German Actresses of the 2000s

383 Pages·2015·5.92 MB·English

German Actresses of the 2000s –
A Study of Female Representation,
Acting and Stardom

Verena von Eicken

Doctor of Philosophy

University of York
Theatre, Film and Television

September 2014

Abstract

This thesis centres on four German actresses active from the year 2000: Nina Hoss, Sandra
Hüller, Sibel Kekilli and Diane Kruger. These performers have embodied a range of
multifaceted female characters, as well as offering insightful representations of ‛Germanness’
at home and abroad. Their films are emblematic of the revival of German cinema in the
2000s, which has seen the proliferation of commercially successful historical dramas and the
emergence of the critically lauded Berlin School art film movement. This research seeks to
contribute to German film studies by considering the role actresses have played in the
context of the resurging German cinema of the new millennium. The four actresses are
discussed both in terms of the female representations offered by their films, and as
performers and stars. The films of Nina Hoss, Sandra Hüller and Sibel Kekilli explore the
particular social, political and cultural circumstances of women in contemporary Germany,
such as the ramifications of reunification and a changing economic order, the persistent
female inequality in the workplace and the family, and the nationally specific conception of
the mother role. Contributing to the study of film acting and performance, analyses of the
four actresses’ performances are conducted to demonstrate how they enhance the films.
Analysing and comparing the work of actresses from the 1920s until the present day, a
German screen acting tradition is identified that is characterised by the actresses’
maintenance of a critical distance to the character they portray: female performers working
across different decades share a stilted, non-naturalistic acting style, which imbues their
characters with a sense of mastery and counteracts their frequent experience of oppression
or objectification. The four performers studied also function as representations of national
identity, with Diane Kruger, who acts in French and US films, contributing to the
formulation and reflection of national identity both in Germany and abroad. Drawing on the
findings of star studies, the media representations of the four actresses are analysed to
illustrate how they reflect dominant social discourses about femininity, ethnicity and film
stardom in Germany.

Contents

Abstract ............................................................................................................................................. 1
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... 7
Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. 17
Author’s Declaration ............................................................................................................... 19

Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 21

Charting Female Performers in the History of German Cinema ......................................... 24
German Cinema in the New Millennium: Sweeping Historical Dramas
and Astute Social Commentary................................................................................................... 29
Studying Contemporary German Actresses as Performers and Stars................................... 34

Part I: Actresses in the History of German Film .................................................... 41

Chapter One
Actresses in the History of German Film I:
Weimar Cinema and the New German Cinema ..................................................... 43

Weimar Cinema – Creativity and Anxiety at a Time of Momentous Social Change ......... 43
Exploring Feminine Identities in the Weimar Street Film .................................................... 45
Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel (1930):
Challenging Female Objectification, Defining Cinematic Spectacle .................................... 47
Dietrich, Stardom, and National Identity ................................................................................ 53
The New German Cinema: Confronting the Past, Capturing the Present ......................... 57
Feminist Filmmaking within the New German Cinema –
The Nation as a ‛Pale Mother’ ................................................................................................... 59
Hanna Schygulla: Female Representation and the Agency of the Actor
in the New German Cinema ....................................................................................................... 62
Embodying the Nation: The Marriage of Maria Braun (1978) .................................................. 67
Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 71

Chapter Two
Actresses in the History of German Film II:
Third Reich Cinema and Post-war Cinema .............................................................. 75

Cinema in the Third Reich: Orchestrating Entertainment and Propaganda ...................... 75
Reconciling Contradictions: Wholesome Mothers and Exotic Divas ................................. 77
Zarah Leander: Negotiating Female Subjectivity and Stardom in Nazi Germany ............. 80
Rebuilding National Identity in the Aftermath of the War:
Hildegard Knef and the ‛Rubble Film’ ..................................................................................... 86
The Genre Cinema of the 1950s: Reformulating National Identity ..................................... 91
Redeeming Germany: Romy Schneider as Sissi ...................................................................... 94
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................... 99
Part II: Case Studies of Contemporary German Actresses ............................ 103

Chapter Three
Nina Hoss: The First Lady of German Arthouse Film .................................... 105

