A Foreign Affair

Finally - another Billy Wilder film in the Billy Wilder fest that I hadn't seen before. Interestingly, both feature Marlene Dietrich. And to be honest, I'd be fine if every movie I watched for the next 6 months featured her. She's unbelievable.

The film is set in post World War II Berlin. Dietrich is a singer carrying on an affair with an Army colonel played by John Lund. The problem arises when a straitlaced Iowa congresswoman (Jean Arthur) comes to Berlin to check on the rebuilding effort and is appalled by the moral ineptitude of what she finds in the city.

The film has some pretty incredible footage of the bombed out Berlin. It also features some great back and forth dialogue and one great romantic scene framed by file cabinets. And of course, it has Dietrich.

While this isn't one of my favorite Billy Wilder films, it does the job. It's funny, smart, and entertaining. Plus you've got to give the guy credit for making a comedy set in what should be a very unfunny environment.

Directed by Billy Wilder
1948
TCM