Despair

Set in Berlin around 1930, against the backdrop of the rising Nazi movement, the film follows Hermann Hermann, a Russian émigré who runs a chocolate factory. Married to the capricious Lydia, he grows increasingly irritable in his dealings with his workers and business associates. His life takes a strange turn when he encounters Felix, a vagrant who appears to be his physical double. This unsettling resemblance prompts Hermann to devise an unusual escape from a world he has come to despise. The film is an adaptation of a Vladimir Nabokov novel, and its screenplay was written by Tom Stoppard.

Rainer Werner Fassbinder directed the film, which came after Chinese Roulette (1977) and before The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979). Dirk Bogarde heads the cast as Hermann Hermann, with Andréa Ferréol as Lydia, Klaus Löwitsch as Felix, Volker Spengler as Ardalion, Bernhard Wicki as Orlovius, and Armin Meier appearing in several roles.

Produced by Bavaria Studios with a budget of 3 million USD, the German production runs 117 minutes. It is a drama and thriller that drew limited attention on TMDB, where it holds a rating of 6.5 out of 10 from 48 votes. Its critics' score, based on 23 reviews, is also 6.5 out of 10, putting the two measures roughly in line with each other.