In 1943, as World War II's Battle of Berlin rages, with air raids forcing families into their cellars for shelter and bombs exploding all over the city, Felice Schragenheim (Juliane Kohler) and Lilly Wust (Maria Schrader), fall in love. Director Max Farberbock's AIMEE & JAGUAR tells the true story of this passionate, forbidden love affair, adapted from the 1998 book of the same title by Erica Fischer. Felice, a dark and beautiful Jewish woman who is constantly in danger of being apprehended by the Gestapo, works for a Nazi newspaper under a false name, feeding what she learns to underground resistance leaders. Lilly, a flowery blond housewife living in bourgeoise comfort, raises 4 little boys, passing the time until her Nazi husband, Gunther, returns from the war. When the two meet, and Felice makes advances, Lilly responds, falling into total submission under Felice's spell. They nickname each other Aimee (Lilly) and Jaguar (Felice), spending every night dancing to popular 40s jazz music with Felice's eccentric lesbian friends, and every day raising the four boys who treat Felice like a second mother. It is not until the end of their affair, when Lilly--and soon thereafter, the authorities--learns that Felice is a Jew, and tragedy befalls the couple.
Based on the true story of the wartime relationship between model mother Lilly Wust and Jewish lesbian Felice Schragenheim, this study of the indomitability of the lovers and the insidiousness of Nazism might have been more persuasive had debuting director Max Färberböck devoted more time to period authenticity. There may be air raids and Gestapo patrols, but the nitty-gritty of life in 1943 Berlin is missing. This undermines the acting efforts of the impulsive Juliane Köhler and the seductive Maria Schrader, whose ability to pass as a Gentile provides her with as much excitement as her romance. Melodramatic, but engrossing.
Sight and Sound
"...Fascinating....The film has some wonderful things in it....Aimee & Jaguar presses all the right keys..."
Entertainment Weekly
"...Unusual (and true)....A matter-of-fact embrace of the unconventional..." -- Rating: B+
Radio Times
