Fassbinder's Germany: History, Identity, Subject

by Thomas Elsaesser

Rainer Werner Fassbinder is one of the most prominent and important authors of post-war European cinema. Thomas Elsaesser is the first to write a thoroughly analytical study of his work. He stresses the importance of a closer understanding of Fassbinder's career through a re-reading of his films as textual entities. Approaching the work from different thematic and analytical perspectives, Elsaesser offers both an overview and a number of detailed readings of crucial films, while also providing a European context for Fassbinder's own coming to terms with fascism.

Genres: Film, History, Nonfiction, Germany

396 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Thomas Elsaesser was a German film historian and professor of Film and Television Studies at the University of Amsterdam.

Reviews

[Chris Molnar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The thoughts he finally gets to, towards the end - about Rainer Werner Fassbinder's anti-identitarian transgression for its own sake (in order to tease out bourgeois attitudes), how everything and nothing is psychology and symbolism, traversing boundaries as a "problem solving machine" leading to ego death - are about as astute as you're going to get on why Fassbinder is so great, unique, and probably the best filmmaker of all time, certainly as it concerns the infinite complexities of the human heart.

A lot of lumpy academic-speak to get there, but if you're a fan it's worth it.

[Tom Newth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elsaesser can talk the academic talk pants off most people, both historically and in cinema theory. He goes deeper into the former than I can comment on other than to say it is fascinating. On the latter, however, he makes a really surprising number of small textual mistakes on the films (and mentions "the gay scene" in Fox & his Friends..), sometimes as significant part of a larger point. And many of the academic theses take flight to the realm of fantasy. Read with care, however: excellent.

[Dylan Kiewel · Rating 4 out of 5]

a work as academic as this (50000 references?!), as given to freudianisms (bleh), as didactic, is usually not my bag but i think elsaesser makes it mostly worth it/keeps his aim true/his writing interesting. provides generously ample context on the whole career/the whole project, new found ways to appreciate the key films, new linkages between the films highlighting a general assertion of the unique "purposiveness" of fassbinder's career, his drive to cover the gamut of german history, to look at its ugly face square in the mirror and at the same time look at himself. a journey of caustic antagonism venturing for catharsis (and probably never finding any).

[Danny · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can't help but be fascinated by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Be it as a person, a character, a filmmaker, a critic or an artist, there are so many aspects of him that you will never run out of discussion material or opinions.

I believe that the implication thereof is that academic writing such as this book will inevitably have a lot of personal perspectives on it. Although there is plenty of the interesting analytical work - I especially enjoyed the chapter on the BRD trilogy - the last chapter is a great example of the mystery and myth that still surrounds Fassbinder.

Still, this remains a thoroughly informative book that, even if it gets quite heavy at times, is a very enjoyable entry into Fassbinder territory.