My go to philosophy about human nature is our most basic innate thirst is for 2 opposing sides in conflict. Unless we can recognize it as stupid and avoid it. The Niklashausen Journey (1970, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Michael Fengler) is a fun punk agitprop painting of a film that pits capitalism against communism; church vs state; spirit vs carnal; panthers vs pigs; and the US army vs hippies.
The Virgin Mary speaks to HANS and he tends a literal flock of sheep before embarking on his titular journey calling to arms for a communist revolution. Does Fassbinder actually believe all this crap? Should we? It turns into a comedy when you put all of these ideologies side by side and realize how seriously people hold their values. Everybody seems to think Hans is beautiful, and he’s got rizz. From the 15th century until now not much has changed—this dude is your flavor of the month social media sensation by today’s standards.
The Niklashausen Journey taps into what we hold dear. Another thing relatable that holds just as true today as this film made over 50 years ago agitates is a call to do something about police brutality, citing the 1969 murders of Fred Hampton and Mark Clark where of the 100 bullets retrieved from the crime scene 99 were from police and 1 from the Panthers. That’s how long this has been going on? The whole innocent black dude shot by cops protests? It’s horrible yes but I think there’s comedy there. The problems in our society don’t go away. They’re just there. What has protesting in the last 50 years done? Where’s the revolution everyone’s been talking about all this time?
Because the eighteenth century BISHOP (Kurt Raab) and his harem of young shirtless boys in addition to the way he’s played as a total coward, along with Margit Carstensen’s character stabbing her invalid husband in the back on the steps of their estate falling over his slain body, I suspect The Niklashausen Journey takes a side in all this bickering between political views. I don’t. I think they’re all stupid. But I love that this is what makes life so interesting. What makes life life.
And Fassbinder’s place in all this, even more anachronistic in appearance, with his strategies and efforts to spin the angle in the most profitable direction to me gives the film a sense of an interrogation into how revolution functions as commercial endeavor. Will people ever think for themselves? Or has the whole concept of revolution become just another something else to post to your social media to get more likes? Political views just another easy target to make hate jokes about as a mindless means to bring social groups closer together with each other while more spiteful toward their opps?
There are some really amazing shots in this film. The grass blowing through the field while they walk through it. Is that a reference to that “The wind bloweth where it listeth” verse from the Gospels? The manipulation of the Virgin Mary and later the Crucifixion imagery are cautionary satirical criticism at the exploitation of Christianity to gain popular support of the masses. Tell them what they want to hear. After the messiah fails, when Fassbinder attempts to send in Schygulla as the Virgin Mary that's making fun of Catholics. Christ was the living word, salvation, the gospels. Why pray to Mary? Because it's mindless and easy (and pointless). And the crucifixion is at a junk yard, one of the most important aspects of Christian faith thrown out as junk because people don't wanna hear it anymore. They want stuff that'll make them feel inclusive, happy, or hate. In that case it’s no different than the Black Panthers slogans because each claim the ultimate goal is to incite violence. The point of Christ dying for the sins of humanity is so we could be reborn and become better people, like the kind of political revolution that's fundamentally doomed because people are too lazy to affect change themselves, change within themself first. People don't want to work on making anything better because it's easier to complain about what's wrong.
Is there room for peace? Not if you take the Army massacring that hippie commune as any indicator. Fassbinder makes movies about brutality. This film is another of his bleak little masterpieces that tells us there’s no hope for humanity. But apparently it’s always been like that. So that’s good news. Also who’s that fat dude with the beard and the big black hat Fassbinder’s always hanging with? Is he brutality?
The Niklashausen Journey taps into what we hold dear. Another thing relatable that holds just as true today as this film made over 50 years ago agitates is a call to do something about police brutality, citing the 1969 murders of Fred Hampton and Mark Clark where of the 100 bullets retrieved from the crime scene 99 were from police and 1 from the Panthers. That’s how long this has been going on? The whole innocent black dude shot by cops protests? It’s horrible yes but I think there’s comedy there. The problems in our society don’t go away. They’re just there. What has protesting in the last 50 years done? Where’s the revolution everyone’s been talking about all this time?
Because the eighteenth century BISHOP (Kurt Raab) and his harem of young shirtless boys in addition to the way he’s played as a total coward, along with Margit Carstensen’s character stabbing her invalid husband in the back on the steps of their estate falling over his slain body, I suspect The Niklashausen Journey takes a side in all this bickering between political views. I don’t. I think they’re all stupid. But I love that this is what makes life so interesting. What makes life life.
And Fassbinder’s place in all this, even more anachronistic in appearance, with his strategies and efforts to spin the angle in the most profitable direction to me gives the film a sense of an interrogation into how revolution functions as commercial endeavor. Will people ever think for themselves? Or has the whole concept of revolution become just another something else to post to your social media to get more likes? Political views just another easy target to make hate jokes about as a mindless means to bring social groups closer together with each other while more spiteful toward their opps?
There are some really amazing shots in this film. The grass blowing through the field while they walk through it. Is that a reference to that “The wind bloweth where it listeth” verse from the Gospels? The manipulation of the Virgin Mary and later the Crucifixion imagery are cautionary satirical criticism at the exploitation of Christianity to gain popular support of the masses. Tell them what they want to hear. After the messiah fails, when Fassbinder attempts to send in Schygulla as the Virgin Mary that's making fun of Catholics. Christ was the living word, salvation, the gospels. Why pray to Mary? Because it's mindless and easy (and pointless). And the crucifixion is at a junk yard, one of the most important aspects of Christian faith thrown out as junk because people don't wanna hear it anymore. They want stuff that'll make them feel inclusive, happy, or hate. In that case it’s no different than the Black Panthers slogans because each claim the ultimate goal is to incite violence. The point of Christ dying for the sins of humanity is so we could be reborn and become better people, like the kind of political revolution that's fundamentally doomed because people are too lazy to affect change themselves, change within themself first. People don't want to work on making anything better because it's easier to complain about what's wrong.
Is there room for peace? Not if you take the Army massacring that hippie commune as any indicator. Fassbinder makes movies about brutality. This film is another of his bleak little masterpieces that tells us there’s no hope for humanity. But apparently it’s always been like that. So that’s good news. Also who’s that fat dude with the beard and the big black hat Fassbinder’s always hanging with? Is he brutality?
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