Rating: 
Summary: Marlene Dietrich's American film debut (with Gary Cooper)
Review: Gary Cooper plays Tom Brown, a devil-may-care American private in the French Foreign Legion who hooks up with cabaret signer Amy Jolly, played by Marlene Dietrich in her American film debut (the name is a corruption of "pretty friend"/"aimee jolie" in French). Brown has been pretty ruthless with women, but becomes drawn to the embittered Amy. Director Josef Von Sternberg spends a lot of time setting up Dietrich, while Cooper gets the rare opportunity to play a heel and turns in one of the best performances of his early films. Adolphe Menjou plays Kensington, a debonair suitor of Amy who becomes the third wheel in the main love affair, while Eve Southern and Juliette Compton play a couple of the discarded women in Brown's life. Dietrich sings "Quand L'Amour Muert" and "What Am I Bid For My Apple?" while wearing a tuxedo. This 1930 film was based on the racy novel, "Amy Jolly, Women of Marrakesh" by Berlin journalist, Benno Vignay, who had served in the Foreign Legion and followed the success of "Beau Geste." "Morocco" is an above average film, even though the two main characters waste a lot of time pretending they are not perfect for each other and the ending is a bit ludicrous for a character played by Marlene Dietrich. For that matter, I am not sure that Amy upsets Cooper's character so much that Brown would rather go out on hazardous missions instead of facing her. Still, all in the all the two stars make this story work for the most part.
Rating:
Summary: LEGIO PARTIA NOSTRA
Review: Great movie for legion fans even though not alot of fighting type action. The legion marching song "Le Boudin" is heard quite often and inspiring. Marlene Dietrich is great singing in a tuxedo and then planting a long kiss on the lips of female customer! Cooper is good, but Dietrich makes the movie. Black and white flic makes the setting mysterious.
Rating:
Summary: LEGIO PARTIA NOSTRA
Review: Great movie for legion fans even though not alot of fighting type action. The legion marching song "Le Boudin" is heard quite often and inspiring. Marlene Dietrich is great singing in a tuxedo and then planting a long kiss on the lips of female customer! Cooper is good, but Dietrich makes the movie. Black and white flic makes the setting mysterious.
Rating: 
Summary: GREAT MOVIE BUT HORRIBLE AUDIO
Review: I was lucky enough to have been able to get a copy of Morocco on VHS. I was very excited before inserting the tape in my VCR, but soon became quite disappointed with the audio quality. You could barely understand the actors when they spoke. The sound is really bad. The copy that I purchased was new, and not one of those inexpensive imitations from unpopular realeasing studios. This was the original Paramount version. The movie was very good for 1930, obviously not as good as other Dietrich movies. I still HIGHLY recomended if you are a Marlene Dietrich fan, even with the bad sound.
Rating: 
Summary: Morocco depicted 1930 "groupies" of the foreign legion
Review: Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper are the reluctant lovers--she is looking for a wealthy, comfortable existence and he is just a foreign legion soldier of little or no consequence. Marlene makes fun of the gypsy-like groupies who make a habit of following after the legionairres to be their "groupies". She, after all, has Adolfe Menjoui, a weathy patron as her boyfriend; so who needs Gary Cooper? Well, it turns out, she does and to her chagrin--she becomes part of that horrible, mass of women running after their men through wars and strife. At the end she watches them all running, running and then to Adolfe Menjoi's shock she starts running too; thus forsaking all her beautiful clothes and material possessions throwing away her shoes and going barefoot --running into the desert after her one true love and soulmate--the soldier (played by young and handsome, Gary Cooper). What a great finish!
Rating:
Summary: Morocco depicted 1930 "groupies" of the foreign legion
Review: Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper are the reluctant lovers--she is looking for a wealthy, comfortable existence and he is just a foreign legion soldier of little or no consequence. Marlene makes fun of the gypsy-like groupies who make a habit of following after the legionairres to be their "groupies". She, after all, has Adolfe Menjoui, a weathy patron as her boyfriend; so who needs Gary Cooper? Well, it turns out, she does and to her chagrin--she becomes part of that horrible, mass of women running after their men through wars and strife. At the end she watches them all running, running and then to Adolfe Menjoi's shock she starts running too; thus forsaking all her beautiful clothes and material possessions throwing away her shoes and going barefoot --running into the desert after her one true love and soulmate--the soldier (played by young and handsome, Gary Cooper). What a great finish!
