Mädchen in Uniform (1958)

Drama

TW: Abuse, Pedophilia, Suicide

Worth Watching? Yes

Bechdel Test? Pass

Race Bechdel Test? Fail

Major LGBT Tropes: Ambiguously Bi, Ambiguously Gay, Even The Girls Want Her, Gayngst, Gayngst-Induced Suicide, Situational Sexuality

Synopsis (from imdb): In a strict Prussian boarding school for girls, sensitive student Manuela von Meinhardis develops a forbidden love to one of her teachers, the compassionate Elisabeth von Bernburg.

My Thoughts: I LOVE THIS FILM. Romy Schneider is an absolute force of nature. After I finish this project, I may go on a Romy Schneider spree, because she is just *chef's kiss*. I wasn't expecting such an improvement on the original. No one is leaning away from any aspect of the queer relationships. There is even a token "straight", which I fucking love so much I can hardly stand it. The relationship between Manuela and Fräulein von Bernburg is still problematic, but this version significantly improves on the original in that they remove the original kiss and turn Manuela into the pursuer and initiator of the kiss. In addition, there is some really delightful subtext I wish they would have explored more between Manuela and Edelgard and a really cute relationship between two of the other students that is not subtext AT ALL.

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Queer Body Count: 0

Straight Body Count: 0

Total Queer Body Count: 8 (30%)

Total Straight Body Count: 9 (7%)

Queer Sexual Violence Victim Count: 0

Straight Sexual Violence Victim Count: 0

Total Queer Sexual Violence Victim Count: 2 (7%)

Total Straight Sexual Violence Victim Count: 1 (1%)