MÄDCHEN IN UNIFORM

Repression in a girls' school setting is ripe for storytelling... especially when the girls are crushing all over their beautiful young teacher.

The legendary film that started the "repression in a girls school" genre was the German film Mädchen in Uniform (1931). The film was remade in 1958, and featured a full-on same-sex kiss that must have been shocking at the time. With the setting of the story taking place in 1910 Prussia, the moment packs a punch even now.

Manuela (Romy Schneider) is the new student at school, wide-eyed and kind of spacey, as she has just lost her mother. The girls' school is run by a strict Mother Superior, and the young ladies are in basic training to be future mothers of soldiers. But other than the iron hand of the Mother, this school is like any other you've seen in the movies. As soon as the doors close, the girls are squealing, running around, gossiping, braiding each other's hair, and basically becoming BFFs 4-evah.

Manuela is shown the lay of the land by her classmates, and is introduced to popular teacher Ms. von Bernburg (Lili Palmer) who is absolutely adored by all the girls. Ms. von Bernburg is young, beautiful, and gives all the girls meaningful, practically drawn-out goodnight kisses in the dorm room every night before lights out. Huh. For kids away from home, she becomes a beacon of the adult affection they are missing from their own families. Unsurprisingly, Manuela is instantly smitten.

What is interesting about the film is that the teacher/student relationship is very realistically developed. Manuela clutches at Ms. von Bernburg's attentions, and the teacher is very careful with the girl, so as not to crush her already fragile teen state. Mother Superior and the other teachers are more strict, so less liked - but it is the friendly teacher that of course gets in trouble, as she is too sensitive to clearly draw the line. Manuela visits Ms. von Bernburg for some private, um, tutoring, and soon there are whispers amongst the students. When the students put on Romeo and Juliet, and Manuela professes her love for the teacher at a drunken after-party, well, all hell breaks loose.

Mädchen in Uniform is actually a well-paced film, with decent acting, though a kind of (unfortunate) predictable ending for the era. Romy Schneider starts out as a kind of irritating social savant, but by the end, you can't help that notice that when her personality blossoms, that she makes a totally adorable Romeo. And Lili Palmer's teacher never comes across as blatantly inviting a crush, but leaks out enough personality in the uptight environment, you can tell why all the girls are gaga over her. Mädchen in Uniform is notable for having its place in history (along with the original classic film), but is also, fortunately, a totally watchable film in its own right.

DVD NOTES

In a gratuitous bit of marketing, the extra on Mädchen in Uniform, "From Mädchen to Annabelle" simply serves as a self-congratulating monologue by director Katherine Brooks. No, she had nothing to do with this film, of course. She simply spends the vast majority of the interview talking about her OWN film Loving Annabelle, which was inspired by this German movie. If you don't know Moviepie's feelings about Loving Annabelle, well, why not take a peek at our all-time most-read (and most controversial) review ever!