Katzelmacher

Katzelmacher - 2002-12-10. Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Starring: Hanna Schygulla, Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Germany, 1969, black and white, 88 minutes. The title of the film is actually an unpleasant German term used by the public to refer to foreigners, meaning that foreigners are so lowly and ignorant that... This shocking film about bourgeois fascism tells the story of a group of aimless German youths who wander around a small village outside the city, spending their time making love and playing cards, and whenever they get bored, they either beat up their girlfriends or indulge in drinking. The story begins when a Greek immigrant named George enters the neighborhood, and these idle and rebellious youths suddenly find a specific target to direct all their frustrations, grudges, and fears towards, uniting around their hatred for him. The role of George, the Greek immigrant who steps into the lives of these anti-foreigner youths, is played by Fassbinder himself. George eventually befriends one of the women in the group named Maria and expresses his desire to return to his homeland. He does not want to stay in Germany at all. George, who has stirred the anti-foreigner sentiments of the group, is subjected to their insults and abuse. They call him a 'communist', 'Greek dog', and 'Katzelmacher', and ultimately, they corner him and beat him up. The New York Times wrote upon the film's opening in New York that this is one of Fassbinder's four masterpieces that will remain at the heart of cinema history.