Ep #32 - New German Cinema in the 60s

Don’t feel too bad if you don’t really know what was happening culturally in 1960s West Germany. The truth is not much was happening, at least for the first half of the decade. But once the mid-’60s hit, an interesting chorus of voices and visions started to emerge from Germany’s youth. Where there had been a heap of churned out fluff, suddenly filmmakers like Werner Herzog, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Alexander Kluge and other similar minded folks began to pop up. While New German Cinema truly came of age in the 1970s, a look back at its earlier beginnings make it clear that this movement, while varied in styles and focuses, tapped directly into a universal truth that helped to define the post-Nazi generation.

In this episode, Bart and Jenna take a closer look at several of these early New German films that walk the line between the personal and the political in order to navigate feelings of guilt and anger. They come away thinking that not only did Germany have more of a legitimate reason to revolt than most restless youth movements of the era, but, dang, did they sure know how to make great films about it.

The following films are discussed:

• Not Reconciled (1965)
Nicht versöhnt oder Es hilft nur Gewalt, wo Gewalt herrscht
Directed by Jean-Marie Straub, Danièle Huillet
Starring Heinrich Hargesheimer, Carlheinz Hargesheimer, Martha Staendner

• Young Törless (1966)
Der junge Törless
Directed by Volker Schlöndorff
Starring Mathieu Carrière, Marian Seidowsky, Bernd Tischer

• Yesterday Girl (1966)
Abschied von gestern - (Anita G.)
Directed by Alexander Kluge
Starring Alexandra Kluge, Günter Mack, Eva Maria Meineke

• Signs of Life (1968)
Lebenszeichen
Directed by Werner Herzog
Starring Peter Brogle, Wolfgang Reichmann, Athina Zacharopoulou

• Katzelmacher (1969)
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Starring Hanna Schygulla, Lilith Ungerer, Rudolf Waldemar Brem

• Hunting Scenes from Bavaria (1969)
Jagdszenen aus Niederbayern
Directed by Peter Fleischmann
Starring Martin Sperr, Angela Winkler, Hanna Schygulla

• I'm an Elephant, Madame (1969)
Ich bin ein Elefant, Madame
Directed by Peter Zadek
Starring Heinz Baumann, Wolfgang Schneider, Guido Baumann