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The Sinner (1951 film)

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The Sinner
Directed byWilli Forst
Written by
Produced byRolf Meyer
Starring
CinematographyVáclav Vích
Edited byMax Brenner
Music byTheo Mackeben
Production
company
  • Junge Film-Union Rolf Meyer
Distributed byHerzog-Filmverleih
Release date
  • 18 January 1951 (1951-01-18)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryWest Germany
LanguageGerman

The Sinner (German: Die Sünderin) is a 1951 West German romantic drama film directed by Willi Forst and starring Hildegard Knef, Gustav Fröhlich and Änne Bruck.[1] It was shot at the Bendestorf Studios and on location in Naples, Rome and Positano. The film's sets were designed by the art director Franz Schroedter.

Plot

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It is a love story between the prostitute Marina and the unsuccessful artist Alexander, who suffers from a cancer which makes him blind and ill. They are happy for a short period in Italy. Despite Marina's loving care, Alexanders health gets worse and they together commit suicide in the end.[2]

Scandal

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It was one of the first German films to break several taboos: nudity, suicide and euthanasia. In the Germany of the 1950s, this caused a lot of negative reactions both by politicians and the Roman Catholic Church as well as parts of the Protestant church.[2][3] The widespread opposition culminated in ultimately unsuccessful calls for a ban of the film, which paradoxically gave it a prominent place in German film history. Despite or because of the scandal, Die Sünderin proved to be the breakthrough role of Hildegard Knef.

Cast

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Notes and references

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  1. ^ Holloway, Ron (2002-02-02). "Hildegard Knef". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  2. ^ a b "The Scandal surrounding The Sinner [Die Sünderin] (1951)". German History in Documents and Images (GHDI). Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  3. ^ Robert von Dassanowsky (10 October 2005). Austrian Cinema: A History. McFarland. p. 140. ISBN 978-0-7864-3733-7.
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