Despair

"A hysterical comedy"

1978 1h 57m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 48

DramaThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Berlin, 1930, during the rise of Nazism. Hermann Hermann, a Russian emigrant and chocolate manufacturer, married to the capricious Lydia, loses his temper more and more every day when dealing with his workers and other businessmen; until he meets Felix, a vagrant, who seems to be physically identical to him; a disconcerting fact that leads Hermann Hermann to plot a particular way out of a fake world he actually hates.

“A hysterical comedy”

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Cast

Dirk Bogarde
Hermann Hermann
Andréa Ferréol
Lydia Hermann
Klaus Löwitsch
Felix Weber
Volker Spengler
Ardalion
Bernhard Wicki
Orlovius
Armin Meier
Silverman / Sergeant Brown / Foreman
Peter Kern
Müller
Adrian Hoven
Inspector Schelling

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Writers: Tom Stoppard
Languages: English
Countries: Germany

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.6M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

48 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, shot by Michael Ballhaus. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Peer Raben. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Juliane Lorenz shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Dirk Bogarde and Andréa Ferréol and Klaus Löwitsch carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A hysterical comedy".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0077421 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Rainer Werner Fassbinder directs. Michael Ballhaus behind the camera. Peer Raben scores. Juliane Lorenz cuts. Produced in Germany. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.6M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
248 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, shot by Michael Ballhaus. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Peer Raben. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Juliane Lorenz shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Dirk Bogarde and Andréa Ferréol and Klaus Löwitsch carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A hysterical comedy".
8IMDB entry: tt0077421 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 48 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
10Classified under 33 themes, including "berlin, germany", "husband wife relationship", "based on novel or book", "businessman".