Lola (1981)

Germany in the autumn of 1957: Lola, a seductive cabaret singer-prostitute exults in her power as a temptress of men, but she wants out—she wants money, property, and love. Pitting a corrupt building contractor against the new straight-arrow building commissioner, Lola launches an outrageous plan to elevate herself in a world where everything, and everyone, is for sale. Shot in childlike candy colors, Fassbinder’s homage to Josef von Sternberg’s classic The Blue Angel stands as a satiric tribute to capitalism.

Genres: Drama

What to watch after Lola

• The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972) — Rainer Werner Fassbinder directed both
• Chinese Roulette (1976) — Same feel: dramatic, cynical
• The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum (1975) — Mario Adorf appears in both
• Fox and His Friends (1975) — Rainer Werner Fassbinder directed both
• The Tin Drum (1979) — Mario Adorf appears in both
• From the Life of the Marionettes (1980)