New Yorker DVD of the Week: Martha 

Fassbinder's weird and whacky melodrama, "Martha" is Richard Brody's DVD pick of the week. If I hadn't known this was supposed to be high camp, I might have dismissed it as just severe German craziness. Yet if you watch it as an operatically melodramatic absurdity, then the hilarity ensues. I'm sure I laughed as much as I gasped while watching it. Angela and I referred to it for month's afterwards evoking phrases like "pig entrails in Burgundy sauce" or, "I have a present for you." or simply saying "Helmut" in a thick German accent (try saying "Hell-moodt" and not laugh). Rather than blather on about it, just watch this clip and decide whether you might like it or not (it ain't for everyone).



By the way, knowing this movie will make you a number one movie smarty pants and if you like it, you might also enjoy a Fassbinder t-shirt (pictured below). It's one from a series that re-imagines German film directors as heavy metal bands.