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| Director: Billy Wilder
Actors: Jean Arthur, Marlene Dietrich, John Lund, Millard Mitchell, Peter Von Zerneck
Studio: Universal Studios
Buy Used: $28.99
New (1) Used (10) Collectible (5) from $28.99
Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 13873
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), German (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 116 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0783217471
UPC: 096898132435
EAN: 9780783217475
ASIN: 0783217471
Theatrical Release Date: August 20, 1948
Release Date: September 29, 1998
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-9 of 9
 WHAT ABOUT A DVD? June 12, 2006
W. Hidalgo Salas (Lima, Peru)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
WHEN ARE THEY GOING TO EDIT THIS ONE IN DVD FORMAT?
Post-War Activities November 25, 2005
Samantha Kelley (USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
A Foreign Affair is a film about post-WWII Germany filled with demolished buildings, the American army, and sex. Some American Congressmen (and women) go to check on the status of the moral and the troops only to find that things are far different than they are perceived to be back home.
Jean Arthur plays a frumpy Congresswoman out to find corruption and get rid of it. Arthur is funny and appropriately prudish in her role. She is an average beauty with a knack for being nervous and likable, a girl-next-door type. Her character falls in love with an army officer played by John Lund who seduces her in order to hide the fact that his lover is a former Nazi.
John Lund is an adept actor who gets to show off his skills by being humorous, serious, and romantic all in the same film.
Marlene Dietrich plays the Nazi lover, a departure from her true wartime image. She is wry, intelligent, and seductive in her role, a true asset to the film.
There are three songs in this film as there often are in Dietrich films. The first is "Black Market," a low key nightclub song which is mostly spoken. It is a complex song lyrically, but the melody is mellow and slow. The second song is "Illusion," an absolutely gorgeous tune sang surprisingly well by Dietrich. This is the song that will stick in your head after the film is over. The last song is called "The Ruins of Berlin," a fun song sung in Dietrich's typical vibrating voice.
This film is filled with drama and comedy, making it appealing for a wide audience. The ending is appropriate and the story is never boring.
Marlene's a treat for the eyes in this one... May 12, 1999
Jenny (vlad@pop.usit.net) (Tennessee US of A)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Believe it or not, the love goddess of the 20th century is first seen brushing her teeth in this film. It just keeps getting better, honestly. Jean Arthur's a delight, John Lund is flustered, but Marlene's the one to watch.
 A Black Market Romance August 22, 2005
Marc Flanagan (Santa Monica, Ca.)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett adapted this jewel from a post war novel and the dialogue crackels with wit and intelligence from the first frame on. It is a wonderfully cynical take on The Marshall Plan and how three lives intersect in the bombed out ruins of Berlin, circa 1947. Dietrich is delicious as a caberet singers trying to survive after being a plaything of a Gestapo Colonel. In her late forties, Dietrich lights up the screen she appears to be ageless. Jean Arthur is playing a corn fed, button downed Congress woman from Iowa and these two ladies vye for the affections of an American Captain played by John Lund (who's very appealing in this role). Lots of social commentary woven into the story and the footage of the ruins of Berlin is staggering. This is a fine Wilder film that doesn't always make it on his list of achievments but it is worth the time and money to hear that great Wilder and Brackett badinage.
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