The Nasty Girl

Das schreckliche Mädchen
(The Nasty Girl)
Das schreckliche Mädchen; (The Nasty Girl)
	Region 2 DVD cover
Directed by	Michael Verhoeven
Written by	Michael Verhoeven
Produced by	Michael Senftleben
Starring	Lena Stolze; Hans-Reinhard Müller; Monika Baumgartner;
Cinematography	Axel de Roche
Edited by	Barbara Hennings
Music by	Lydie Auvray; Billy Gorlt; Mike Herting; Elmar Schloter;
Distributed by	Miramax; (United States)
Release date	15 February 1990;
Running time	94 minutes
Country	West Germany
Language	German

The Nasty Girl (German: Das schreckliche Mädchen, lit. 'the terrible girl') is a 1990 West German drama film based on the true story of Anna Rosmus.

The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the 63rd Academy Awards.^[2]

Plot

A German high school student, Sonja (Lena Stolze as a fictionalised version of Anna Rosmus), wins an essay contest and embarks on a trip to Paris. Martin Wegmus begins teaching physics at Sonja's school, and one of her classmates falls in love with him. Almost by chance, Mr. Wegmus and Sonja share a kiss. The teacher promises to return for her. The following year, she enters the contest again, choosing "My Town During the Third Reich" from the available topics. Her research leads her to discover that her picture-perfect town had been intimately involved in the Third Reich, with nearly all of the city's prominent families having been members of the Nazi party long before it rose to power. As she delves deeper, local authorities stonewall her efforts.

Undeterred, Sonja persists and learns that there were eight concentration camps in the area, and that all the Jews were forcibly expelled from the town and had their property confiscated. Sonja marries Martin, and the townsfolk believe she has abandoned her pursuit of uncovering Nazi involvement. Despite this, Sonja bears two daughters and pursues studies in history at the university. She resumes her research into the town's Nazi past and succeeds in winning court cases that grant her access to archives, although she still must resort to trickery to obtain desired information. The hostility of the townspeople escalates from verbal abuse to death threats and physical assaults as they endeavor to silence her with increasing desperation, but nothing dissuades her. Her husband feels emasculated as he is compelled to care for the children. The family survives a bomb attack, yet Sonja persists with her research.

Ultimately, the townspeople change their stance, even going so far as to erect a bust of Sonja at the town hall. However, Sonja views this gesture as an attempt to silence her and rejects the honor.

Cast

Lena Stolze as Sonja
Hans-Reinhard Müller as Juckenack
Monika Baumgartner as Sonja's mother
Elisabeth Bertram as Sonja's grandma
Michael Gahr as Paul Rosenberger
Robert Giggenbach as Martin
Fred Stillkrauth as Sonja's uncle
Barbara Gallauner as Miss Juckenack
Udo Thomer as Archivist Schulz

Awards

Award nominations

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Golden Bear, Berlin Film Festival
Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film

References

^ "The Nasty Girl". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
^ "The 63rd Academy Awards (1991) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
^ "Berlinale: 1990 Prize Winners". berlinale.de. Retrieved 20 March 2011.

External links

[1] "The Nasty Girl". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved 8 February 2017.

[Oscars1991-2] "The 63rd Academy Awards (1991) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 12 September 2015.

[Berlinale-3] "Berlinale: 1990 Prize Winners". berlinale.de. Retrieved 20 March 2011.

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