Customer Reviews

Aimee and Jaguar

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Having first read the book and enjoyed it tremendously, I was
unsure if the film would come up to my expectations. I should
not have had any concerns.

This is a beautiful lesbian love story set during World War II
as seen through the eyes of women. Not being the soppy love
story fan myself, I have to say that this film has so much more
to offer than mere romance. It is an intense film which takes
you into the minds of the persecuted Jew at the time of WWII,
yet Felice fights for her freedom and spits in the face of terror.

Casting and cinematography are exceptional. Truly a beautiful,
beautiful, emotional movie.

I've been familiar with the story of Aimee and Jaguar for a few years now, yet I've just been able to watch this film on DVD. Unfortunately, after two years of anticipation, I was slightly disappointed.

Don't get me wrong--I thought this movie was beautiful, poignant, and suberbly acted. However, I read the book. I feel I knew Lilly better--I knew all along she wasn't the insulated, flaky, unstable housefrau portrayed in this film. I watched the first minutes of this film, with Lilly's sorrowful sexual neediness on display, and I couldn't help but wonder if the general public will realize (before they hate her) that this woman's sexual neediness is rooted in her repressed lesbianism, not in the long absenses of her Nazi husband.

Felice was given a sexy Marlene Dietrich flair (wonderfully portrayed by Maria Schrader), but her underground activities should have been emphasized more. I know people who sat through this entire film not realizing that Felice was not only Jewish, but very active in the resistance movement. I think that would have boosted the plot a little, and added to the dynamic of the relationship. That way, after Lilly came out to her husband and declared to Felice and her friends "I'm one of you now", the cold reaction would have been more understandable. Instead, this scene makes Felice look cold and uncaring. To make matters worse, it's never clear if Felice's friends are also Jewish, or just lesbians. Felice's character could have been so rich. Indeed, some of the most emotionally raw scenes in the film involve her secret identity--most notable the scene in which, as a secretary at a Nazi newspaper, she is forced to take dictation for a scathing anti-semetic editorial. While there's some hint that Felice and her group of girlfriends are trying to get papers and arrange to leave Germany, it's not quite emphasized enough that Felice's affair with Lilly seriously impedes that process.

The scenes when Lilly and Felice come together (and become AIMEE & JAGUAR)are not disappointing. Their kind of passionate, we-could-die-tomorrow desire is enough to melt any audience member. Lilly's insistance that this relationship defined her life--was indeed what she had been searching for--begs the audiences's forgivness for her borderline bipolar state. I'm sure she is forgiven.

If nothing else, this film captures the horror of wartime Berlin as vividly as SAVING PRIVATE RYAN captures Normandy. The bombing raids are filmed against stunning, dramatic red skies and amid the flashes of anti-aircraft fire. Viewers get a good sense of Berlin as a city stubbornly soldiering on in this midst of all this horror. Lesbian romance or not, this film is unrivaled in its realistic portrayal of Berlin in this period. The smallest details--from the costumes to the curtains--contribute to this mastery.

Unfortunately, the cinematic mastery of this film is not enough to save the vague plot. For instance, why does Ilse narrate the film? Her character remains on the periphery thought, and she belongs there. Her injected voice leads to confusion about her overall relevance. I actively tried to get swept away in this film, because I believe the storyline is history that can't be told enough, but I too often found myself substituting my prior knowledge for the film's narrative ambiguities. I could easily give this film 5 stars because I feel I have the whole picture, but I fear it will leave most viewers (who haven't read the book) without a clue. True, the DVD has sufficient background information, but that is irrelevant. The film should have, could have, stood alone. And it does not.

I too have seen this movie in Germany and I've been eagerly waiting for the US release. I consider it to be the best film I have ever seen! The story, being authentic, is absolutely touching, the actresses (and actors) make you feel like you are in the middle of the happenings. And yes you are going to shed some tears over the heart-wrenching mixture of true, carefree love between soulmates and the horrific cruelty of the WWII Nazis affecting the innocent. Absolutely breathtaking!

Today Lilly Wust (Aimee), who was so kind to share her story with us, is living in Berlin and about 86 years old.

A story of forbidden love in WWII Nazi Germany, "Aimee & Jaguar" follows the lives of two very different women: Felice Schragenheim, a Jewish revolutionary sneaking through Germany under a false German name. Then there is Lilly Wust (pronounced 'Voost', in German) whose husband is a Nazi soldier fighting on the Eastern front, leaving her at home with four boys. Frau Wust's babysitter, Ilse, is one of Felice's many girlfriends and when Felice is introduced to Lilly, she falls madly in love. She writes Lilly love poems and signs them as Jaguar and soon, the two are forced to accept their feelings for one another amidst the hatred and odium.

A movie of raw power, "Aimee & Jaguar" is not a story just about love but also accepting it in times of need and fear. You may find yourself crying and i admit, i cried myself (i cry endlessly when seeing Felice's and Lilly's "mistake" when coming home from the picnic, i cry every time i see that part). The love scenes here are done tastefully (and quite romantically, may i add) and the words of wisdom are...amzing. especially when Felice is talking about "Now's" and Lilly talking about "50 years of one person"...Powerful!!

This film impressed me from begining to end. It is one of those few films about two women in love that doesn't drag in all the extra baggage that one usually sees (besides the unavoidable things caused by the time setting) It's simply about two women finding each other in a desperate and unsettling time. Jaguar is such a strong character and is portrayed beautifully by Maria Schrader who's performance was flawless. I think the film does a good job of building and conveying the strength of the relationship in the short time it has. The passion and intimacy of the love scenes is brilliant! What works beautifully is the concentration on their story but with an integration of several other issues brought on by World War II. It provides a much different perspective on the war than most people are used to. I recommend getting the DVD so you can see all the extras about the real Aimee and Jaguar. I fell in love with this film right away and have watched it many, many times now. It is one of my favorite movies ever and I can't emphasize enough how much I recommend it to everyone!

