resulted in a legal dispute with the production company that lasted for years.

Silke Ronneburg