The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant

For the opera by Gerald Barry, see The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (opera).

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Screenplay by	Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Based on	Die Bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant by Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Produced by	Michael Fengler
Starring	Margit Carstensen Hanna Schygulla Irm Hermann Katrin Schaake Eva Mattes Gisela Fackeldey
Cinematography	Michael Ballhaus
Edited by	Thea Eymèsz
Music by	Giuseppe Verdi The Platters The Walker Brothers
Production companies	Filmverlag der Autoren Tango Film
Distributed by	Filmverlag der Autoren
Release dates	25 June 1972 (1972-06-25) (Berlin) 5 October 1972 (1972-10-05) (West Germany)
Running time	124 minutes
Country	West Germany
Language	German
Budget	DEM 325,000

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (German: Die Bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant) is a 1972 West German psychological romantic drama film written and directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, based on his play of the same name. Featuring an all-female cast, the film takes place entirely in the home of narcissistic fashion designer Petra von Kant (Margit Carstensen), following the changing dynamics in her relationships with other women. The film was entered into the 22nd Berlin International Film Festival. The movie is regarded by many to be Fassbinder's magnum opus and a classic of New German Cinema.

Plot

Petra von Kant is a prominent fashion designer based in Bremen. The film is almost totally restricted to her apartment's bedroom, decorated by a huge reproduction of Poussin's Midas and Bacchus.

Petra's marriages have ended in death or divorce. Her first husband Pierre was a great love, who died in a car accident while Petra was pregnant; the second began the same way, but ended in disgust. Petra lives with Marlene, another designer, whom she treats as a slave.

First act

Petra is shown being awoken by Marlene. She begins her day and gets dressed while her assistant attends to her. Petra makes a phone call to her mother, makes demands of Marlene (including slow-dancing), and dons a brown wig just before she receives a visitor.

Petra talks to her cousin Sidonie about their male relationships. Meanwhile, Marlene does the work and acts as hostess. Sidonie's friend Karin Thim joins them. Karin, newly returned to Germany after residing in Sydney for five years, is a desirable but shallow 23-year-old woman. Petra, immediately attracted to Karin, suggests she become a model. Karin agrees to return the following day.

Second act

Petra quickly falls in love with Karin. The next day, with Marlene showing clearer signs of frustration, Petra, now wearing a larger and dark wig, offers to support Karin while she trains to be a model. Karin's husband has remained in Sydney, though Petra is only momentarily put off by this revelation. The women soon show their incompatibility. Petra had a happy childhood and came from a home where the good things in life were always stressed. Karin's father was a toolmaker, and she always felt neglected by her parents. Petra loved mathematics at school, but Karin could never understand algebra. Petra has a daughter, whom she rarely sees, but reassures herself that her daughter is at the best possible boarding school.

Karin's parents are now both dead. She says people reject her when they find out about her history, but Petra now admits to a great affection for her, even stronger after having heard her family history. Petra orders Marlene to get a bottle of Sekt. Karin goes into more detail about her parents' death. Her father was laid off because of his age. In a drunken stupor, he killed Karin's mother and then hanged himself. Karin feels she has drifted in her life; her husband in Sydney treated her as a slave and offered no reprieve from her past, but Petra insists this is about to change. Marlene returns with the bottle of Sekt in a cooler and silently returns to her typing as Petra and Karin toast. Petra promises to make Karin a great model; Marlene stops typing and glares at Petra. Petra says that life is predestined, people are brutal and hard, and everyone is replaceable. Discovering the expense of Karin's hotel, she suggests she move in with her. While Petra admits to being in love with Karin, Karin can only say she likes Petra.

Third act

About six months later, Petra, resplendent in a red wig, is getting dressed, while Karin is in bed reading a magazine. Petra cancels a flight to Madrid over the telephone, a habit which Karin thinks is pointless. Karin thinks Marlene is strange, but Petra reassures her that Marlene loves her. Karin admits that she had been out until 6 am the previous night and slept with an African-American soldier. Freddy, Karin's husband, telephones from Zurich. It emerges that they have been in contact by letter, and that Karin is rejoining him. Petra calls her a "rotten little whore", and Karin responds that being with her is less strenuous than working the streets. She asks Petra to book a flight to Frankfurt, where she is to meet her husband, and asks for 500DM from Petra, though Petra freely gives her twice that. A drunk Petra has Marlene drive Karin to the airport.

Fourth act

On Petra's birthday, the bedroom is almost empty. Petra, lying on the floor and now wearing a blond wig, drinks heavily and waits for a phone call from Karin. Her daughter Gaby arrives. Petra tells her little; Gaby admits to being in love with a young man, but so far it is unrequited. Sidonie appears with a birthday present: a doll with blond hair like Karin's. She admits to knowing Karin is in Bremen that day. Petra's mother Valerie arrives and is subjected to abuse. Petra accuses her of being a whore who never worked and lived off her husband. Petra tramples on a china tea service and smashes cups against the wal. Her mother, previously unaware of Karin, is shocked at the thought of her daughter being in love with another woman. Petra says that she hates Gaby and that she never wants to see Sidonie again, but Sidonie stays.

Final act

Later that same night, Petra lies in bed without a wig. Valerie tells her that Gaby cried herself to sleep. Petra is apologetic to her mother, and realizes she wanted to possess Karin rather than love her. Karin calls, and Petra amicably declines seeing her before leaving for Paris. Petra instead offers the chance that they will meet again in the future. Petra turns to Marlene after her mother has left and apologizes for treating her badly. Petra promises all will be different, adding that she will share her life with Marlene. However, Marlene, who has satisfied her personal masochistic desire in submitting to Petra, packs her meager belongings, including a pistol, in her small suitcase and leaves, taking the doll with her.

Cast

• Margit Carstensen as Petra von Kant
• Irm Hermann as Marlene
• Hanna Schygulla as Karin Thimm
• Gisela Fackeldey as Valerie von Kant
• Eva Mattes as Gabriele (Gaby) von Kant
• Katrin Schaake as Sidonie von Grasenabb

Themes

Solitude, love, and the claustrophobic feelings generated by emotional codependency are key themes explored by Fassbinder in The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant. The solitary setting of Petra's bedroom maximizes the dramatic tension while serving as a mirror for her own entrapment.

Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 84% approval rating from 31 reviews. The consensus reads: "A thoughtful drama that grows even more powerful in retrospect, The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant sensitively depicts a woman's tortured search for connection."

Operatic adaptation

Main article: The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (opera)

The text of the play, in its English translation by Denis Calandra, was employed by Gerald Barry as the libretto for his five-act opera, commissioned by RTÉ and English National Opera and premiered in Dublin and London in 2005. The opera is also available on CD featuring the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra.

Legacy

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant is considered a landmark of European cinema which secured Fassbinder an undisputed place as a respected auteur.

The 2014 film Clouds of Sils Maria revolves around a remount of a play called Maloja Snake about an intergenerational lesbian relationship. Olivier Assayas (writer/director of Clouds of Sils Maria) acknowledged the link between The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant and the fictional play Maloja Snake.

Peter Strickland has cited The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant as a major influence on his 2015 film The Duke of Burgundy.

In 2022, French director François Ozon released Peter von Kant, a reinterpretation of the film centred on a male director.

See also

• Sadism and masochism in fiction

External links

• The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant at IMDb
• The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant at AllMovie
• The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant: The Great Pretender an essay by Peter Matthews at the Criterion Collection