“The Scarlet Empress is Sternberg's version of the life of Catherine the Great, who converted political power into sexual capital and vice versa. An early montage from a child's bedside reading of Czars relishing in the delights of torture chambers, axing heads down a row of chopping blocks, and ringing a bell with a human clapper disorients the viewer from any prior film experience or any that he is ever likely to come across again. The decor is among the most incredible ever put on film; Sam Jaffe gives a bizarre performance as the pop-eyed, moronic Grand Duke; and the orgy and torture scenes smack of lunacy.”