Germany Pale Mother

‘Deutschland bleiche Mutter’, FRG 1980, directed by Helma Sanders-Brahms, 151 min, with English subtitles, rating: 16

While her husband Hans is fighting at the front for the Wehrmacht, Lene brings up their daughter in wartime conditions marked by bombings and hunger. But when peace comes, and the couple revert to their gender roles, Lene feels trapped. Her life with a war-traumatized husband in a society overtaken by the economic boom and where the past is suppressed pushes the young woman to the brink – not only metaphorically. 

Featuring: Eva Mattes, Ernst Jacobi, Elisabeth Stepanek, Angelika Thomas, Rainer Friedrichsen 

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