IMDb > Despair (1978)

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Overview

User Rating:
7.3/10   363 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 18% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Vladimir Nabokov (novel)
Tom Stoppard (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Despair on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
20 September 1978 (France) more
Genre:
Plot:
Germany in the early 1930s. Against the backdrop of the Nazis' rise, Hermann Hermann, a Russian émigré and chocolate magnate... more | add synopsis
Awards:
3 wins & 1 nomination more
NewsDesk:
Martin Amis on Vladimir Nabokov's work
 (From The Guardian - Film News. 13 November 2009, 4:06 PM, PST)

User Comments:
Visually stunning, masterfully acted, brilliantly directedadaptation of a complex Nabokov novella. more (7 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Dirk Bogarde ... Hermann Hermann
Andréa Ferréol ... Lydia Hermann
Klaus Löwitsch ... Felix Weber
Volker Spengler ... Ardalion
Peter Kern ... Müller
Alexander Allerson ... Mayer
Gottfried John ... Perebrodov
Hark Bohm ... Doctor
Bernhard Wicki ... Orlovius
Adrian Hoven ... Inspector Schelling
Roger Fritz ... Inspector Braun
Y Sa Lo ... Elsie
Armin Meier ... 1st and 2nd Twin and Foreman
Ingrid Caven ... Hotel receptionist
Voli Geiler ... Madam
more
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Despair (France)
Despair - Eine Reise ins Licht
more
Runtime:
119 min
Language:
Color:
Color (Eastmancolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Trevor Howard was asked to play a major role. more

FAQ

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13 out of 14 people found the following comment useful.
Visually stunning, masterfully acted, brilliantly directedadaptation of a complex Nabokov novella., 29 January 2000
10/10
Author: Mo Mo from New Paltz, NY

It's hard for me to stay away from excessive use of superlatives when commenting on what I consider to be Fassbinder's masterpiece. Michael Ballhaus has filmed more than a dozen Fassbinder films, and Despair is a fine example of the value of their collaboration. Several images are stunningly memorable: the water dripping on the eggshells in the sink; the circular tracking shot through the glass walls of Hermann Hermann's office revealing him in his cage; and the auto-voyeurism of Hermann watching himself in bed with his voluptuous, vacant Frau. Doing justice to Nabokov's compelling dialog and canny character studies has been well done before in Kubrick's Lolita, but Tom Stoppard's rendition here was a perfect match for Fassbinder's (and Ballhaus's) visual feast. And if you are somehow not yet a fan of Dirk Bogarde, seeing his performance in Despair will surely make you as ardent an admirer of his work as I have become.

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