It brings back memories of Channel 4's Friday night programming block—that late-night zone with adult films, likely X-rated, broadcast freely. This movie stands out as one of the few I still recall because it so strikingly goes against every expectation. “Emmi” (Brigitte Mara), a senior widow, encounters “Ali” (El Hedi Ben Salem), a younger man who has come to Germany from Morocco seeking work. His grasp of German is…

Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s 1974 movie “Fear Eats the Soul” uses a deliberately incorrect German title: ANGST ESSEN SEELE AUF, which translates to "Fear Eat Soul." This reflects one of the film's central characters: Ali (El Hedi ben Salem), a Moroccan immigrant working as a car mechanic in Munich. While he’s picked up some basic German, his ability to integrate into German society and learn the language has been hampe…