Considered his first significant work and a radical turning point in young German cinema, Wenders’ early feature follows the desultory wanderings of a goalkeeper whose ejection from a game eventually leads to his casually committing a motiveless crime. Adhering strictly to Peter Handke’s Existentialist novella, Wenders visually pays homage to Hitchcock, yet refuses crime narrative conventions, the satisfying revelations of psychological insight or a reliable protagonist. In addition to more partnerships with Handke to come, the film also marked the beginning of Wenders’ long collaboration with cameraman Robby Müller and editor Peter Przygodda.