Directors: Rainer Werner Fassbinder and New German Cinema
As a leading figure in New German Cinema, Rainer Werner Fassbinder was a part of a generation that proclaimed in 1962, “The old cinema is dead. We believe in a new cinema.” In celebration of his birthday, we present a collection of films from this radical movement that sought to confront the social and artistic concerns of its time.
Wings of Desire
(Der Himmel über Berlin)
There are angels on the streets of Berlin.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany, France • 1987
- Director Wim Wenders
- Cast Bruno Ganz, Otto Sander, Solveig Dommartin, Curt Bois, Peter Falk, Hans Martin Stier
- Genre Drama, Fantasy, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Lola
A cabaret singer pits a corrupt property developer against the new high-minded and principled building commissioner in postwar Germany.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1981
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Barbara Sukowa, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Mario Adorf, Matthias Fuchs, Helga Feddersen, Karin Baal
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel
Marianne and Juliane
(Die bleierne Zeit)
Two sisters, one a journalist and one a terrorist, fight for women’s civil rights in very different ways.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1981
- Director Margarethe von Trotta
- Cast Jutta Lampe, Barbara Sukowa, Julia Biedermann, Ina Robinski, Rüdiger Vogler, Doris Schade
- Genre Drama
- Available on Kanopy
Nosferatu the Vampyre
(Nosferatu - Phantom der Nacht)
A real estate agent seeks to buy property from Count Dracula, whose true interests lie in the agent's wife.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany, France • 1979
- Director Werner Herzog
- Cast Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, Bruno Ganz, Roland Topor, Walter Ladengast, Martje Grohmann
- Genre Drama, Horror
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Fandor Amazon Channel, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Crackle, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, Shout! Factory TV, Freevee, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel
The Marriage of Maria Braun
(Die Ehe der Maria Braun)
During World War II, a German woman named Maria struggles to live and to love.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1979
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Hanna Schygulla, Klaus Löwitsch, Ivan Desny, George Eagles, Gisela Uhlen, Elisabeth Trissenaar
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Tubi TV
The Tin Drum
(Die Blechtrommel)
A savage, sweeping epic of a German society in chaos.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany, France, Poland • 1979
- Director Volker Schlöndorff
- Cast Mario Adorf, Angela Winkler, David Bennent, Katharina Thalbach, Daniel Olbrychski, Tina Engel
- Genre Drama, History, War
- Available on Criterion Channel, Apple TV
Fox and His Friends
(Faustrecht der Freiheit)
Survival of the fittest.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1975
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Peter Chatel, Karlheinz Böhm, Adrian Hoven, Christiane Maybach, Harry Baer
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum
(Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum)
A housekeeper is harassed by the public for her affair with an alleged terrrorist.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1975
- Director Margarethe von Trotta
- Cast Angela Winkler, Mario Adorf, Dieter Laser, Jürgen Prochnow, Heinz Bennent, Hannelore Hoger
- Genre Crime, Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul
(Angst essen Seele auf)
Finding love at an old age isn't always easy, but when Emmi meets Ali, both their lives are changed.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1974
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Brigitte Mira, El Hedi ben Salem, Barbara Valentin, Irm Hermann, Elma Karlowa, Anita Bucher
- Genre Romance, Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video
Alice in the Cities
(Alice in den Städten)
A German writer journeys with a young girl through Europe in a quest to find her grandmother.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1974
- Director Wim Wenders
- Cast Rüdiger Vogler, Yella Rottländer, Lisa Kreuzer, Edda Köchl, Ernest Boehm, Sam Presti
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
World on a Wire
(Welt am Draht)
Cybernetics engineer Fred Stiller uncovers a massive corporate conspiracy involving a virtual reality computer project.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1973
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Klaus Löwitsch, Barbara Valentin, Mascha Rabben, Karl-Heinz Vosgerau, Wolfgang Schenck, Günter Lamprecht
- Genre Drama, Science Fiction, Thriller, Mystery
- Available on Criterion Channel
Aguirre, the Wrath of God
(Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes)
A breathtaking journey into the heart of darkness.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany, Mexico • 1972
- Director Werner Herzog
- Cast Klaus Kinski, Helena Rojo, Del Negro, Ruy Guerra, Peter Berling, Cecilia Rivera
- Genre Adventure, Drama, History
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Fandor Amazon Channel, History Vault, Cohen Media Amazon Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, VUDU Free, Shout! Factory TV, Freevee, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel
The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
(Die bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant)
Sex is the ultimate weapon.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany • 1972
- Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder
- Cast Margit Carstensen, Hanna Schygulla, Katrin Schaake, Eva Mattes, Gisela Fackeldey, Irm Hermann
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Amazon Video
Young Törless
(Der junge Törless)
A shy boy at boarding school does nothing as his classmates bully a fellow student - until the torture goes too far.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- West Germany, France • 1966
- Director Volker Schlöndorff
- Cast Mathieu Carrière, Marian Seidowsky, Bernd Tischer, Fred Dietz, Lotte Ledl, Jean Launay
- Genre Drama, History, Thriller
- Available on Criterion Channel