Madame X — Eine absolute Herrscherin

a film by Tabea Blumenschein and Ulrike Ottinger

There are only two user reviews of this absurdist comedy on IMDb: one reviewer gave Madame X nothing, another 10/10. I found the opening collection of Pythonesque sketches the most entertaining. At 147 minutes, however, it’s way too long and repetitive for the message. In the version screened at Filmoteca, the German dialogue was subtitled while the English one was not; no wonder some people have left half-way through. Then again, when it’s cold and wet outside, I can think of worse options than sitting in a warm cinema, wondering what a lesbian pirate ship’s weird crew will do next.