in her small suitcase, and leaves, taking the doll with her. Cast Margit Carstensen as Petra von Kant Irm Hermann as Marlene Hanna Schygulla as Karin Thimm Gisela Fackeldey as Valerie von Kant Eva Mattes as Gabriele (Gaby) von Kant Katrin Schaake as Sidonie von Grasenabb Themes Solitude, love, and the claustrophobic feelings generated by emotional codependency are key themes explored by Fassbinder in The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant. The solitary setting of Petra's bedroom maximizes the dramatic tension while serving as a mirror for her own entrapment. Operatic adaptation The text of the play, in its English translation by Denis Calandra, was employed by Gerald Barry as the libretto for his five-act opera, commissioned by RTÉ and English National Opera and premiered in Dublin and London in 2005. The opera is also available on CD featuring the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. Legacy The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant and The Marriage of Maria Braun are considered landmarks of European cinema. The two films have secured Fassbinder an undisputed place as film artist and auteur. The 2014 film Clouds of Sils Maria revolves around a remount of a play called Maloja Snake about an intergenerational lesbian relationship. Olivier Assayas (writer/director of Clouds of Sils Maria) acknowledged the link between The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant and the fictional play Maloja Snake. Peter Strickland has cited The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant as a major influence on his 2015 film The Duke of Burgundy. In 2022 French film director François Ozon released Peter von Kant, a reinterpretation of the film centred on a male film director. See also Sadism and masochism in fiction References External links The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant: The Great Pretender an essay by Peter Matthews at the Criterion Collection 1972 films 1972 drama films West German films German drama films German LGBT-related films Lesbian-related films 1972 LGBT-related films BDSM in films German films based on plays Films directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Films produced by Michael Fengler Films featuring an all-female cast Films set in apartment buildings Mannequins in films Films about fashion designers Films adapted into operas 1970s German-language films 1970s German films Films based on works by Rainer Werner Fassbinder