Veronika Voss

Veronika Voss (Die Sensucht der Veronika Voss), 1982

West Germany, DVD, Black & White, 104’, German

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Cast: Rosel Zech, Hilmar Thate, Cornelia Froboess

The second film of Fassbinder’s ‘BRD Trilogy,’ Veronika Voss is a wicked satire of his country disguised as a 1950s melodrama – especially of the type produced by the UFA Studios. A once popular star, Veronika Voss is now a post-war drug addict living in Munich. Haunted by her past glories in the film world, she is struggling for survival when she meets a sports reporter named Krohn who is intrigued by Veronika’s mysterious beauty. But as their relationship develops, the dark secrets of the past are revealed. Based on a true story, this melancholic film looks at the post-war economic miracle in West Germany while questioning the country’s morality and honesty through the female character. The film was awarded the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival that year. A few months later Fassbinder would be found dead in his room.