Lili Marleen (1981)

In Switzerland German singer 'Willie' falls in love with Jewish composer 'Robert' who offers resistance to the Nazis by helping refugees. But his family thinks that 'Willie' is also a Nazi ... See full summary »

Director:

Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Writers:

Manfred Purzer (original screenplay), Joshua Sinclair (screenplay),

Stars:

Hanna Schygulla, Giancarlo Giannini, Mel Ferrer

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hanna Schygulla	...	Willie
Giancarlo Giannini	...	Robert
Mel Ferrer	...	David Mendelsson
Karl-Heinz von Hassel	...	Henkel (as Karl Heinz von Hassel)
Erik Schumann	...	von Strehlow
Hark Bohm	...	Taschner
Gottfried John	...	Aaron
Karin Baal	...	Anna Lederer
Christine Kaufmann	...	Miriam
Udo Kier	...	Drewitz
Roger Fritz	...	Kauffmann
Rainer Will	...	Bernt
Raúl Gimenez	...	Blonsky (as Raul Giminez)
Adrian Hoven	...	Ginsberg
Willy Harlander	...	Prosel

Storyline

In Switzerland German singer 'Willie' falls in love with Jewish composer 'Robert' who offers resistance to the Nazis by helping refugees. But his family thinks that 'Willie' is also a Nazi and may be a risk for them. One day 'Willie' helps 'Robert' but has to stay in Germany. As Willie starts to sing the song 'Lili Marleen' she becomes very famous and every soldier hears that song via radio at 8 pm. Although even Hitler wants to meet her she still does not forget 'Robert' and helps to smuggle photos of concentration camps to the free Switzerland. When 'Robert' wants to visit her he is captured he can finally get free again but he will never see Willie again until war is over.

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Plot Keywords:

nazi | song | german | jewish | soldier | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance | War

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

West Germany

Language:

English German

Release Date:

14 January 1981 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Lili Marlene

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

DEM 10,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), CIP Filmproduktion GmbH, Rialto Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

West Germany's official Foreign Language Film submission at the 54th Academy Awards. The film failed to be nominated.

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Goofs

Robert is put in a Gestapo cell to find out who he is; apparently at least a week passes. Finally the ruthless ones find out that he knows Willi, the star, and decide to have them confronted, yet at this point he looks his clean-shaved best and is even better dressed than on the night of his arrest.

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Connections

Featured in Die Nacht der Regisseure (1995)

User Reviews

Daring for the Eighties, boring today

I am terribly sorry, I know that Faßbinder still is called one of the greatest directors in post-war Germany and that most of his films are considered "master-pieces", but when I see "Lili Marleen" today, in 2004, I wonder what everyone is up and away about this movie! The acting is simply terrible - Hanna Schygulla is all the smiling like an idiot! -, the changings between Nazi-glamour and battlefields are ridiculous, the whole film looks as if it was made within two days in an attic. Probably it was exactly that way and many people seem to take this for "real art", but for me this movie is simply bad & cheap. Compare this to Viscontis "La Caduta degli Dei" and tell me again that "Lili Marleen" is a good movie...