Own the rights?
When I read about Fassbinder I heard that many of his films were about characters who were not well accepted into society. This analysis turned out to be a main theme of the The Stationmaster's Wife. A bleak film about the, stationmaster, Xaverl Bolweiser, and his insatiable wife, Hanni Bolweiser. Xaverl is a hard-working man in a Bavarian town and cannot stand to be away from his wife, Hanni. After watching La Bete Humaine, I suppose that it was common for train station workers to live very close to the station. Xaverl takes full advantage of this situation by constantly leaving his duty to check up on his wife. He loves his wife dearly, but he smothers her and therefore causes her blatant infidelity. Hanni finds pleasure elsewhere first with a butcher, who she is also loaning money to. And with the hairdresser. Xaverl's abandonment from society comes from the constant catcalling from his Bavarian neighbors. They make fun of him every time he goes out, but when he returns home his wife says that people are complaining that he never goes out. Xaverl mopes through his situation and is finally able to find some time alone in the end.This is my introduction to Fassbinder, so there may be some knowledge from previous films that I need to read into this. New Yorker Video's DVD transfer was mediocre, but Fassbinder uses his modest budget to create some amazing shots. He makes use of mirrors and foreground objects to give depth to the production design and he knows how to project a deep sense of loss through storytelling. I was impressed with the film, but the poor DVD transfer hurts the overall emotional impact of the picture.
You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.
