Doppelleben

Summary

Double Life

To what extent can the temporary assumption of another identity define one's own persona, or even distort it? Wolfsperger has a look behind the sudden success, setbacks, and the comical and tragic moments of appearance and existence.

The central figure of the film is Susanne Knoll from Lübeck, who is coincidentally "discovered" at a wedding party. Initially nonplussed by her uncanny resemblance to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, she accepts an agent's offer to hire on as an Angela Merkel doppelganger, and eventually starts to like her new role. The woman plagued by depression and inferiority complexes suddenly finds a new lease on life with her new identity and surpasses herself, experiencing a new lightness of being. She radically changes every aspect of her previous life, leaves her husband, and even attempts, with her newfound and motivating success, a footstep into the world of politics. But Knoll has competition: there's another Merkel doppelganger near Lake Constance, Marianne Schätzle. Her "double life" began when her son saw a picture of the German Chancellor in the newspaper and reacted by saying "mommy, mommy!" Whether she makes an appearance with the other curious doppelganger or takes part in an East German nostalgic event – the former nurse is always on tour.

Otherwise, the two women have very little in common. But they are both ambitious and a certain claim bonds them: both want to be the ultimate Angela Merkel double. Is there any jealousy or rivalry between the two? Of course! But just how long can one exist in the identity of someone else? What does it all mean for one’s own ego to exploit someone else’s fame? Where does imitation end and schizophrenia begin? When all of your friends call you "Angie" and your every step is being watched and observed…
"Doppelleben" is a film about two very normal women who happened upon something very unusual and have to learn to deal with the consequences of their own perceptions of themselves, as well as that of others.

Source: German Films Service & Marketing GmbH