The Longing (Das Verlangen) 22 years old

It is set in a dreary village in the Schwabian-Frankish Forest where the seemingly reserved Lena lives with her tyrant of a husband, Johannes, in a loveless marriage. Johannes is the village's spiritual leader and Lena is his faithful, ever-ready-to-serve wife. Lena's daily life is characterized by grinding monotony, a life narrowly circumscribed by nursing, organ playing and the duties of the marriage bed. The mysterious murder of a village girl suddenly knocks this humdrum existence off its tracks. In the wake of these events Lena discovers the affection and tenderness for which she has always longed in Paul, the village mechanic. This encounter is the start of an emancipation that leads her not to reveal Paul's secret regarding the girl's murder, for fear of losing her newly won piece of happiness. In turn it means she has to remain silent, as she has always done in her many years of marriage. So it is that this love ultimately turns Lena herself into a fallen angel.

Credits

The Longing Cast

Name Character
Susanne-Marie Wrage She was 36, now 59 years old as Lena
Eva Löbau She was 30, now 52 years old as Verkäuferin
Wolfgang Packhäuser He was 51, now 73 years old as Chorleiter
Robert Lohr He was 35, now 57 years old as Paul
Heidemarie Rohweder She was 59, 70 years old when she died as Martha
Sigrid Skoetz as Frau im Laden
Peter Lerchbaumer He was 57, now 79 years old as Huber
Brit Gdanietz She was 30, now 52 years old as Trauernde
Klaus Grünberg He was 60, now 83 years old as Johannes
Manfred Kranich as Griesbacher

The Longing Crew

Name Department
Iain Dilthey as Director. He was 31 (now 53) years old Directing
Iain Dilthey as Author. He was 31 (now 53) years old Writing
Silke Parzich as Author. Writing
Till Schmerbeck as Producer. He was 33 (now 55) years old Production
Justus Pankau as Director of Photography. He was 78 (93) years old when He died Camera
The Longing (22 years)

  • Release day: Thursday, August 08, 2002
  • Runtime: 94 minutes