Stroheim

by Arthur Lennig

Erich von Stroheim (1885-1957) was one of the giants in American film history. Stubborn, arrogant, and colorful, he saw himself as a cinema artist, which led to conflicts with producers and studio executives who complained about the inflated budgets and extraordinary length of his films. Stroheim achieved great notoriety and success, but he was so uncompromising that he turned his triumph into failure. He was banned from ever directing again and spent his remaining years as an actor. Stroheim's life has been wreathed in myths, many of his own devising. Arthur Lennig scoured European and American archives for details concerning the life of the actor and director, and he counters several long-accepted claims. Stroheim's tales of military experience are almost completely fictitious; the "von" in his name was an affectation adopted at Ellis Island in 1909; and, counter to his own claim, he did not participate in the production of The Birth of a Nation in 1914. Wherever Stroheim lived, he was an a Jew in Vienna, an Austrian in southern California, an American in France. This contributed to an almost pathological need to embellish and obscure his past; yet, it also may have been the key to his genius both behind and in front of the camera. As an actor, Stroheim threw himself into his portrayals of evil men, relishing his epithet, ""The Man You Love to Hate."" As a director, he immersed himself in every facet of production, including script writing and costume design. In 1923 he created his masterpiece Greed, infamous for its eight-hour running time. Stroheim returned to acting, saving some of his finest performances for La Grande Illusion (1937) and Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard (1950), a role he hated, probably because it was too similar to the story of his own life.

Genres: Film, Biography, Nonfiction

532 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Kelsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although rich in description and detail (and complete with many wonderful images) the writing was, at times, rather poor. Worse, it was repetitive. The author described a scene in a film in the chapter "The Artist," and then described it in the same way in the chapter specifically dedicated to that film. THEN, if the scene was similar to one in another film, the author felt the need to describe it once more, as if the reader were too stupid to remember. Additionally, he often made a scant reference to piece of information that could have added to the topic being examined, but instead of briefly detailing it, he simply mentioned that it was available in another book. (This might have been excusable once, but he did this multiple times!) He was dedicated to his subject, having quoted interviews he conducted, etc, but the book would have been much better if he had been even half as devoted to the reader.

[Diana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Superfans and superhaters shouldn't write biographies. The reader can't get a clear picture of the subject when the author is either. This book was written by a superfan (he even named his son Erich) who was far more interested in inserting his own opinions than anything else (of Stroheim, of Hollywood, of films and scripts, of everything). Then there's the fan service: Everything Stroheim did was genius. Every criticism of Stroheim was because the critic couldn't understand him. Even the descriptions of Stroheim's notorious ego and creation of films that were hours and hours long are noted with admiration. Sure, the author pays lip service to the idea that Stroheim was his own worst enemy. But this author doesn't really believe it. So no clear picture of Stroheim can come clear from this book.

I was glad to learn of more of Stroheim's work, and will pursue seeing more of his films. But of course I don't really need to see them, as the author of the book has recited the plot of each in detail. I really, really loathe when authors do that. And this author knew better, but allowed himself this conceit because it would provide a better understanding of Stroheim. But you can touch on themes and obsessions without reciting a plot for 3+ pages, OK?

[Mark Potts · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're reading this, you know who Erich Von Stroheim was. If you know that fact then, you would probably enjoy reading this book.

Written by Arthur Lennig, who also wrote The Count, the wonderful biography of Bela Lugosi that I read last year, this is equally detailed and well-researched by a true fan of the subject. It debunks some myths, sets the record straight on the great man's life and career, where it can, and provides detailed analysis of his films, their origins and production. Knowledgeable, authoritative, definitive.

For fans, and you will know if you are one, this has to be an essential addition to your collection.

If you are merely curious, it will probably be too much for you.

[I.D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exhaustive and effusive look at the man and his movies. It tends to spend a little too much with story recapping (almost scene by scene) but for the lost and or destroyed movies this is the only way anyone can know what they were originally like, so in some cases it’s great. For non-directed films it’s not really necessary.
Occasionally the author goes into assuming that things were included into other movies by Stroheim based solely on guesswork but apart from that you will get a strong sense of him as a person and actor/director so mission accomplished.