Yella (2007)

Yella is estranged from her possessive and violent husband; but he can't quite bring himself to give her up. When their fraught interaction finally comes to dramatic conclusion, Yella's life takes an odd shift.

Director:

Christian Petzold

Writer:

Christian Petzold

Stars:

Nina Hoss, Devid Striesow, Hinnerk Schönemann

6 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Nina Hoss	...	Yella Fichte
Devid Striesow	...	Philipp
Hinnerk Schönemann	...	Ben
Burghart Klaußner	...	Dr. Gunthen
Barbara Auer	...	Barbara Gunthen
Christian Redl	...	Yellas Vater
Selin Bademsoy	...	Dr. Gunthens Tochter (as Selin Barbara Petzold)
Wanja Mues	...	Sprenger
Michael Wittenborn	...	Dr. Schmidt-Ott
Martin Brambach	...	Dr. Fritz
Joachim Nimtz	...	Prietzel
Peter Benedict	...	Dr. Friedrichs Anwalt Oliver
Ian Norval	...	Rezeptionist
Peter Knaack	...	Insolvenzverwalter
Thomas Giese	...	Kassierer

Storyline

Christian Petzold's drama deals with a woman, who leaves her hometown for a promising job and a new life, but is haunted by the truths of the past. As her marriage to Ben broke and her professional career has no future in her native town in the Eastern part of Germany, Yella has decided to search for a job in the West. When she gets to know Philipp, a smart executive at a private equity company in Hanover, she becomes his assistant and gets involved into the world of ruthless and big business. Realizing her dreams could come true with Philipp's help, she starts hearing voices and sounds from her past, which menace her new and better life...

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Plot Keywords:

woman | abusive husband | one word title | water | suicide | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

16 May 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Йелла

Filming Locations:

Hannover, Lower Saxony, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Schramm Film Koerner & Weber,Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF),ARTE

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The plot and conflicts are nearly identical to Herk Harvey's Carnival of Souls (1962). Only the setting, context and some characters are different. The original screenplay by John Clifford is not credited as a source.

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Connections

Follows Die innere Sicherheit (2000)

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Soundtracks

Road to Cairo
Written and composed by David Ackles
Performed by Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity
Courtesy of Warner/Chapell Music Germany GmbH & Co. KG
Courtesy of Universal Music GmbH

User Reviews

Mood better than story

In Christian Petzold's film 'Yella', a young woman stalked by her husband after leaving him slowly rebuilds her life, and self-respect, through starting a relationship with a criminal businessman. But it's not clear how much of the story is real, and how much is the product of her traumatised mind. In its conclusion, the film resolves this question, and the answer is almost inevitably disappointing; the kick in the tail insufficiently surprising or satisfying. What is good, however, is most of what precedes the ending, as the viewer is drawn into a world intriguingly on the balance of normalcy and the sinister, as seen by a woman herself on the edge. It's nicely underplayed and there's scarcely a wasted scene; it's just a shame that the final resolution has little new to add.