IMDb > Despair (1978)

Overview

User Rating:
7.3/10   362 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?

Down 1% 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:

Drama | Fantasy more

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:

Worst Fassbinder I've ever seen. 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:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Mono


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

This single movie cost more than all of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's previous films combined. more


FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
0 out of 25 people found the following comment useful.
Worst Fassbinder I've ever seen., 8 November 2002
3/10
Author: wedgwood from nz

This is one classic I was in no mood for at the time of watching it. In the right mood, I suppose even the most boring, confusing and pretentious films can appear lively and spirited.

Hermann is a Russian living in Germany with his completely idiotic Russian wife whose only talent is letting him bang her. Whereas even this right isnt exclusive since she is also carrying on with her red-headed bohemian slob of a cousin. Here is the weird part -Hermann keeps seeing himself everywhere, in particular watching he and his wife having sex. He mistakes this for out of body experiences, or split personality and does nothing to help himself out of it, instead entertaining and even encouraging it. Soon he begins to see his own face in other people. He befreinds a tramp who he believes is his look-alike and convinces him to be his body double to create an alibi while he is committing a crime. He dresses him up in his clothes, puts his papers in his pocket and gives him a shave -then he shoots and kills him. Hermann runs away with the understanding he has staged his own death. Obvious to everyone else is that it wasnt him at all, as his passport photo and the dead mans face don't even remotely resemble each other.

To be perfectly honest I tuned out of the dialogue after this point and only occasionally glanced at the screen. Despair was not improving, resulting in a complete waste of time. From what I saw it only gets weirder but perhaps with concentration it might begin to fall together. I like bizarre films, and even pretentious ones sometimes. Despair was just too damn over-dramatised or something. I just felt like the guy was digging his own grave and then constantly bitching about it like it was someone elses fault.

Yes, the acting was good, but sorry, the characters sucked.

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