On men, women and jealousy – J. Hoberman in NYRB:

‘The eponymous subject of Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué’s 1811 novella, Undine is a female water sprite who marries a male human to gain an immortal soul with the proviso that, should her husband prove unfaithful, he will forfeit his life and she will lose her soul. Instantly popular, it provided the source for an 1816 E.T.A. Hoffmann opera and, probably, Hans Christian Andersen’s 1837 fairytale “The Little Mermaid.”’

(…)

‘Petzold’s protagonists have often been women, but seldom one so opaque; his Undine, like that of Fouqué, is an enigmatic Other. She receives mysterious transmissions, including a phone call from a drowned man, and has unexplained affinities and perhaps telekinetic powers. When she returns to the restaurant of the opening scene hoping to find Johannes, she is instead chatted up by Christoph (Rogowski) who was impressed by her lecture. As they stand before a large, decorative fish tank, Undine hears her name seemingly called from the aquarium and Christoph clumsily backs into the case holding it. The tank crashes down and shatters, flooding the restaurant and, as a thunderbolt might, knocking them both to the floor.’

(…)

‘Not long after, the talismanic diver recovered from the restaurant aquarium falls from Undine’s desk and breaks (as does, metaphorically, the dam). Johannes, who we discover is a professional swimmer, resurfaces seeking a reconciliation. Christoph, hitherto so solicitous and adoring, becomes jealous. Is the reservoir itself jealous, as well? Here, Undine plunges decisively into the supernatural, with accidents, acts of vengeance, vanishings, and intimations of Wuthering Heights.
Bachmann’s “Undine Leaves” conjured an existential abyss between men and women—something that Petzold acknowledges once Undine returns to the depths and Christoph, himself brought back to life, attempts to follow her. The least political of Petzold’s recent films, Undine is also the most rueful. All is water under the bridge.’

Read the article here.

If pets can be jealous, why not a reservoir?

The abyss probably is not so much between men and women, but is between lovers in general, even between onlookers and a reservoir.

The abyss is there, all we can do is enjoy it.