Lake Lucerne in 1868: a passionate and forbidden affair flares up between the gifted composer Richard Wagner and the much younger Cosima von Bülow - the aristocrat is already married and the mother of four children. Contrary to all conventions, the two publicly confess their love - and break a social taboo in the process.
Acting
Otto Sander's Wagner: repellent yet weirdly magnetic
Costume
Sumptuous period detail that reeks of privilege
Writing
Dialogue so pretentious it circles back to compelling
Director
Peter Patzak
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The real Villa Wahnfried still stands in Bayreuth, now a museum—complete with Wagner's death mask and the family's uncomfortable legacy.
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