Desire (1936)

I finally watched Morocco (1930), which was Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper's first movie together. It was a terribly mediocre movie in which Gary Cooper is part of the French Foreign Legion and Marlene is a singer. [For a better FFL Gary Cooper movie, check out Beau Geste, one of my faves.] I only watched Morocco because it was recommended by one of my favorite professors. Also, it features an extremely famous scene in which Marlene dresses in drag and kisses a lady on the lips during a singing performance. This is a big deal for 1930, people, even if it is pre-Haze Code.

Both Morocco and Desire were really hard to find, and I think I know why -- both were pretty dull/formulaic adventure/romance movies from the 30s. Morocco was hella racist [surprise], and basically one should watch any other movie that involves this location instead of this dumb Josef von Sternberg one.

Anyway, back to Desire. Marlene Dietrich is a jewel thief and Gary Cooper is on vacation, and [spoiler alert] they fall in love. The dialogue is not snappy, the chemistry between the stars is lacking, and beyond the premise there is basically no plot to it. I'd say the best thing besides Marlene's eyebrows is a cameo by William Frawley, who is hopelessly bald even 20 years before I Love Lucy.
2/5 pizzas