The Goalkeeper's Fear of the Penalty

The Goalkeeper's Fear of the Penalty
Directed by	Wim Wenders
Written by	Peter Handke Wim Wenders
Based on	The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick by Peter Handke
Produced by	Peter Genée Thomas Schamoni
Starring	Arthur Brauss Erika Pluhar Kai Fischer
Cinematography	Robby Müller
Edited by	Peter Przygodda
Music by	Jürgen Knieper
Distributed by	Bauer International (U.S.)
Release date	19 February 1972 (1972-02-19)
Running time	101 minutes
Countries	West Germany Austria
Language	German
Budget	DM 620,000 (estimated)

The Goalkeeper's Fear of the Penalty (German: Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter) is a 1972 German-language detective film, directed by Wim Wenders. It is also known as The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick. It was adapted from the novel with the same title by Peter Handke.

In the film, a goalkeeper has a one-night stand with a woman and proceeds to kill her. He returns to his home town and hides in plain sight, uncertain whether the police is searching for him.

Plot

A goalkeeper is sent off during a game for dissent. He spends the night with a cinema cashier, whom he afterwards kills. Although a type of detective film, it is more slow moving and contemplative than other films of the genre. It explores the monotony of the murderer's existence and, like many of Wenders' films, the overwhelming cultural influence of the United States in post-war West Germany.

Origin of the title

Late in the film, the goalkeeper and a traveling salesman attend a football game, and witness a penalty kick. The goalkeeper describes what it is like to face a penalty: should he dive to one side, and if he does will the kicker aim for the other? It is a psychological confrontation in which each tries to outfox the other.

In parallel with this, the goalkeeper, rather than go on the run, has returned to his home town and is living in plain sight. He doesn't know if the police are looking for him in particular, and the police are not necessarily looking for someone who isn't trying to hide.

Further reading

• Tibbetts, John C., and James M. Welsh, eds. The Encyclopedia of Novels Into Film (2nd ed. 2005) pp 153–155.

External links

• Official website
• The Goalkeeper's Fear of the Penalty at IMDb
• The Goalkeeper's Fear of the Penalty at AllMovie