At the beginning of the film initially set in 1943 an explosion comes at the start of a marriage, at the end of it an explosion ends the marriage: the first explosion is of a worldwide political dimension, whereas the second is – if we exclude the possibility of suicide – an accidental lapse of memory. And lack of memory a crucial factor, of course, in Germany being able to renew itself after its defeat in the war: ironically, this is when the 'renewal' of the marriage comes to a tragic end.
Germany collapses and we will see emblems of American culture appearing: not only has Fassbinder made his German American, Douglas Sirk-inspired melodrama for the masses-cum-auteur film for the cinephiles, but this is an end-of-the-war film which will span several years, working through Germany re-building itself as a monster capitalist force. Eva will say she works for capitalism by day, the working-class by night, and is, er, the Mata Hari of the economic miracle.
Maria (Hanna Schygulla) marries Hermann Braun (Klaus Lowitsch) as the bombs fall and in under two days Hermann is off to fight and is (apparently) killed. Maria becomes a prostitute and falls for Bill (George Byrd) until a very much alive Hermann stumbles in on the beginning of a love scene between Maria and Bill, and Maria hits Bill over the head with a full bottle and kills him. But Maria isn't imprisoned because Hermann takes the blame for it and is sent down for several years.
In this time Maria (much like Germany itself) recreates herself, forcing herself up the social ladder by amazing intelligence and not a little cunning manipulation: it's not for nothing that the feminism (if failed in the end) in this film has been noted. She begins as secretary to Oswald (Ivan Desny)'s business and in the end is making the main decisions in it, although at the same time she joins the older Oswald in his bed.
When Hermann leaves prison he doesn't join his wife but goes off to Canada to make his money and sends her a red rose to remind her of his eternal love for her. He only rejoins her a few years later on the death of Oswald, and Maria learns of the pact he'd made with Hermann while he was in prison: on his death Maria and Hermann would inherit all his wealth if Hermann leaves Maria until that time.
So, united after so many years, the couple are free to live together, although Maria, lighting a cigarette from the gas stove, forgets to turn it off and there's an almighty explosion which kills them both.
The film is full of references to the public and the private world - bombs at the wedding, the family eating a meal while Adenauer speaks on radio, and when Maria and Hermann are blown up we hear from the radio that Germany has won the world cup against Hungary: a symbol of Germany's new post-war power which one couple won't enjoy.
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