The Face of Social Critique: Career Trajectory and Screen Persona ................................. 105
Mise-en-scène and Performance in A Girl Called Rosemarie (1996) ..................................... 108
The ‛Star-as-Performer’: Reflecting Attitudes towards Stardom in Germany .................. 111
Yella (2007) and The Heart is a Dark Forest (2007): Exploring Working Women and
Motherhood in Reunified Germany ........................................................................................ 114
A Woman in Berlin (2008): Representing Germany’s Past
in Mainstream Historical Films ................................................................................................ 133
Barbara (2012) and Gold (2013): Transplanting Social Critique to a Historical Setting .... 137
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 148

Chapter Four
Sandra Hüller: Performing Female Subjectivity
in Contemporary German Art Film .............................................................................. 155

‛The One for the Tough Parts’: Role Choices and Approach to Acting ........................... 155
Foregrounding Performance: Sandra Hüller in Requiem (2006) .......................................... 161
Madonnas (2007): A Counterintuitive Performance ............................................................... 172
Brownian Movement (2010): Performing Female Sexual Agency ............................................ 179
Above Us Only Sky (2011): The Self-conscious Performance
and the Long Shadow of Vertigo (1958) .................................................................................. 190
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 199

Chapter Five
Sibel Kekilli: Between Otherness and Normalcy –
Turkish-German Identity on Film ................................................................................ 207

Kekilli’s Public Persona: Embodying ‛Otherness’? ............................................................... 207
Turkish-German Cinema: Negotiating Questions of Home and Belonging .................... 209
Turkish-German Femininity in Head-On:
Transgressing Cultural and Gender Boundaries ................................................................... 213
Conflating Actress and Character: from Head-On to When We Leave (2010) ..................... 228
Moving Beyond Ethnic Stereotyping? – Kekilli in What a Man (2011) ............................. 237
Femininities in What a Man: the ‛Businesswoman’, the ‛Bimbo’
and the ‛Manic Pixie Dream Girl’ ............................................................................................ 242
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 248
Chapter Six
Diane Kruger: International Stardom
and the Diffusion of National Identity ....................................................................... 255

Career Trajectory: From Ex-model to International Film Star ........................................... 255
Kruger’s Star Image: Beauty, Fashion, and the American Dream ...................................... 258
Star Discourse in the USA and Britain, France and Germany:
Stardom Through a National Lens .......................................................................................... 263
The Face that Failed to Launch a Thousand Ships:
Kruger’s International Breakthrough ...................................................................................... 267
Becoming American: National Treasure (2004) and Unknown (2011) ................................... 269
Kruger’s Period Dramas: Exploring National and Feminine Identities ............................ 273
Bridget von Hammersmark, a Feminist Film Star? –
Performing Stardom and National Identity in Inglourious Basterds ....................................... 283
Recognition as an Actress: Farewell, My Queen (2012) ........................................................... 295
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 301

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 307

Filmography ............................................................................................................................... 315

Selected Filmography Marlene Dietrich ................................................................................. 315
Selected Filmography Hanna Schygulla .................................................................................. 315

Selected Filmography Zarah Leander ..................................................................................... 316
Selected Filmography Hildegard Knef .................................................................................... 317
Selected Filmography Romy Schneider .................................................................................. 318

Filmography Nina Hoss ............................................................................................................ 320
Selected Teleography Nina Hoss ............................................................................................. 321

Filmography Sandra Hüller ....................................................................................................... 322
Selected Teleography Sandra Hüller ....................................................................................... 322

Filmography Sibel Kekilli . ........................................................................................................ 323
Selected Teleography Sibel Kekilli ........................................................................................... 323

Filmography Diane Kruger ....................................................................................................... 324
Selected Teleography Diane Kruger ....................................................................................... 325

Other Films Cited ...................................................................................................................... 325
Other TV Programmes Cited ................................................................................................... 332
List of References ................................................................................................................... 335

Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 367

I. German Film after 2000 ........................................................................................................ 367
II.German Cinema Studies ....................................................................................................... 370

III. Feminist Film Studies/Women on Film ......................................................................... 374

IV. Film Studies .......................................................................................................................... 375

V. Studies of Individual Performers ........................................................................................ 377
VI. Studies of Film Acting/Performance, Star Studies ........................................................ 377

VII. Cultural Studies .................................................................................................................. 378

VIII. Sociological Research ...................................................................................................... 379
List of Figures

Figures Page

Figure 1: 43
Marlene Dietrich in The Blue Angel (1930).
The Blue Angel DVD capture (detail). Eureka DVD, 2002.

