Aimée & Jaguar (1999)

Director:

Max Färberböck

Writers:

Max Färberböck (writer)
Rona Munro (writer)

Release Date:

11 February 1999 (Germany)

Genre:

Romance | Drama | War

Tagline:

A Love Larger Than Death

Plot:

Berlin 1943/44 ("The Battle of Berlin"). Felice, an intelligent and courageous Jewish woman who lives under a false name...

Plot Keywords:

Gestapo | Love | Bombing | Jewish | Disappearance

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 9 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Maria Schrader	...	Felice Schragenheim (Jaguar)
Juliane Köhler	...	Lilly Wust (Aimée)
Johanna Wokalek	...	Ilse
Heike Makatsch	...	Klärchen
Elisabeth Degen	...	Lotte
Detlev Buck	...	Günther Wust
Inge Keller	...	Lilly Wust (1997)
Kyra Mladeck	...	Ilse (1997)
Sarah Camp	...	Frau Kappler
Klaus Manchen	...	Herr Kappler
Margit Bendokat	...	Frau Jäger
Jochen Stern	...	Werner Lause
Peter Weck	...	Chefredakteur Keller
Lia Dultzkaya	...	Hulda
Dani Levy	...	Fritz Borchert

Also Known As:

Aimee & Jaguar (USA)
Aimee and Jaguar (Canada: English title)

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Denmark:11 | Germany:12 (bw) | Singapore:R(A) | Spain:18 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Everest Studio, Cologne, North Rhine - Westphalia, Germany

Company:

Senator Film Produktion

Trivia:

Germany's entry to the Academy Awards, in the category of Best Foreign Language Film (1999).

Quotes:

Gunther Wust: I need a wife with character. Or a lawyer.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Unfaithful (2002)

Soundtrack:

Ich Bin Von Kopf Bis Fuß Auf Liebe Eingestellt

A masterpiece... one of the greatest movies of our time

There does exist an expression in the German language that describes this movie perfectly. It's "großes Kino". Literally translated it means "big cinema" and you use it for movies that are really grand: Grand in their structure, grand in emotion and grand in class. If any movie deserves this title then it's this one.

The Plot: Berlin during WWII. We get an insight in the daily life of two complete different women who don't know each other. Lilly is young, married with four kids and because of this can afford a quite pleasant life (as Hitler was fond of mothers with many kids, they got more of everything than other families: more money, more food etc.). So while her husband is somewhere out there fighting the enemy, Lilly occasionally has affairs and while she has her fun with the men, a nanny is taking care of the kids. The other woman, also being quite young, is Felice. Felice is Jewish, works as a journalist for a newspaper and unlike Lilly has to daily cope with the fear of being discovered and transported to a KZ. As if it all were not enough, Felice is lesbian and enjoys life as much as possible in the circle of her (mostly lesbian) friends. Now, one day, Felice by chance sees Lilly in a theatre and almost instantly falls for her. Surprisingly enough Lilly loves her back and they begin an irresistible and passionate affair, which at the time and circumstances back there was like dancing on a volcano…

Of course the film deals with WWII and the holocaust here but the best thing about it is that it's only done on the side. The plot concentrates on the two women, the two different worlds they live in and their feelings towards each other. It's all so intensive and it's not all about two suffering girls who lived in a horrible time and were not allowed to love each other, it's about two strong women with a lust for life who tried not to care too much about the Nazi regime, but to concentrate on seizing the day. After watching it you don't only feel for them, you admire them for having been so strong and courageous. But most of all you get to appreciate love and life again.

A truly great film about a great love in times where this love seemed to be impossible. Based on true events.