Sisi & I

Sisi & I Movie Details:

Sisi & I Movie Cast & Characters:

• Susanne Wolff as Empress Elisabeth of Austria
• Sandra Hüller as Countess Irma Sztáray
• Tom Rhys Harries as Captain Smythe
• Stefan Kurt as Count Berzeviczy
• Johanna Wokalek as Countess Marie Festetics
• Angela Winkler as Ludovika, Duchess in Bavaria
• Georg Friedrich as Archduke Ludwig Viktor of Austria
• Annette Badland as Queen Victoria
• Anthony Calf as Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer
• Markus Schleinzer as Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria
• Sibylle Canonica as Maria Török de Szendrõ
• Tom Lass as Tsar Nicholas II of Russia
• Ravi Aujla as Doctor Bose
• Anne Müller as Baronin von Rothschildt
• Frank Böhm as Hungarian Doctor
• Alexander Korn as Diener
• William Erazo Fernández as Porter
• Sophie Hutter as Fritzi

Storyline:

Late in the 19th century. The single, middle-aged Hungarian countess Irma Sztáray, having rejected marriage and the convent, is forced by her overbearing mother to apply to be handmaiden to the increasingly reclusive Empress Elisabeth of Austria, also known as Sisi. An extravagant and temperamental woman, Sisi has been separated from her husband for many years and is living in an aristocratic women-only commune in Corfu, Greece. After a humiliating interview by her predecessor, Irma arrives at the estate seasick and heatstruck and is immediately put through her paces by her new mistress. Though initially uncertain, Irma soon bows to the will of the Empress in all things, curbing her healthy appetite to match Sisi’s obsessively restricted one and parting with her frou-frou ribbons and lace to adopt Sisi’s preferred, Japanese-influenced style. Irma falls madly in love with the Empress, and as they travel from Corfu to Algiers, Bavaria to England, the two develop a co-dependent bond – though naturally, only as close as Sisi will allow. But when they return to Vienna, their lives change drastically. After her husband the Emperor rapes her, Sisi pressures Irma to murder her with a shiv, blaming an Italian anarchist.

About Sisi & I Movie:

Sisi & I is a historical black comedy film directed by Frauke Finsterwalder, who co-wrote the screenplay with Christian Kracht. It stars Susanne Wolff as Empress Elisabeth of Austria and Sandra Hüller as Countess Irma Sztáray.

It tells a fictionalized story of Empress Elisabeth of Austria from the point of view of her lady-in-waiting, Irma Sztáray.

The film’s working title was Sisi – Kaiserin Elisabeth (Sisi – Empress Elisabeth in English).

Originally announced in 2019 and scheduled to start shooting in Autumn 2020, but filming had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Principal photography started on 20 September 2021 and wrapped on 15 November 2021.

Filming took place in Germany, Bavaria, Vienna, Malta, and Switzerland.

The film was originally set to be released in Spring 2022

Director of this film is Frauke Finsterwalder’s second collaboration with Sandra Hüller.

The first film is about Empress Elisabeth of Austria to use her real nickname, “Sisi” with a single “S” in the title. Most film and TV adaptations incorrectly spell it as “Sissi” with a double “S” because of the “Sissi” trilogy from the 1950s starring Romy Schneider in the title role. Elisabeth herself spelled it as “Sisi”.

The film’s first official German poster was unveiled on 15 November 2022 and a teaser trailer was released on 15 December 2022.

It premiered in the Panorama section of the 2023 Berlin Film Festival on 19 February 2023. Sisi & I was released theatrically in Austria by Panda Film, and in Germany and Switzerland by DCM on 30 March 2023.