It feels like you feel as you watch this film. I don't care who you are, if you've ever been in love, or been in love and lost it, this film will touch you deeply as it has me, and leave an impression of that touch lingering in your soul for days after. It's so superbly acted, that I don't want to know the actors' real names or see them in other films; they really are Lily and Felice (Aimee & Jaguar) to me. You are brilliantly brought right into Berlin at the height of the Allied's destruction of the city, and for a moment, you nearly hope the bombs don't find their targets! That's how captivated you are by everything about this film. Their love is beautiful, the cinematography is brilliant, and you fall for it all exactly as the filmmaker has wished you to. Bravo! Few films have given it all to me as this one does: high drama, suspense, passion, love, hate, fear, and danger entwined and pure in all of its emotions. Our characters' deepest feelings and values are challenged, as it is so often in real life, but normally to a lesser degree than they are forced to endure by their circumstance. They take on impossible challenges and show us extraordinary strength of character over seemingly insurmountable obstacles. And after all that, you are left without specific answers to some burning questions, that haunt you enough to make you ready to commit yourself to finding these answers yourself! If you see it twice, don't be surprised if you find yourself hoping the plotline of this true story will shift this time just a little more in favor of our heroines.
Romantic and beautiful are the characters, the story, and the tragedy. Pure wonderment! Taking a German language class to be able to understand it in its own language would be the only thing I believe that could make me love it any more than I do! Even my Mom thought it was a beautiful love story--evidence of its universal appeal!

An utterly compelling and sensitive portrait of two women living in wartime Nazi Germany: Lilly (German) and Felice (Jewish). Their love story is one of the most poignant I've seen in lesbian cinema. The actresses are beautiful and their chemistry is palpable and erotic. The range of emotions called upon in this film are well crafted by the actresses. It is, at times, difficult to watch. The fact that it is a true story will break your heart. The story may also be purchased in paperback. Lilly Wust is alive today and living in Berlin.

Felice (aka Jaguar) is a Jewish woman living in Berlin during WWII. In her underground life she is the dynamic center of a group of avant-garde lesbian women artists and eccentrics and a sinful seductress of fair-haired women. She is avant-garde in her tastes and in her always stylish appearance; with her dark eyes and perfect form she looks like she has walked out of a painting by Klimt or Schiele. She uses her charms on her female conquests and to assist the resistance in any way she can. As a secretary for a prominent Nazi newspaperman she has access to valuable information which she covertly passes on. Felice presents a convincing facade but beneath the elegant profile and pretty lipstick and dark eye-shadow is a woman who lives in fear . So it is shocking at first that Felice should be drawn to the very blonde and very Aryan and very bourgeoisie Lily Wust. And yet it makes perfect sense too. Because Lily is the perfect German Felice feels safe in her home and in her bed. These two are instantly drawn together from the first time they lay eyes on one another. Felice immediately goes about seducing Lily even though Lily is married and has four children and has never had a lesbian relationship. Reluctantly at first but then wholeheartedly Lily succumbs to Felice's advances. And once they take that first trembling step they both realize they are made for each other. Soon they are living as a couple in Lily's large apartment while her husband is away at the front. The bliss these two find together is something to behold; for the first time in their lives they feel a content they've never felt before. Felice's friends at first can't believe the avant-garde Felice has fallen for the bourgeoisie Lily but soon they all can see its the real thing and they all accept her. Eventually, however, the husband stumbles onto what is going on when he arrives unexpectedly one night and finds the women in bed together. Lily is utterly devoted to Felice and decides to leave her husband and for awhile things are perfect for Lily and Felice (Aimee and Jaguar are their pet names for each other)but one night when they come home from a perfect day of swimming in the country and tumble on the floor kissing each other in the dark of the apartment they hear a voice -- a Gestapo agent and his men -- tell them to enjoy that kiss for it will be their last. This is not a perfect film but it does a few things so well that you are willing to forgive it for its few minor faults. The most important thing in a film like this is the chemistry between the two leads and that we believe it when they say that they are in love and we do.

What a beautifully filmed story - I was transported to Berlin during the Nazi regime and became emotionally attached to the characters. I felt the fear as the Nazi's steadily & feverently hunted down and deported the remaining Jewish people with heartbreaking viciousness. I felt as if I knew the characters and the movie stayed in my head many days after seeing, which is the sign of a great film. Great acting, great story and filmed with such an eye for the time. I could really feel the pain, the anger, the desperateness, the fear and at times the happiness that the characters went through - it was heart wrenching. The love that develops between the main characters Lilly (Aimee) & Felice (Jaguar) is so well acted, with great tenderness, pulled me more and more into the story. I would HIGHLY recommend this film - what a great character study of two women in desperate times and the hope that their love brings gives courage for them to go on. See this Film!

Two aspects of Aimee and Jaguar can be seen in a negative light. The first is that it's subtitled, so it takes a bit of work. The other is that it's sad, so it's not meant for a giddy date.

That said, this portrayal of two women falling in love in Nazi Germany is gorgeous. The acting is spectacular, the costumes are exquisite, and the script is flawless. It's best suited to a somber or appreciative mood, but every lesbian (and arguably every person) should see Aimee and Jaguar.

The special features alone make this DVD worth buying. Extensive photo galleries and a mini-documentary provide more insight into the lives of the real Aimee and Jaguar. The quality of these extras is truly fitting for a movie of this calibre.

Bottom Line
Cuddles: ****
Tissues: *****
Hotness: ***
Laughes: *
Quality: ****
If you buy it, you'll get your money's worth the moment the menu comes on and you hear the music.