critics consensus

Regarded as one of the high-water marks in German New Wave cinema of the 1970s, Ali: Fear Eats the Soul is at once an intense portrayal of a relationship and a tribute to one of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's film heroes, Douglas Sirk. Read critic reviews

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Ali: Fear Eats the Soul Photos

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Movie Info

Emmi Kurowski (Brigitte Mira), a cleaning lady, is lonely in her old age. Her husband died years ago, and her grown children offer little companionship. One night she goes to a bar frequented by Arab immigrants and strikes up a friendship with middle-aged mechanic Ali (El Hedi ben Salem). Their relationship soon develops into something more, and Emmi's family and neighbors criticize their spontaneous marriage. Soon Emmi and Ali are forced to confront their own insecurities about their future.

Genre:

drama, romance
Original Language:

German
Director:

Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Producer:

Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Release Date (Theaters):

Oct 5, 1974 wide
Release Date (Streaming):

Mar 11, 2017
Runtime:

1h 34m
Production Co:

Filmverlag der Autoren

Cast & Crew

Brigitte Mira
Emmi Kurowski

El Hedi ben Salem
Ali

Barbara Valentin
Barbara

Irm Hermann
Krista

Marquard Bohm
Gruber

Karl Scheydt
Albert Kurowski

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

All Critics (36) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (36)

Like Rainer Werner Fassbinder's other recent imitations of life, Fear Eats the Soul... achieves a remarkable balance between stylisation and realism.

April 1, 2020 | Full Review…

Tony Rayns
Sight & Sound
It even manages something like a happy ending without sugar-coating the still poignantly relevant themes.Timely and heartbreaking, some 43 years after its debut.

April 26, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Tara Brady
Irish Times
The performances are flawless; the themes remain timely.

April 2, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Wendy Ide
Observer (UK)
The performances of Brigitte Mira and El Hedi Ben Salem as Emmi and Ali are superb; they act with instant sympathy and charm and in their own way, they are the most purely lovable characters I have ever seen on a movie screen.

March 30, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
Fassbinder made so many incredible films, but this is certainly up there with his finest.

March 30, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

David Jenkins
Little White Lies
One of the most beautiful films ever made, plain and simple.

March 27, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Tom Huddleston
Time Out
A conventional but humane story. Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder achieves this with eloquent sobriety, far from melodrama. [Full Review in Spanish]

August 13, 2019 | Full Review…

Jesús Fernández Santos
El Pais (Spain)
An intentional air of theatrical experimentation - almost as if Fassbinder is playing on the excesses of the representations to make clear the prejudices in German society.

November 11, 2018 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

PJ Nabarro
Patrick Nabarro
It's a film nearly devoid of emotional artifice no matter its dramatic trappings.

August 28, 2018 | Full Review…

Andrew Parker
The Gate
The prolific auteur was a huge admirer of Douglas Sirk, and there are echoes here of All That Heaven Allows, but the intensity is all Fassbinder.

March 28, 2017 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Jamie Graham
Total Film
It's surely the sheer, unvarnished humanity on display that's the film's greatest success.

April 14, 2016 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review…

Christopher Machell
CineVue
This is Fassbinder's first public showing in this country and it will not be the last; [he's] a highly skilled German director not yet thirty who also wrote the screenplay and indeed the theme music.

July 21, 2015 | Full Review…

Duncan Fallowell
The Spectator

View All Critic Reviews (36)

Audience Reviews for Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

Aug 08, 2013

A delicate and deeply resonant melodrama like only Fassbinder could have made, telling with plenty of honesty a simple but objective love story centered on revolting matters like prejudice and racism - problems relevant even today when it comes to immigrants in Europe.

Carlos M Super Reviewer
Mar 10, 2013

This is my introduction to Fassibender and I will be watching more of his films. Ali: Fear Eats the Soul revolves around a romance between an elderly widow and an Arab foreign worker. It's filmed and set in Germany. Much like interracial marriages were looked at in the US it was frowned upon. The story is simplistic, the film never moves out of a realistic view point. While the ideas were depressing I never actually felt any emotion. I don't know why, the acting was genuine enough, and the story had me gripped. Even during the family meeting I didn't feel anything, emotionally I wasn't present. While I liked what the ending thirty minutes did, I don't think it was executed perfectly. It was to sudden, I wouldn't have minded an additional thirty minutes of footage to make it more evened out. This is still a phenomenal film considering how little it revolves around. Tension was always boiling, and the story had me gripped. You don't have to be adventurous to enjoy this, so I recommend it to everyone. 3.5 stars+

Daniel D Super Reviewer
Apr 03, 2012

Aesthetically amazing. The cinematography makes it interesting to watch and the performances of Ali and Emma are perfect. The film is devoid of any contrived or melodramatic emotion. It moves forward calmly. The ending is a little hard to absorb because it ends oddly, but that is in touch with the rest of the film. Fassbinder alienates and yet manipulates the viewer's emotion extremely well. Astonishing how much subtext is in the film, I was watching something and thinking about it at the same time throughout the entire film. Strange and raw film which comments on racism but in a very organic and effective manner.

G S Super Reviewer
Oct 18, 2011

For sure in my all time top 5. The first time I watched this I was glued to the screen. It totally took me by surprise. The scene where Fassbinder cameos as the son-in-law objecting to the relationship is perfect.

Graham J Super Reviewer