Der Strass (1991)

Berlin photojournalist Georg Bastian celebrates his thirtieth birthday with friends and colleagues. As the night wears on, the last guests set off, and since Georg is still in the mood to celebrate, he simply joins them. But along the way he is left on his own, and at a club he sees “Miss Albena,” wearing little more than rhinestones, perform a contortionist act. The staff throw him out, however, explaining that it is a private event. Fascinated by the woman, he tries to persuade his editor that a feature about her is necessary. He photographs her over several years, turns her into his dream woman, and begins to lose himself in his fantasies. In his imagination, he has adventures with her, but in private she wants nothing to do with him. Georg is soon brought back to reality, which he rejects. His request to accompany her on a guest engagement in Amsterdam is turned down by his editor. Thanks to Georg’s persistence, however, his newspaper publishes a multi-page article about “Miss Albena.” But that is not the end of the matter: he continues to follow her. As compensation for the trip to the Netherlands that was not approved, he is supposed to get an assignment in Nicaragua instead. While having sex with the editorial secretary, Miss Schneider, he learns from her that a colleague has been given the assignment. At the circus, where he encounters “Miss Albena” again, he sees that she is involved with a trapeze artist. Georg’s jealousy knows no bounds, and he starts a fight that ends only when the woman he adores asks him to stop. When Georg once again tries to visit her at home, all he sees is her being taken to hospital in an ambulance. He follows in a taxi and discovers that she is on her way to give birth. He tries to photograph her, is turned away from the ward, and takes photographs outside the hospital of several pregnant women with their bare bellies. A short time later, in November 1989, Georg stands at the now-open border and hands out his entire photo archive—his life’s work—to the people streaming west.