Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss (1982)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Stella D

  
  with an icy visual style even more marvelous than 'maria braun', this thinly disguised biopic of the downfall of a famous actress of the third reich is absolutely chilling to watch. fantastic high key b&w photography renders many scenes almost completely white, with odd… More
  with an icy visual style even more marvelous than 'maria braun', this thinly disguised biopic of the downfall of a famous actress of the third reich is absolutely chilling to watch. fantastic high key b&w photography renders many scenes almost completely white, with odd lighting effects and fassbinder's eccentric musical choices reflecting our heroine's descent into madness. many many references for fans of 'sunset blvd'. enjoyed very much!!

• Stefanie C

  
  Chilling! Fassbinder's visual technique complements the morphine induced highs and lows experienced by the star. A harrowing satire of the fickleness of the film industry, public perception, addiction, and the parasites that prosper through exploitation.

• Bruce B

  
  This is from the Criterion Collection, and like most films from the Criterion Collection it takes over half the movie to really get into it. I saw the The BRD Trilogy: Veronika Voss (1982) version. About a Morphine addict. Had english subtitles, Movie is in German. Its rather good.

• Mark A

  
  A bizarre black and white film, in German, with subtitles, that tells the tale of a once famous actress who has fallen on hard times and has come under the sway of an unscrupulous medical practitioner who has a vested interest in her patient's death. These are not very likable… More
  A bizarre black and white film, in German, with subtitles, that tells the tale of a once famous actress who has fallen on hard times and has come under the sway of an unscrupulous medical practitioner who has a vested interest in her patient's death. These are not very likable people. The film spends the first hour or so setting up the various characters and their relations and for the last half hour details the demise of the titular character, Veronica Voss (Rosel Zech). It was during that last half hour that this viewer seemed to lose the thread. The editing took on an entirely different look and seemed to jump between two different times and events without any adequate explanations about the jarring sequences. Something I read about this series, christened the BDR Trilogy, indicated that they were intended as social commentary. Unfortunately, we have lost sight of the context for that discussion, and are left with images that leave one more bewildered than informed. Fassbinder's use of the black and white medium was one of the bright spots for this viewer. Alternating between scenes of near obscurity and shadow, with scenes of brilliant white on white, the director made one feel the contrasts between the gritty nature of reality, and the false promise offered in the doctor's office and apartment suite. The acting was adequate, if a bit overdone at times. The script and editing left one often confused. But the imagery was superb. For that, alone, this viewer gives it three stars.

• Eric B

  
  Basically a German counterpart to "Sunset Boulevard," "Veronika Voss" is a portrait of a fading '50s film queen who's out of work, hooked on morphine but still carries herself like a superstar. Her drug problem comes courtesy of a wicked female physician… More
  Basically a German counterpart to "Sunset Boulevard," "Veronika Voss" is a portrait of a fading '50s film queen who's out of work, hooked on morphine but still carries herself like a superstar. Her drug problem comes courtesy of a wicked female physician who keeps her addicted, drains her fortune and keeps her emotionally and even physically imprisoned. The story's first half is a little sluggish, mostly establishing Voss's character and her doomed affair with a journalist who has been assigned to write her profile. The plot's real meat -- the clash between the concerned lover and the parasitic doctor -- doesn't truly catch fire until the last 40 minutes or so. The film's washed-out, high-contrast, black-and-white look masterfully simulates the ambience of old Hollywood publicity stills, but it's tiring for the eyes. It also distances us from the characters, who often just seem like additional fixtures of the decor. Another unusual directing choice is the conscious overuse of gimmicky dissolves between scenes -- the wild array of irises and wipes serves to continually point out the cinema's artificial world. I'm trying my best to be converted to the wonders of Fassbinder but, as yet, I haven't found one of his films which truly wows me.

• Patrick D

  
  I feel I may be cut for comparing RW Fassbinder to Tarantion, BUT, he works Veronika Voss in the same way QT works all his films. No doubt Fassbinder is a fan of old Hollywood noir and melodrama, and you can see his love for it in the film as it seems he really wants to make one. But… More
  I feel I may be cut for comparing RW Fassbinder to Tarantion, BUT, he works Veronika Voss in the same way QT works all his films. No doubt Fassbinder is a fan of old Hollywood noir and melodrama, and you can see his love for it in the film as it seems he really wants to make one. But with Veronika Voss he possesses the hind sight that was not present back then. He of course borrows and comments on the conventions, but in doing so inserts his own style into it making it a great and outstanding film.

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