The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant 12A

Building on Fassbinder’s roots in experimental theatre, The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant combines stylish staging with the realism of a tormented and imbalanced relationship and features outstanding performances from its all-female cast.

Petra is a successful fashion designer, her caustic and self-assured nature is explored through her mistreatment of her assistant Marlene, meanwhile she becomes enamoured with Karin - a young aspiring model. This dissection of their relationship is one of Fassbinder’s greatest and most interesting early works, perhaps because in many ways the emotionally sadomasochistic relationships on screen were direct portraits of his own destructive love affairs.