Rating:
Summary: CLASSIC KITSCH
Review: Marlene Dietrich's first Hollywood film, and perhaps Von Sternberg's most effective piece of romantic mythmaking. It's enchantingly silly, full of soulful grand passions, drifting cigarette smoke, and a few too many pictorial shots of The Foreign Legion marching to and fro. As Amy Jolly, a mysterious woman with a past, that quintessential femme fatale of film, Marlene had delicacy and an uncanny ability to soften her very expressive face; her acting was highly praised back in 1930 when she was hailed as the "new Garbo". Jolly arrives in Morocco and gets a job singing in a rough cafe; you feel she's a real performer here: when she comes out to sing, her energy level soars. For her first number, she appears in top hat, white tie and tails; a Legionnaire (Gary) hushes the racous, jeering crowd. In a daring moment, she then eyes a woman at a table, kisses her on the mouth and tosses a flower to Cooper! When Dietrich shows off her long sleek legs and sings WHAT AM I BID FOR MY APPLES, Gary knows JUST what to offer! The contrast of her high, rounded forehead and Madonna-like face with her low, uncouth voice provides an extraordinary sexual charge; her torso is sturdier than in her later movies and face looks rather ethereal. A downright fascinating excursion into the world of antique classic talkies, this is a great example of what the Sternberg/Dietrich offered the public.
Rating:
Summary: CLASSIC KITSCH
Review: Marlene Dietrich's first Hollywood film, and perhaps Von Sternberg's most effective piece of romantic mythmaking. It's enchantingly silly, full of soulful grand passions, drifting cigarette smoke, and a few too many pictorial shots of The Foreign Legion marching to and fro. As Amy Jolly, a mysterious woman with a past, that quintessential femme fatale of film, Marlene had delicacy and an uncanny ability to soften her very expressive face; her acting was highly praised back in 1930 when she was hailed as the "new Garbo". Jolly arrives in Morocco and gets a job singing in a rough cafe; you feel she's a real performer here: when she comes out to sing, her energy level soars. For her first number, she appears in top hat, white tie and tails; a Legionnaire (Gary) hushes the racous, jeering crowd. In a daring moment, she then eyes a woman at a table, kisses her on the mouth and tosses a flower to Cooper! When Dietrich shows off her long sleek legs and sings WHAT AM I BID FOR MY APPLES, Gary knows JUST what to offer! The contrast of her high, rounded forehead and Madonna-like face with her low, uncouth voice provides an extraordinary sexual charge; her torso is sturdier than in her later movies and face looks rather ethereal. A downright fascinating excursion into the world of antique classic talkies, this is a great example of what the Sternberg/Dietrich offered the public.
Rating:
Summary: Romance and Adventure in North Africa
Review: MOROCCO is a very early Marlene Dietrich film directed by Josef von Sternberg. Dietrich, Gary Cooper and Adolph Menjou give excellent performances. The scene in a nightclub where Dietrich passes her apartment key to French Legionnaire Cooper is priceless. MOROCCO is probably a very good movie for 1930 and it gives a strong hint of the greatness Dietrich and Josef von Sternberg will achieve in later movies. However, it is clearly not quite as good as SHANGHAI EXPRESS and some of their other collaborations.MOROCCO received Oscar nominations but no awards for Best Director, Actress (Marlene Dietrich), Cinematography and Art Direction.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Sternberg/Dietrich collaboration
Review: Simplistic but highly effective triangle love story of legionaire(Cooper), cafe girl(Marlene) and older wealthy suitor(Menjou). While maintaining her relationship with a wealthy suitor, Amy finds a shy but handsome soldier in Gary Cooper. The story is not complicated but rather accurate for real life situations. While Dietrich's character is fascinated with Cooper, her mercenary slant keeps Menjou in the forefront of her plans. We can see the love growing between the young couple but we know that Cooper has no chance. Or does he? The final scene is beautiful and draws me back to this film repeatedly. Morocco launched Dietrich in America and started a 6 film collaboration between Josef von Sternberg and Marlene which produced some of the most provocative films of the 1930's. I believe this is a must see for classic film buffs. Highly recommended for Dietrich fans, von Sternberg fans, pre-code fans and classic film fans in general. It is not for the kids (they'll get bored!).
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