Film Archive

Fisherman and His Wife, The - Why Women Never Get Enough (Fischer und seine Frau, Der - warum Frauen nie genug bekommen)

Doris Dorrie's modern variation on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale explores the many sides of love, its highs, humor and heartaches, with warmth and wit.

Ida and Otto meet in rural Japan. She is a young fabric designer traveling the country in search of inspiration and ideas. He is one of the 'Flying Fish Doctors' buying koi for wealthy collectors in Germany. It's love at first sight and they marry in a traditional Japanese ceremony. Back in Germany, everyday life begins to take its toll as Ida's career takes an upturn. Otto is perfectly content in the here and now – 'love is all you need' - whereas Ida only seems happy when she's making plans. Otto struggles to assist Ida in making her dreams come true and ends up neglecting his own career as a veterinary doctor. When Ida becomes pregnant, it is Otto who stays home to raise their child, freeing Ida to pursue her ever-expanding ambitions. The more successful Ida is, the more frustrated she is with Otto's lack of luster. Her fashions, based on the patterns of Otto's big passion, kois, soon become the latest international fashion rage but Ida still isn't satisfied. She wants it all. But the more Otto gives up, the more she holds it against him and the more forlorn he becomes - a vicious circle that spirals out of control. Their love, once so perfect, is on the verge of self-destructing…

Doris Doerrie was born in Hanover. After studying Acting, Philosophy and Psychology in the USA, she studied at the University of Television & Film in Munich, where she runs the Creative Writing Department today. In addition to directing, she is also a novelist. Her award-winning films include: Straight Through the Heart (Mitten ins Herz, 1983), Inside the Belly of the Whale (Im Innern des Wals, 1984), Men (Maenner, 1985), Paradise (Paradies, 1986), Me and Him (Ich und er, 1988), Money (Geld, 1989), Happy Birthday! (Happy Birthday, Tuerke!, 1992), Nobody Loves Me (Keiner liebt mich, 1994), Am I Beautiful? (Bin ich schoen?,1998), Enlightenment Guaranteed (Erleuchtung garantiert, 2000), "Naked" (Nackt, 2002), The Fisherman and His Wife - Why Women Never Get Enough (Der Fischer und seine Frau - Warum Frauen nie genung bekommen, 2005), How to Cook Your Life (2007), Cherry Blossoms - Hanami (Kirschblueten - Hanami, 2008), and The Hairdresser (Die Friseuse, 2010).
 

Genre Drama
Category Feature Film Cinema
Year of Production 2005
Director Doris Doerrie
Screenplay Doris Doerrie
Director of Photography Rainer Klausmann
Editor Inez Regnier
Production Design Bernd Lepel
Producer Patrick Zorer
Production Company Constantin Film Produktion/Munich, in co-production with Fanes Film/Munich, Megaherz Film & Fernsehen/Munich
Principal Cast Alexandra Maria Lara, Christian Ulmen, Simon Verhoeven, Young-Shin Kim, Ulrike Kriener, Elmar Wepper, Gustav Peter Woehler, Christoph Maria Herbst, Petra Zieser
Casting Nessie Nesslauer
Length 102 min, 2,738 m
Format Super 35, color, cs
Original Version German
Subtitled Versions English
Sound Technology Dolby Digital
Festival Screenings Montreal New 2005 (In Competition), Tallinn Black Nights 2005, Berlin 2006 (German Cinema), Mons International Love Film Fetsival 2006, Philadelphia 2006, MIFF 2006 (In Competition), Women's Film Festival Seoul 2006, Singapore 2006, Washington D.C. 2006, Flying Broom Ankara 2006, Shanghai 2006, Jerusalem 2006, Kolkata 2006, Rio 2006, Molodist Kiev 2006
With backing from German Federal Film Board (FFA), BKM, FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, Bayerischer Bankenfonds
German Distributor Constantin Film Verleih/Munich

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