Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

ActuallyGlimmer The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

weezeralfalfa In general style, this film much reminds me of the classic Gable/ Colbert romantic comedy "It Happened One Night", released 2 years earlier. It's not quite as good, but how many non-musicals in those days were? For one thing, Marlene Dietrich simply wasn't near as cute nor talented in comedy as was Claudette. I don't know how Madeleine(Marlene) previously got her money to buy fancy clothes and cars. Presumably by exploiting wealthy men, or by lesser heists than the 2,200,000 franc pearl necklace she just maneuvered from jeweler Duvalle, and slipped into the coat pocket of American Tom Bradley(Gary Cooper) when going through immigration at the French/Spanish border. Before and after the border, they have some adventures interacting with their respective autos. Eventually, Marlene steals Cooper's car, then wrecks it, without recovering the necklace. Somehow, she escaped from the wrecked car unscathed, and somehow got on a train to San Sebastian, where her partner Carlos is waiting. But, she's still no closer to getting the necklace back from Cooper, whom she hasn't told about the caper.Cooper tells the police about his stolen wrecked car. They lead him to Marlene, based on his description(unlikely). He's mad about his borrowed car, of course, but he's even madder over Marlene. So, he chooses to forget about the car. Carlos thinks up a clever way to get the necklace from Cooper. Later, Cooper thinks up a clever way to get the necklace back, so that Marlene can return it to the jeweler, and hopefully receive a minimal sentence. On the whole, the first half was more fun, including a nutty dialogue exchange between the necklace salesman: Duvalle, and the psychiatrist Pauquet, as relates to paying for the necklace(which never happens).As far as the prospect of Cooper's character marrying Marlene, as she said at one point, they came from two different worlds, with a high wall between. If I were Cooper, I'd run from this shady lady: a high maintenance gal, for sure.Available in B&W at YouTube. Some filming took place on location, in Spain and France.

Ian (Flash Review)This is a comedic caper film. Elegantly dressed Dietrich, attempts to cleverly heist an expensive pearl neckless by tricking two men while in Paris. Only she clumsily gets in the way of a calm automobile engineer Cooper during her escape. Their paths cross multiple times and ultimately so do their hearts. Haha Of course Cooper ends up in the caper mix which leads to romance. The caper is rather clever and Dietrich's fashion stellar but overall the film is fine and light- hearted; never fully engaging or gripping. Fun little story from the 1930's.

SenjoorMutt Unfortunately now forgotten easy-going crime comedy starring magnificent Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper. Two stars share electrifying chemistry on the screen (although Dietrich herself first mentioned that Cooper was too one dimensional). It's a lighthearted comedy with simple plot about jewel heist, where Dietrich is seductive and thief and Cooper is non suspecting Don Juan who is getting too mixed up. 'Desire' has it's own charm thanks to the witty dialogue and with some laugh out loud moments. It was produced (some scenes were also directed by) great Ernst Lubitsch, and his touch can be felt throughout the film. Probably not the greatest production by Frank Borzage and Ernst Lubitsch, but it's definitely amusing film and all those who love the 1930's type romantic comedies will find it entertaining.

OldAle1 VHS rental. The second of a Borzage double bill (after A Farewell to Arms), this was something of a disappointment. Gary Cooper again, a charming somewhat countrified American engineer who gets mixed up with pearl thief disguised as petty noblewoman Marlene Dietrich in Paris and then in flight to Spain. The early scenes of Dietrich scamming both pearl merchant and psychologist into believing that the other is her husband are well-played, and the meet-cute moments on the road though a little labored are still -- cute. But around the time Dietrich's partner in crime Margoli (John Halliday) enters the scene the film slows to a deadly crawl, and knowing how it's going to finish I can't wait for it to do so. This seemed much lighter and less intense than the other Borzage films I'd seen, so I wasn't surprised to learn that Ernst Lubitsch was the producer (and rumored director of some scenes); the Lubitsch touch mixed with the Borzage romanticism doesn't really come off. Worth seeing for the two stars though, by all means, especially Dietrich who is as magnetic as ever.