YELLA

Germany, 2007, 89 minutes, Colour.
Nina Hoss, Devid Striesow, Hinnerk Schoenemann.
Directed by Christian Petzold.

The director of Yella, Christian Petzold, directed a film called Gespenster, Ghosts. It was about real-life people in the cities. However, this film is actually about a ghost.

The structure of the film indicates that what is happening is real. A woman separates from her husband but he is unwilling. She goes on a journey from East to West Germany. She becomes involved in business deals and encounters an attractive man played by Devid Streisow. However, the film makes her think about her life, her career, her relationships – and when an accident is shown, it emerges that Yella is dead and is reviewing her life and the possibilities of roads she did not take.

Nina Hoss won the best actress award at the Berlin film festival 2007 for her role as Yella.

1. The focus on Yella, a portrait of a contemporary German woman? The presence of Nina Hoss? The focus on her? Her being in every sequence?

2. The German settings, the contrast between Wittenberg and the changes in East Germany, the Elbe River as the boundary between East and West, Hanover and the modern city? The background of East and West Germany? Repression and the possibilities of moving out of repression? Dreams of prosperity? The musical score? The use of the song, ‘Road to Cairo’?

3. Yella, her age, experience, appearance? Her red ensemble? The black? The train ride? Her arriving home? Her meeting with her father? The bonds between father and daughter? Her needing to move away? His giving her the money, her refusal, slipping it into her coat pocket? Her encounter with her former husband, Ben and his paranoia, his following Yella, the court order for him to keep away? His violent outbursts? The reality of his business, the payment for the software, its being out of date after a year, the poor financial return? Dreams of contracts? His wanting her to stay? The tension between the two?

4. Yella and her preparing to go to Hanover, the breakfast with her father, Ben wanting to drive her to the station, his pressurising her, his comments, the reality of his business? The need for money? The anger, the steering wheel, his driving the car over the bridge? Their both getting out of the river, Yella picking up her bag, continuing to the train?

5. Yella in West Germany, the hope for the job, the hotel and the difficulties with the money? Her meeting with Phillipp? His being interested in her? His warning about her job?

6. Her going for the job interview, her meeting the doctor outside the building, his getting her to get the wallet, her going into the building, discovering the truth, bringing out the wallet, in his car, the insinuations of the driver, her getting out? Her later going to see him? The financial proposal? Her hold over him?

7. Her being out of a job? Weeping? The encounter with Phillipp? His invitation to her to come to the meeting? His briefing her, tactics, hand behind his back – and the reference to Grisham heroes? Urging her to whisper? Her competence, knowing accounts, laughing at the gestures on the part of the opposition? Her asking them searching questions? Phillipp and his being impressed, giving her the money? Her success?

8. The night, her fears of Ben, his haunting and stalking her? Her running, going to Phillipp again? The night together?

9. His offering to take her to the next meeting, their travel, her wanting to go to Wittenberg, the detour, Phillipp and his anger, her return to the scene of the accident? The recurring deafness, hearing the leaves, the bird? Her recovering? Phillipp and his apology?

10. The second meeting, her thoroughness, the searching questions, the examination of the accounts? The other side wanting to adjourn? Her stipulating the day for the next meeting? Phillipp and her discovery about the money, banking it, the extra money, putting it in the envelope, intending to send it to Ben? Phillipp calling her, asking her about the money? Her embarrassment? The revelation that he also cheated? His explanation of his dream, the taking over of the company, the background of Cork and Ireland? Her decision to help?

Her going to the doctor, the wife’s uneasiness, the children and the music? The pressure on the doctor, to get two hundred thousand? His walking out the door, drowning himself? The hostility of the wife?

11. Yella, the new world, the dream world, her success? Yet her conscience?

12. Her waking up, the nature of the dream, the crash, her death? The dream too good to be real?

13. The relationship story, the wheeler-dealing story, the ambitions of East Germans to better themselves? The political statement about 21st century Germany, economics, authenticity, integrity?

14. The film as a kind of purgatorial experience – and a warning to Yella of the woman she might have been?