Amour Fou (film)
| Amour Fou | |
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| Directed by | Jessica Hausner |
| Produced by | Martin Gschlacht Antonin Svoboda Bruno Wagner Bady Minck Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu |
| Written by | Jessica Hausner |
| Starring | Birte Schnöink Christian Friedel Stephan Grossmann |
| Cinematography | Martin Gschlacht |
| Edited by | Karina Ressler |
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Production
company |
Amour Fou Luxembourg
Essential Filmproduktion |
| Distributed by | Coproduction Office |
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Release date
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Running time
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96 minutes |
| Country | Austria Germany Luxembourg |
| Language | German |
Amour Fou ("mad love") is a 2014 Austrian film directed by Jessica Hausner, starring Christian Friedel and Birte Schnöink. The story is set in Berlin in 1810 and 1811, and follows the German writer Heinrich von Kleist and his lover Henriette Vogel in the final stages of their lives. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.
In Berlin the affluent Henriette Vogel (Birte Schnöink) holds a soiree where the poet Heinrich von Kleist attends. Heinrich approaches his close friend and cousin Marie (Sandra Hüller) and after telling her how living has become painful to him he asks her to consider dying with him in a murder-suicide pact. Marie declines.
Heinrich then approaches Henriette and tells her that as Marie has declined his dearest wish his love for her is dying as his love for Henriette begins to blossom. After telling Henriette that he feels she is an unloved outsider like him he asks her to join him in death. Henriette is appalled at his characterization of her as she feels she is close to both her husband and her daughter. She refuses his offer. Shortly after Henriette begins to suffer from spasms and fainting fits.
Heinrich continues to visit with Henriette during her illness and finds her life mediocre and conventional as she will not even allow him to visit her alone in order not to raise gossip. He continues to hope that she will consent to die with him.
For awhile Henriette's doctor cannot find the cause of her illness which he assures her is likely not serious. However after sending samples of her urine and her medical file away for a second opinion he learns that she has a fatal tumour that will kill her before long. After learning of the news Henriette calls Heinrich to her home where she allows him to be alone with her for the first time. She tells him she is dying and admits that now she feels alone and unloved just as he described her. She tells him that she would like to enter into the suicide pact with him. Heinrich receives the news rather coldly telling Henriette he hoped that he would meet someone who was willing to die because he wanted to die and not for her own reasons. Reluctantly Heinrich and Henriette head off into the country together hoping to complete their pact. However at the inn where they are staying Heinrich meets an acquaintance and the three are forced to have an awkward dinner together with Heinrich's friend believing they are lovers. The trip is a failure and the two return home.
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