Review of Lola (1981) by Eric B — 26 Feb 2010

I'm a bit of a beginner when it comes to Fassbinder, but "Lola" strengthened my suspicion that he's not destined to be a favorite of mine. There's a lurid, degenerate quality to this tale which just dragged me down, and not in a good way. I much prefer "The Blue Angel" over this modern revision and, for that matter, I also prefer Jacques Demy's 1961 film titled "Lola.".

The lighting of "Lola" is stylized to incredible extremes -- the film is like a bowl of Easter jelly beans, as dim rooms glow with garish pinks, greens, purples and blues. This eventually becomes tiring. The defocused dissolves used as scene transitions also seem rather tacky.

The acting is excellent, however, and the story's portrait of corrupt bureaucracy still has resonance. And on two trivial notes, I greatly enjoyed the minor character of the simpering secretary (I wish we had seen more of her), and it was quite endearing to see the lead actor play some decent violin!