Movie of the Week: “Out of Rosenheim”
The first time I heard about “Out of Rosenheim” (USA, 1987) was through a very dear uncle, who was a movie addict.As his taste was extremely refined, I already felt that this film would have something exceptional, and my expectations were confirmed when watching what I consider to be one of the best in the history of the cinema.
For those who are accustomed to seeing characters with gorgeous faces, like in margarine advertising, the first moments of the movie will be somewhat scary. The protagonists are two strange women, a fat German and a black and disheveled Afro-american. The other characters do not escape this pattern, and everybody look like being from the real world!
Although the film does not give much explanation, it is deduced that a German couple traveled in vacations by the United States, and was lost amid the roads of Arizona while looking for some touristic spot. For reasons that only she could tell, Jasmin Münchgstettner (Marianne Sägebrecht) gets out of the car, picks up her suitcase and walks along the side of the road with her Bavarian hat and an elegant suit under the scorching sun of the desert.
Nearby, Brenda (CCH Pounder) lost her temper with her husband while dealing with her problematic children, a newborn grandson, and a run-down roadside motel like so many others in the United States. The discussion ends with an abrupt separation, practically she expelling the husband from home.
The meeting of these two women happens when Jasmin looks for a room to sleep. The arrival of the strange German woman causes immediate distrust of Brenda, who rents the room, but finds it strange that the newcomer only has men’s clothing. In fact, due to the discussion, Jasmin had taken her husband’s suitcase by mistake.
Extremely methodical, fanatical about cleanliness, and with an immense willingness to help the others, Jasmin takes advantage of an absence of Brenda to do a great housecleaning at the motel, taking out the dust even from the roof. This infuriates Brenda, for what she considers to be a direct invasion in her life.
Little by little, however, Jasmin begins to become part of the life of that strange people: Phillys (Monica Calhoun), an inconsequent teenager, more concerned with parties than her studies, her brother Salomo (Darron Flagg), for whom only music existed, Cahuenga (George Aguilar), the indigenous servant who did everything, Debby (Christine Kaufmann), the tattooist very popular with the truckers, and the exotic Rudi Cox (Jack Palance), the hippie painter who lived in a trailer next door from the motel.
In this seemingly dystopic and post-apocalyptic desert scenery, everyone seems strange and lost, each one with their own problems, living a meaningless life. In this context, Jasmin seems to be the missing piece to unite them, and take a new turn in their lives.
In addition to an interesting story, nicely presented in a perfect script, “Out of Rosenheim” has a luxurious photograph that explores the desolation of the desert (and the lives of the characters), an innovative edition for that time, and a beautiful soundtrack, with variations of the song “Calling You”, nominated to Best Song at the 1989 Oscar.All the songs in the film were composed by musician Bob Telson.
“Out of Rosenheim” marked the debut of the German director Percy Adlon in the American market. It was his personal choice Marianne Sägebrecht for the role of Jasmin.Marianne was already one of Germany’s most respected actresses at the time of the film, with great participation in the German cultural scene, especially in Munich, her city.One of her favorite quotes is that “we, Bavarians, are to Germany what the Indians are to the U.S.A.”.
The film was released in 1987, and anyone who was not fortunate enough to watch it on the big screen suffered a little from the low quality of picture offered by VCRs, at that time the only way to watch home movies, as well as television.
The release of the film in Blu-Ray allows to rescue both the beauty of the image and the sound, two fundamental aspects that have ensured the success of this masterpiece for a long time.For lovers of good cinema, this is a must-see.
Original Title: “Out of Rosenheim”