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Why was Josef von Sternberg's 1935 version of Crime and Punishment criticized?
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Josef von Sternberg
Josef von Sternberg editing a film.
Josef von Sternberg's 1935 adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment was criticized primarily due to an inadequate budget and a screenplay that took significant liberties with the original literary masterpiece. Although the film was noted for its moody expressionist cinematography by Lucien Ballard, these production and narrative shortcomings hindered its reception.1