Berlin International Film Festival 2009
 

 Synopsis
 Broadway star, screen diva, international icon and bestselling author - Hildegard Knef was many things. But more than anything else, she was a fighter who often fell, but never stayed down. A short nude scene in The Sinner (1950) provokes a national scandal, making her an outcast in her own country. Internationally, she becomes what she’s always wanted to be: a star, on the big screen, on Broadway, in America and Europe. The years go by in a whirl of successes and failures, of ups and downs. Yet even as her film career wanes she picks herself up and embarks on a new journey...

Program Note
 She was called the charisma of Marlene Dietrich, the passion of Edith Piaf and the soul of post-war Germany. Her name was Hilde. Hilde reenacted the stormy life of Hildegard Knef(1925-2002) on the screen. She was the fashion icon, the biggest movie star and singer of the time. This movie focuses on her life from 1943 to 1966. The reason the director chose the specific time frame is that he considered her performance with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1966 to be the pinnacle of her career. She came back to Berlin in 1966 after a long stay overseas. She was under the media spotlight from her arrival. Now the movie goes back to 1943. Back then, she strove for stardom but did not get any support from her family. She lived through the war; her love flourished and shattered; she experienced discord with the German audience; she traveled back and forth from Hollywood to Germany. Eventually, she climbed to the top on her own. The director portrays Hilde who held on to her dreams despite all the ordeals and obstacles with great warmth. (KWON Eun-sun)