W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism

W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism
DVD cover of the movie
Directed byDušan Makavejev
Written byDušan Makavejev
Produced byDušan Makavejev
CinematographyAleksandar Petković
Pega Popović
Edited byIvanka Vukasović
Music byBojana Marijan
Release date
  • 1971 (1971)
Running time
85 min.
CountriesYugoslavia
West Germany
LanguagesSerbo-Croatian
English

W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism (Serbo-Croatian: W.R. – Misterije organizma / W.R. – Мистерије организма) is a 1971 film by Serbian director Dušan Makavejev that explores the relationship between communist politics and sexuality, as well as presenting the controversial life and work of Austrian-American psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich (1897–1957). The film's narrative structure is unconventional, intermixing fictional and documentary elements.

After initial screenings, both in and out of Yugoslavia, W.R. was banned in that country for the next 16 years. Makavejev was subsequently indicted there on criminal charges of "derision" towards "the state, its agencies, and representatives" after he made intemperate remarks to a West German newspaper about the ban.[1] His exile from his home country lasted until the end of the regime.