A lonely and obese assistant mortician becomes infatuated with a handsome young subway driver and goes to great lengths to meet him in this oddly exuberant German import. It sounds like someone's idea of a bad joke, and likely would have become just that if ever remade for a dumbed-down American market. But the single-minded determination of the heroine's pursuit (and the apparent ease with which she wins her dream lover) keeps the film light and sunny, despite an unexpected tragic ending. Director Percy Adlon's fantastic, hallucinogenic color scheme is an acquired taste, however. It's either a pretentious art house mannerism, or a stroke of necessary style adding the perfect touch of unreality to an already far-fetched romance.
Review of Sugar Baby
