Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss

Also known as: Veronika Voss; Secret de Veronika Voss (le)
Genre: psychological melodrama (in black and white)

With: Rosel Zech (Veronika Voss), Hilmar Thate (Robert Krohn), Cornelia Froboess (Henriette), Annemarie Düringer (Dr. Marianne Katz), Doris Schade (Josefa), Erik Schumann (Dr. Edel)

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Release: 1982

Studio: Laura Film, Tango Film, Rialto Film et al.

Rating: R

MBiS score: 8.7/10

Can a Joe Resist a Doll in Dire Straits?

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Story-line: one rainy night in 1955, German sports reporter Robert Krohn comes across a pitiful-looking woman and offers to escort her home. As he gets to know her, he realizes she’s Veronika Voss, a movie star from the Nazi era but also a woman in some sort of trouble.

Pluses: credible acting, a crisp, methodical and intriguing screenplay, a few quirky touches that modulate the drama, appealing photography and production values, shrewd editing and direction, a surprising soundtrack mixing old Top 40 hits, jazzy interludes and percussive flurries.

Minuses: don’t lose patience if the first act feels a bit slow… you’ll find your groove around the 26-minute mark.  

Comments: aside from being a great director, Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1946-1982) worked at a feverish pace: he crafted close to 30 movies in his 13-year career. This one, his swan song, is particularly noticeable for its prominent female character (as other Fassbinder films) and its allusions to the Cold War. VERONIKA VOSS may be considered a tribute to Douglas Sirk (whom Fassbinder admired) and a companion piece to Billy Wilder’s superlative SUNSET BOULEVARD. I’ll always treasure one late scene – a phone conversation between Krohn and Henriette – that shows exquisite timing and lots of cinematic flair. Kudos to Fassbinder and to German cinema!

MBiS

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