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Fear

Irene Wagner, the wife of the prominent German scientist Professor Albert Wagner, had been having an affair with Erich Baumann. She does not disclose this to her husband, hoping to preserve his innocence and their "perfect marriage". This fills her with anxiety and guilt. However, Johanna Schultze, Erich's jealous ex-girlfriend, learns about the affair and begins to blackmail Irene, turning Irene's psychological torture into a harsh reality.

Top Cast

  • Ingrid Bergman

    Ingrid Bergman

    Irene Wagner

  • Mathias Wieman

    Mathias Wieman

    Professor Albert Wagner

  • Renate Mannhardt

    Renate Mannhardt

    Luisa Vidor aka Johanna Schultze

  • Kurt Kreuger

    Kurt Kreuger

    Erich Baumann

  • Elise Aulinger

    Elise Aulinger

    Martha, Wagners' Housekeeper

  • Edith Schultze-Westrum

    Edith Schultze-Westrum

    Wagners' Babysitter

  • Steffi Stroux

    Steffi Stroux

    Luisa Vidor's Friend

  • Annelore Wied

    Annelore Wied

  • Rolf Deininger

    Rolf Deininger

    (uncredited)

Overview

Irene Wagner, the wife of the prominent German scientist Professor Albert Wagner, had been having an affair with Erich Baumann. She does not disclose this to her husband, hoping to preserve his innocence and their "perfect marriage". This fills her with anxiety and guilt. However, Johanna Schultze, Erich's jealous ex-girlfriend, learns about the affair and begins to blackmail Irene, turning Irene's psychological torture into a harsh reality.

Rating

6.4 / 10
65 Reviews
1 Popular

1 Reviews

  • CinemaSerf
    CinemaSerf
    6 Jul 19, 2023

    Ingrid Bergman is "Irene" married to "Albert" (Mathias Wieman) but has been having an affair with the much younger "Erich" (Kurt Kreuger). The relentlessness of the secret-keeping takes it's toll and "Irene" tries to end it all. Her secret is not quite as safe as she had thought, though - and she soon discovers that opportunist "Johanna" (Renate Mannhardt) knows the score and wants 3,000 Marks to keep silent. Will that do the trick, or is that just the start of an even more slippery slope? This is short and sweet - reasonably paced, with decent characterisations from Bergman and her grasping nemesis Mannhardt, but the story itself it overly simple and lacks any sense of jeopardy. We always know what is going to happen - and although Roberto Rossellini does try to inject the merest hint of menace, Bergman is all just too "nice" to be convincing. She has the bad temper of a field mouse.

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