Figure 2: 43
Hanna Schygulla in The Marriage of Maria Braun (1978).
The Marriage of Maria Braun DVD capture (detail). Arrow DVD, 2006.

Figures 3&4: 49
The differences between Lola Lola’s first and second performance of ‛Falling in
Love Again’ epitomise her transformation from seemingly innocent flirt to callous
femme fatale.
The Blue Angel DVD captures (detail). Eureka DVD, 2002.

Figure 5: 50
Dietrich’s/Lola Lola’s legs are fetishised by von Sternberg’s camera.
The Blue Angel DVD capture (detail). Eureka DVD, 2002.

Figure 6: 66
A static long shot of Effi, facing away from the viewer, contrasts markedly with the
voiceover, which describes a moment of intense feeling.
Fontane Effi Briest DVD capture. Studiocanal DVD, 2008.

Figure 7: 69
Schygulla’s Maria Braun symbolises the blind materialism and moral hollowness of
1950s Germany.
The Marriage of Maria Braun DVD capture (detail). Arrow DVD, 2006.

Figure 8: 75
Zarah Leander in La Habanera (1937).
La Habanera DVD capture (detail). Universum Film DVD, 2005.

Figure 9: 75
Romy Schneider in Sissi (1955).
Sissi DVD capture (detail). Studiokanal DVD, 2007.

Figures 10-13: 85
Zarah Leander’s character changes from lascivious, vain revue star (above) into an
angelic figure boosting German morale (below).
Die große Liebe DVD captures (detail). Koch Media GmbH DVD, 2009.

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Figures Page

Figures 14&15: 89
Skewed angles communicate the male protagonist’s lack of control, while the
agency of Knef’s Susanne is communicated by her mastery of the gaze.
The Murderers Are Among Us DVD captures (detail). Icestorm
Entertainment GmbH DVD, 2002.

Figures 16&17: 98
In the Sissi trilogy, Romy Schneider portrays her character’s transformation of from
carefree child of nature (left) into a troubled young woman trapped in the golden
cage of courtly life in Vienna (right).
Left: Sissi DVD capture (detail). Studiokanal DVD, 2007.
Right: Sissi – Die junge Kaiserin DVD capture (detail). Studiokanal DVD,
2007.

Figures 18&19: 99
The endings of the second (left) and third Sissi film (right) epitomise the trilogy’s
revelling in melodramatic excess, presenting the empress as a suffering, self-
sacrificing saviour figure.
Left: Sissi – Die junge Kaiserin DVD capture (detail). Studiokanal DVD,
2007.
Right: Sissi – Schicksalsjahre einer Kaiserin DVD capture (detail).
Studiokanal DVD, 2007.

Figure 20: 105
Nina Hoss in Yella (2007).
Yella DVD capture (detail). Artificial Eye DVD, 2008.

Figures 21-24: 109
Rosemarie’s typical cold, disdainful look. Above left: in the prison cell, Above right:
with Hartog; Below left: confronting Fribert, Below right: at the party preceding her
death.
Das Mädchen Rosemarie DVD captures (detail). Eurovideo DVD, 2001.

Figures 25&26: 110
Physical attributes, hairstyle and lighting reinforce the characterisation of Rosemarie
(left) as emotionally detached as opposed to Hartog’s sympathetic fiancée (right).
Das Mädchen Rosemarie DVD captures (detail). Eurovideo DVD, 2001.

Figure 27: 118
Yella’s ghostlike state after escaping from the water signals her mental and
emotional disintegration.
Yella DVD capture. Artificial Eye DVD, 2008.

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