Kino! 2013: New Films from Germany
April 23rd, 2013 by chocko
Free Fall
Director: Stephen Lacant
Free Fall opened the 35th Annual Kino! Festival at MoMA with an enthusiastic crowd along with the director Stephen Lacant in attendance. The movie is not your typical buddy cop movie. This contemporary bromance centers around two male police officers in training who just can’t get their hands off each other. Marc has a pregnant wife at home and the affair gets steamier when Kay gets transferred to Marc’s unit. The two young, chiseled protagonists wrestle under the sheets, romp around gay clubs at night and go for “morning jogs” while keeping things undercover unbeknownst to Mark’s unsuspecting wife and homophobic police department. The movie is loaded with drama, cheesy dialogue and unfortunately nearly void of humor. I definitely recommend you check out this rollercoaster of a movie to find out if the love affair between Marc and Kay last, despite all the lies and betrayal. According to the director of the film Stephen Lacant, the film will be released next month in Germany, Switzerland and France. Free Fall will also be released in the United States soon, so check it out at a theatre near you.
Oh Boy
Director: Jan Ole Gerster
This black and white film was fun to watch. It instantly reminded me of vintage Woody Allen complete with old-timey jazz music playing in the background. Jan Ole Gerster’s debut feature Oh Boy follows the likeable Niko Fischer (Tom Schilling) as he shuffles around the picturesque city of Berlin. He is a down on his luck loser…got no job, lost his girl, dropped out of law school and can’t even find a decent cup of coffee. Many characters populate Niko’s world including his friend Matze, an out of work actor and Niko’s wealthy father who cuts financial ties with his son after discovering he hasn’t been showing up to his college classes. The movie is really funny and chock full of awkward moments. The character of Julike, a former high school classmate invites Niko and Matze to her performance in a bizarre avant-garde play. The night spirals out of control, more shenanigans occur but unfortunately the movie changes gears toward the end. It’s a great movie, not perfect but deserves recognition and hopefully it finds a huge audience outside of Germany.
Silvi – Maybe Love
Director: Nico Sommer
Another German feature screening at during Kino! is titled Silvi – Maybe Love which features the character of Silvi (wonderfully acted by Lina Wendel) whose husband decides to walk away from his wife and family, leaving Silvi in her late forties, single and and not quite ready to mingle. After becoming “stranded unexpectedly” Silvi places a personal ad to see what is out there beyond her lonely life working in a bookstore. The movie is an honest look at the complexities of adult relationships and searching for happiness. I will spoil some of the movie now by saying that the men she meets are freaky-one guy is a busdriver who only wants to get busy with Silvi in a hotel room. She deserves better than that! She then meets a successful businessman. They really hit it off well…snort cocaine, have romantic rooftop dinners, but lookout! He’s also into fantasy roleplay and bondage. Will Silvi recover from all her emotional misfortunes? Will she find Mr. Right? Keep your fingers crossed.
Check out these feature films and more new German cinema at the 35th Annual Kino! 2013: New Films from Germany series hosted at MoMA in NYC from April 18–24, 2013. The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is located at 11 West 53rd St. in New York City.
Tags: festival, film, free fall, german, kino!, moma, movie, movies, oh boy, silvi
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