In the hottest month of summer, May, Lamakaan brings you a cool breeze of retro films by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, considered to be a catalyst of the New German Cinema Movement.

Rainer Werner Fassbinder (German: [ˈʁaɪnɐ ˈvɛʁnɐ ˈfasbɪndɐ] ⓘ; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder,[1] was a German filmmaker, actor, and dramatist. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema movement. Versatile and prolific, his over 40 films span a variety of genres, most frequently blending elements of Hollywood melodrama with social criticism and avant-garde techniques. His films, according to him, explored "the exploitability of feelings". His work was deeply rooted in post-war German culture: the aftermath of Nazism, the German economic miracle, and the terror of the Red Army Faction. He worked with a company of actors and technicians who frequently appeared in his projects.

Film Title: DESPAIR | 1978| 120 Mins | Germany| German Language with English Subtitles

About the film: Despair – A Journey into the Light (Despair – Eine Reise ins Licht) tells the story of Hermann Hermann, an unbalanced Russian émigré and chocolate magnate, whose business and marriage have both grown bitter. The factory is close to bankruptcy, and his vulgar wife is chronically unfaithful. He hatches an elaborate plot to take a new identity in the belief it will free him of all his worries. The story of Hermann's descent into madness is juxtaposed with the rise of National Socialism in Germany in the 1930s.

Screening followed by Discussion. All are Welcome. Entry is Free & Open to all!