Director Josef Von Sternberg made eight films with Marlene Dietrich, many of which are regarded as masterpieces of cinema. This, their last collaboration, isn't quite there, but it's a great film nonetheless. Like the others, it's great at capturing the confusion and conflict of the human heart and how strong and fragile it can be at the same time. The story is about the obsession two men have with a woman who probably lacks the ability to love them back. The older man advises the younger against her, but this is one of those things that can't be learned except by experience.