Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

Name: Ali: Fear Eats the Soul
Genre: Romance, Drama
Released: 1974-03-05
Duration: 1 h 33 min
Rating: 7.7
Cast: Brigitte Mira, El Hedi ben Salem, Irm Hermann, Barbara Valentin, Elma Karlowa

1974·Movie·NR·93 min·★ 7.7(454)

Romance Drama

Emmi Kurowski, a cleaning lady, is lonely in her old age. Her husband died years ago, and her grown children offer little companionship. One night she goes to a bar frequented by Arab immigrants and strikes up a friendship with middle-aged mechanic Ali. Their relationship soon develops into something more, and Emmi's family and neighbors criticize their spontaneous marriage. Soon Emmi and Ali are forced to confront their own insecurities about their future.

▶ Watch trailer

Where to watch Ali: Fear Eats the Soul in United States

Stream

HBO Max Amazon Channel

Rent

Buy

Click a service to open Ali: Fear Eats the Soul there. Availability last verified on June 20, 2026.

Where is Ali: Fear Eats the Soul streaming around the world?

Country	Streaming on	Rent / Buy
United States	HBO Max Amazon Channel, YouTube TV, Criterion Channel, HBO Max	Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
United Kingdom	BFI Player, BFI Player Amazon Channel, BFI Player Apple TV Channel, ARROW	Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies
Canada	Criterion Channel	Apple TV Store
Germany	Amazon Arthaus Channel, Arthaus+ Apple TV channel, Arthaus+	Apple TV Store, Amazon Video, LaCinetek
France	Sooner, Molotov TV	LaCinetek
Spain	Movistar Plus+, Movistar Plus+ Ficción Total , Filmin	—
Brazil	Looke, Belas Artes à La Carte, NetMovies	—
South Korea	—	Google Play Movies

About Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul is a 1974 German-language romance and drama film directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. The cast is led by Brigitte Mira, El Hedi ben Salem, Irm Hermann. It has a runtime of 1h 33m. Viewers rate it 7.7/10 across 500 ratings. In United States, it is currently streaming on HBO Max Amazon Channel, YouTube TV, Criterion Channel.

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul was produced by Tango Film and Filmverlag der Autoren and made in Germany. It was released on March 5, 1974, and carries a NR certification. Made on a budget of about $0 million, it went on to gross $0 million worldwide.

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Writers: Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Release date: March 5, 1974
Original language: German
Age rating: NR
Status: Released
Country: Germany
Budget: $0 million
Box office: $0 million
Production: Tango Film, Filmverlag der Autoren

#husband wife relationship#unsociability#parent child relationship#germany#cleaning lady#foreigner#german-turkish living together#munich, germany#older woman younger man relationship#new german cinema#age-gap relationship

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul cast & crew

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul was directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder and written by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

The cast features Brigitte Mira as Emmi Kurowski, El Hedi ben Salem as Ali, Irm Hermann as Krista, Barbara Valentin as Barbara, Elma Karlowa as Mrs. Kargus, and Anita Bucher as Mrs. Ellis.

Behind the camera, the score was composed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, cinematography is by Jürgen Jürges, and it was produced by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Is Ali: Fear Eats the Soul worth watching?

Ali: Fear Eats the Soul holds an audience score of 7.7/10 from 454 ratings, marking it as well-reviewed romance films.

At 1h 33m, it's an easy, time-light watch.

If you enjoy romance and drama, Ali: Fear Eats the Soul is worth a place on your watchlist.

How and where to watch Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

In United States, you can stream Ali: Fear Eats the Soul on HBO Max Amazon Channel, YouTube TV, Criterion Channel, and HBO Max, or rent and buy it on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home. Click any service above to open it directly.

Streaming rights change country by country and month by month, so the options above reflect United States today — switch your country at the top of the where-to-watch section to see availability elsewhere.