best film: There are two potential answers here. Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) from Bela Tarr is the answer in the strictest sense. Hanna Schygulla plays Tünde Eszter and she is fantastic in her limited screen time opposite Lars Rudolph. If one was to consider only the films where Schygulla contributes a larger amount to the greater result of the film, it would be 1979’s The Marriage of Maria Braun here as the answer. This is the first film in Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s BRD trilogy, which is really the great German auteur’s most artistically fertile stretch.

Hanna Schygulla plays Janos’ (Lars Rudolph) aunt, a gorgeous grayscale series of moving picture photographs as she dances in the doorway at the 82-minute mark
best performance: It is fitting that it is a Fassbinder film here: The Marriage of Maria Braun. This is the strongest of the four archiveable films between Fassbinder and his muse Schygulla.

Schygulla gives a tour-de-force performance as the titular character: Maria Braun
stylistic innovations/traits: If Klaus Kinski is the male acting face of the New German Cinema of the 1970s and 1980s, then Hanna Schygulla is the female acting face of this rich movement in cinema history. Schygulla is known for being able to portray both viciousness and sympathy. She could pull off playing both Fassbinder’s sadistically cruel abuser (almost all of his films have at least one character playing this part) and the naïve victim- with equal skill and measure. She gives one of the best acting performances of the year in back-to-back years (1979 and 1980) making her one of the best female actors of her generation. It is hard to talk about Schygulla without talking about Fassbinder. If Fassbinder had not died so young, it seems plausible that Schygulla would be a top twenty (20) female actor of all-time.

one of the crown jewel compositions of Fassbinder’s career and the New German Cinema movement- from The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant– Schygulla as Karin Thimm
directors worked with: R.W. Fassbinder (4), and then Andrzej Wajda (2), Jean-Luc Godard (1), Kenneth Branagh (1), and Bela Tarr (1)
top five performances:
- The Marriage of Maria Braun
- Berlin Alexanderplatz
- The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant
- A Love in Germany
- The Merchant of Four Seasons
archiveable films
1972- The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant |
1972- The Merchant of Four Seasons |
1979- The Marriage of Maria Braun |
1980- Berlin Alexanderplatz |
1981- Circle of Deceit |
1982- Passion |
1983- A Love in Germany |
1991- Dead Again |
2000- Werckmeister Harmonies |
2007- The Edge of Heaven |
Hey @Drake,
I have 2 questions.
1. Can picture Schygulla as both Lola and Veronika Voss?
2. If you can and you add those two films in her filmography, where would she land? Would she be a top 20?
@M*A*S*H- I can certainly picture Schygulla as both Lola and VV. Yes- I think with four top performances of the year mentions, at least you’re in the top 20-25 range on this list, if not higher.
I love this new list… we are not even at 50 and theres quite a few actresses i am not entirely familiar with which is refreshing. Some of these actresses have really crazy filmographies
offtopic,
have you watched any of the highly rated 2022 movies yet drake? can’t wait to read your impressions of them.
@oliver- Good to hear from you. I think I’ve seen most of the highly rated 2022 films- the ones available at least. 24 2022 archiveable films and counting. Still lots of work to do between now year end.
@drake Thank you Drake, I’m very excited to see the result. I love your website.
@oliver- So nice of you to say that- thank you
I don’t know that you’ll reveal it but is Anne Dorval under your radar for this list?
I don’t know how many achievable films she’ll have but I’ve seen her in 4 Xavier Dolan films, I killed my mother, mommy , heartbeats and laurance anyways.
She’s insignificant in other two but WHAT A TWO PUNCH she has it’s stronger than Streep’s top two (Not to mention ciematically more important) :
1. Mommy
2. I Killed My Mother
@M*A*S*H- Indeed. I noticed the same thing when putting together some of the numbers when originally setting out to update this (and hopefully improve) list