Devil In Silk
2008. DEVIL IN SILK (1956-Germany), With LILLI PALMER, CURD (CURT) JURGENS. Thomas Ritter is an unhappily married man. He has taken a love, Sabine. After sleeping off a drunken stupor at Sabine’s apartment, he learns that his wife, Melanie, has apparently committed suicide. In flashÂback, Thomas and Melanie are seen meeting on a train. They are from different social strata. Thomas is a composer who describes himself as “unknown and absolutely unsuccessful.” Melanie is obscenely wealthy. As expertly played by Lilli Palmer, she is a strong-willed and self-involved shrew who decides that she wants Thomas. She smothers him with attention and manipulates him into marriage. However, her love is vicious and destructive. To Melanie, “Everything is trash that someone else is attached to.” Her stifling possessiveness and bouts of hysteria eventually drive Thomas into the arms of Sabine, meanwhile, back in the present, Thomas finds himself suspected of murdering Melanie. What follows is a cleverly structured, emotionally charged melodrama that builds in intensity to a thoughtful climax. Dubbed in English. 105 minutes. Melodrama