One-page paper 4: On “Ali: Fear Eats the Soul” (dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1974

For this assignment, we’re moving to West Germany in the 1970s, a
site of an interracial and intergenerational romance between Emmi and
Ali, a widowed cleaning lady and a Moroccan garage mechanic,
respectively. Inspired by a famous US melodrama All That Heaven Allows (dir. Douglas Sirk, 1955), Ali: Fear Eats the Soul
(dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1974) is one of the most acclaimed
films of the director, exploring the multiple layers of social stigmas
that the protagonists’ coupling instigates.

Your task is to explore the intersections of racism, discrimination,
identity, and sexual desire presented in the film on the basis of
selected scenes. As is usual the case of one-page papers, focus on
minutiae without attempting to span the whole plot – there’s no space
for that. Apart from the dialogues, behaviors, and situations involving
the protagonists, include an analysis (short, at least) of what each
scene you pick looks like, paying special attention to color.

Your response should not exceed one page (Times New Roman 10,
single-spaced). Remember to APA your sources. Refer to at least two
sources.