THE LAST COMMAND

An old tsarist general is forced to beg for extra parts in Hollywood films. A famous Russian director, Leo Andreiev, recognises him in a photograph and orders that the old man be given a part in the film he is making, which has as its subject the collapse of Tsarist Russia. Now poor and alone in Hollywood, the general has no choice but to remember the days when he, the Tsar’s cousin, was one of the most powerful men in Russia. For the film, Andreiev gives him the part of a general who fights at the head of his men. Alexander, holding a whip, exalts himself in the part and truly believes he is back in the war: he leads his men to the last assault after inciting them to fight with a speech to the troops. Then, in the spotlight, he falls dead, victim of a collapse…
Based on a story by Lajos Biró and Ernst Lubitsch, ‘The Last Command’ is von Sternberg’s fifth American silent film who, thanks to the success of ‘Underworld’, was able to unleash his considerable auteur ambitions.