Senta Berger mourns Michael Verhoeven: The end of a moving love

On April 26th it was announced that Michael Verhoeven (1938-2024) recently died at the age of 85. The filmmaker leaves behind not only his long-time wife, Senta Berger (82), but also their two sons Simon (51) and Luca (45). Verhoeven and Berger have been one of the great couples in the German film landscape for decades.

They argued and he disappeared out the window

The long love between the two also began in a cinematic way – with a heated argument, as the actress and the director said in 2007 about their 41-year marriage at the time. “For me, marriage to Senta has something natural – not in the sense that it has become a habit, but that it is part of my life. I would like the time that we have left to pass much more slowly,” and together with Berger, he also talked about when it first started happening.

The two’s acquaintance began “with a brilliant argument,” said Verhoeven. It was about the film “Eight and a Half” by Federico Fellini (1920-1993), which he liked. His future wife had a different opinion. She was very “smart” and had hardly made any films at that time, said Berger. But she had “a very decided opinion on everything”.

Verhoeven finally left the car in which they were sitting in an almost Hollywood-like manner: “Through the window because the door in my old car was stuck. We had such a terrible argument that it was literally sparkling. And that spraying and sparkling too It was clear to me that there was another reason.” But they didn’t see each other for two or three years, but she had already asked their mutual agent what “young Verhoeven” was up to.

A heart, a rose and a roller coaster

Even though both of them were still married at the time, they eventually found each other. They finally fell in love in 1963 while filming the film “Jack and Jenny” together. The wedding followed a few years later, in 1966.

Before that, they celebrated a hen party in the Schottenhammel tent at the Munich Oktoberfest, which Berger apparently never forgot. In May 2021, she remembered the evening in an interview with the news agency spot on news: “Our families were there and our friends. It was wonderful. The music didn’t have these scary amplifiers yet, we danced on the gallery, but man “I was able to have a real conversation without having to shout at each other. Michael shot me a heart and I still have that. And then we went on a roller coaster – as a foretaste of what would happen later in life.”

Turbulence like a rollercoaster? Yes, they are simply part of life and in a relationship. How her husband and she conspired together against the world, . It was a coincidence: “The right people met. We understand each other, argue, love each other, are still surprised by each other. It’s fun with Michael: He’s smart, charming, he loves me and I love him.” But she didn’t have any tips for others, because “there are a thousand recipes for every thousand pairs.”

“Love hurts in happiness and even more in pain”

Nobody can really understand how difficult the loss of her long-time husband must be for her. “Even fulfilled love hurts. Happiness hurts: you can’t eat, you get sick from all the happiness,” she told the magazine. “Love hurts in happiness and even more in pain, in loss. Even when we are happy, we are always accompanied by the thought that it could be over. That hurts every time.”

Her son Simon, who is also a director, confirmed his father’s death in moving words on Friday. “My dad was the most loving, funniest father a child could ask for. And a brilliant, courageous filmmaker. My world collapsed. He was my great hero and always will be.” Simon Verhoeven also hinted at how his mother feels: “Words can hardly describe what the loss means to my mother.”