"Chronik der Anna Magdalena Bach" or "The Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach" is a German 90-minute movie from 1968, so this one will have its 50th anniversary soon. For that time (the days of Winnetou), it was not really too common anymore that films are in black-and-white, but this one still is. If you have an interest in classic music, you will maybe realize the name in the title is the wife of famous composer Johann Sebastian Bach and here she basically tells us the story of her husband, about him as a private character, but also about him as a professional musician. I myself would not call myself a great classical music fan, but here and there I like listening to a piece. Sadly, in terms of a biopic, it did very little for me I must admit. After watching this, I do not a care a single bit more about Bach or his life than I did before watching the film. However, I am not too surprised about this. The two filmmakers here are a very special brand of movie-making and I personally find it difficult to make a connection with them as I have already found out while watching some of their older works. So I only recommend this film to people who have seen and adored some of Huillét's/Straub's other works and maybe they can understand why their film here got some awards recognition. Or you just need to be a fan of Johann Sebastian Bach. I give it a thumbs-down overall.
