The Blue Angel one alternative: death. Notes The Blue Angel The Blue Angel () is a 1930 German tragicomedic film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Emil Jannings, Marlene Dietrich and Kurt Gerron. Written by Carl Zuckmayer, Karl Vollmöller and Robert Liebmann – with uncredited contributions by Sternberg – it is based on Heinrich Mann's 1905 novel "Professor Unrat" ("Professor Garbage") and set in Weimar Germany. "The Blue Angel" presents the tragic transformation of a respectable professor to a cabaret clown and his descent into madness. The film is the first feature-length German full-talkie and brought Dietrich international fame. In addition, it
Marlene Dietrich again cast as a cabaret singer. The film is best remembered for the sequence in which she performs a song dressed in a man's white tie and kisses another woman, both provocative for the era. The film earned Dietrich her only Academy Award nomination. "Morocco" was followed by "Dishonored" (1931), a major success with Dietrich cast as a Mata Hari-like spy. "Shanghai Express" (1932), which was dubbed by the critics ""Grand Hotel" on wheels", was Sternberg and Dietrich's biggest box office success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1932. Dietrich and Sternberg again collaborated on the romance "Blonde Venus" (1932). Dietrich