The Berlin Affair

1985 "Two women, a man and a madness"
5.4| 1h36m| NC-17| en| More Info
Released: 03 October 1985 Released
Producted By: Italian International Film
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Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

What begins as an innocent art class becomes a steamy triangle of erotic passions and forbidden love. A beautiful Japanese girl becomes the object of obsession in a devious relationship between the wife of a German diplomat and her husband.

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Reviews

GamerTab That was an excellent one.
CommentsXp Best movie ever!
Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.
nihao Liliana Cavani is a woman of literature. Here she takes Tanizaki's Japanese classic "The Budhist Cross" and transports it to Berlin in the oppressive 30ies. Nazi paranoia is on the look out, ironically, for deviants within German society. In this case High Society. As heads begin to roll more than one personality has something to hide. A study in juxtaposition of fire and ice, truth and falseness, faith and betrayal, Berlin Affair is not an 'easy' film but yes an intriguing one. All the characters seem to move and react with authentic 'period' ease, formal but never artificial. Gudrun Landgrebe is a revelation. Aloof but sensual she evokes the kind of respect usually reserved for the great 'stars' of Hollywood's heyday. Kevin MacNally reminds us of Dirk Bogarde, Mio Takaki is in no way the stereotype of Asian beauty, making her 'powers' seem all the more credible. Andrea Prodan as the 'blackmailing' Josif Benno creates an intriguing character with only a few scenes. In short, everybody is a 'victim' in this drama, which like a Webster play leaves us with a stage strewn with corpses. Adore the Sets,Costumes and pristine photography. A definite Visconti experience from Italy's dame of discomfort, Liliana Cavani.
ik-12 This may not be as good as "The Night Porter", but it's a great film, and a pure Cavani: twisted plot, psychological dramas, attractions with no limits, and the characters trying to balance their lives between the beautiful and the ugly, the duties and the crimes... Once again the plot is complex and interesting; every twist of it kept me guessing - 'till the very end.The actors are not as famous as in some of her other films, but play their roles quite well and are naturally belivable.A film noir that may not be for everyone, but is a must for anyone who liked other works by Cavani.
carolinaramirezve It's simply one of the best darkest movie I've ever seen in my life. Very well told story. And the performance of Mio Takaki (Mitsuko Matsugae) is just exceptional. Perhaps is what Liliana Calvani use to do when she makes any film: to put her particular seal in each of them. And she put a huge one in "The Berlin Affair". Excellent!
Cinebug It has long been fashionable in critical circles to bash the films of Liliana Cavani. Her films tend to show sleazy low life characters---------even when they live in palatial mansions. Her controversial NIGHT PORTER was unjustly accused of being deplorable, and insult to the intelligence of the average moviegoer, an offense to Jews and women, and generally condemned by everyone of cinematic importance. For me, she is the modern purveyor of film noir at it's darkest.THE BERLIN AFFAIR tells the story of Mitsuko, daughter of the Japanese ambassador to Germany during the Nazi era. She is publicly quiet and demure, but in private, flamboyantly bisexual and seduces the wife of a high Nazi official-------and eventually the husband himself. This leads to a rather unusual ménage a trois with each member of the triangle becoming more and more jealous of the others. Eventually, this self-destructive relationship becomes harder and harder to resist in spite of the personal dangers to the individuals and their respective families and political causes.It would be easy to dismiss this film as another sleazy sex opera from Cavani. But a great deal is going on in this film---------politically, sexually, socially, racially and artistically. There is a definite message for those willing to see it-------and it would be more fun for each viewer to find it for himself. Ignore Leonard Maltin's opinion and decide for yourself.