--- name: "Solveig Dommartin" canonical: "https://film.one/person/solveig-dommartin" fi1m_id: "solveig-dommartin" imdb_id: "nm0231652" tmdb_id: 2312 wikidata_id: "Q436978" roles: ["Actor"] born: "16 May 1961" died: "11 January 2007" reviewed_on_fi1m: 1 average_as: "actor" average_over: 1 updated: "2026-09-25T19:05:45.552809+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Solveig Dommartin ## Identity Solveig Dommartin - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/solveig-dommartin - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** solveig-dommartin - **IMDb ID:** nm0231652 - **TMDB ID:** 2312 - **Wikidata ID:** Q436978 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solveig_Dommartin, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q436978, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0231652/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/2312 Actor. Born 16 May 1961 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. Died 11 January 2007. ## Details - **Work:** Actor - **Born:** 16 May 1961, Constantine, France [now Algeria] - **Died:** 11 January 2007 - **Active:** 1987–1990 - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solveig_Dommartin, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q436978, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0231652/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/2312 ## Streaming the US now - **HBO Max:** [*Wings of Desire*](https://film.one/film/wings-of-desire.md) (88) For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country. ## Fi1m on Solveig Dommartin > Solveig Dommartin gives the trapeze artist in *Wings of Desire* a physical conviction the dialogue sometimes obstructs. We rate her contribution highly, while wishing Wenders had given her more ordinary conversation and fewer speeches. On the trapeze in *Wings of Desire* (1987), Solveig Dommartin gives Marion an occupation we can believe in before the film asks us to consider her loneliness. She learnt the acrobatics in eight weeks and performed without a stunt double or a net. We felt anxious watching her there, because the physical demands are so plain. That commitment matters to a film inclined to give its characters long thoughts to speak aloud. It was her film acting debut, and the physical work remains the clearest reason to seek her out. Marion is less well served when she has to explain herself. Wenders allows Dommartin too little ordinary give-and-take, and the romance slows under dialogue whose careful phrasing keeps drawing attention to the writing. We wanted to hear more of how this woman spoke to someone else, rather than another account of what she felt. Henri Alekan’s roaming camera keeps the film welcoming, but it cannot make those speeches sound like conversation. Her work with Wenders extended beyond acting: she co-wrote the story of *Until the End of the World* (1991) and starred as Claire Tourneur. That collaboration makes it misleading to treat her simply as a face chosen for his searching women. She returned as Marion in *Faraway, So Close* (1993), keeping the association close. The supporting part of Toni in Claire Denis’ *No Fear, No Die* (1990) and a minor appearance in Denis’ *I Can’t Sleep* (1994) sit outside it. Those films deserve acknowledgement, though the Wenders collaboration gives us the stronger basis for judging her work. We would not trade away the film’s slowness simply to make Marion easier company. Its attention to ordinary lives is part of what moves us, and a more impatient performance would not necessarily help. The difficulty comes when the writing tells us so much about her feelings that we have less chance to discover them ourselves. Start with *Wings of Desire*, and forgive the speeches when the woman delivering them deserves better. ## Biography Solveig Dommartin was a French actress. She made her feature film debut as Marion in *Wings of Desire* (1987), directed by Wim Wenders. For the role she learned circus acrobatics in eight weeks and performed without a stunt double. Her other film roles include Claire Tourneur in *Until the End of the World* (1991), which she co-wrote with Wenders, and Marion in *Faraway, So Close!* (1993). She began her career in the theatre with Compagnie Timothée Laine and Theater Labor Warschau, and worked as an assistant to director Jacques Rozier. Dommartin also directed the short film *It Would Only Take a Bridge* (1998). She died in Paris in 2007. *Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, latimes.com.* ## On Fi1m (1) - *Wings of Desire* (1987), Fi1m 88, as Marion — [page](https://film.one/film/wings-of-desire.md) ## Complete filmography (9) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *I Can't Sleep* (1994), as Young Blonde Woman - *Faraway, So Close!* (1993), as Marion - *Until the End of the World* (1991), as Claire Tourneur · Story - *No Fear, No Die* (1990), as Toni - *I Have You Under My Skin* (1990), as Jeanne - *The Prisoner of St. Petersburg* (1989), as Elena - *Wings of Desire* (1987), as Marion — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/film/wings-of-desire.md) - *Tokyo-Ga* (1985), Editor - *Lettre de la Sierra Morena* (1983), Actor --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/solveig-dommartin