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Soul Kitchen

Soul Kitchen

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A culinary comedy set in Hamburg, from director Fatih Akin (the excellent The Edge of Heaven). Winner of the Jury Prize at Venice Film Festival 2009.

Young restaurant owner Zinos (Adam Bousdoukos) is down on his luck. His girlfriend Nadine has moved to Shanghai, his Soul Kitchen customers are boycotting the new gourmet chef, and his blimmin' back is playing up. Things start looking up when hipsters embraces his revamped culinary concept, but that doesn't mend Zino's broken heart so he flies to China for Nadine, leaving the restaurant in the hands of his ex-con brother Illias (Moritz Bleibtreu).

Both decisions turn out disastrous: Illias gambles away the restaurant and Nadine is with another lover. The brothers have got to work together to get Soul Kitchen back...

Starring Adam Bousdoukos, Moritz Bleibtreu, Birol Ünel, Anna Bederke, Pheline Roggan, Lukas Gregorowicz

Directed by Fatih Akin ('The Edge of Heaven', 'Head-On')

Written by Fatih Akin, Adam Bousdoukos

Festivals & Awards Winner of the Jury Prize and Young Cinema Award at Venice Film Festival 2009.

World Cinema, Comedy | 1hr 39mins | Rated (M) | Contains sex scenes & offensive language | Origin: Germany | Language: German and Greek with English subtitles

Flicks review

  • Fatih Akin (The Edge of Heaven) is the new cool kid in German filmmaking but this is a departure from the trendy norm from him. Gone are the doom-laden romances and cultural alienation that brought him to the attention of festival audiences. In their place is an upbeat comedy about running a restaurant and, while it’s not a laugh riot, it has more than enough positives to recommend a viewing.

    The locations and general production design reveal Hamburg in all its grimey, boho-chic glory – desolate yet stylish. Akin adding some new camera tricks to his normally naturalistic shooting style helps too. The soundtrack is fantastic, a great mix of hard rock and funk used in interesting ways. All this sets a great stage for a cast who deliver. While some of the characters – the cocky gangster, the pretentious chef – veer towards caricature, the actors milk them for all the humanity and lo-fi humour possible.

    What really stops the film from kicking up a gear is the story itself. Akin’s previous work featured complex narratives but these have been jettisoned in favour of a more basic script to allow the comedy some room to breathe. He probably went too far in the direction of simplicity, with a few twists being easy to spot and an ending sequence that hinges too heavily on circumstance and falls flat because of it. Only a minor work from an extremely promising director.

    By Andreas Heinemann, Flicks.co.nz

 Our Rating       3

The Peoples voice

  • thought i was drunk

     5

    i laughed so much that i had to do a mental check if i had been drinking ,half way thru the film.not to be missed!

    By larissa Wallin

  • This is fun

     4

    This a great comedy about a guy Zinos who has a restaurant and small base of loyal customers, until he hires a new chef. He totally revamps the place and puts the Soul back in the kitchen. After that is a bunch of stuff with his girlfriend Nadine, his brother coming out of prison, and the waitress his brother has fallen for. This is interesting and fun comedy, that will leave you wanting more

    By Philip Moore

  • wicked film

     5

    brill movie, full of character and comedy, laughs and loving.
    all in all a short film with some heart warming scenes that still have you rolling on the floor laughing. well done faith akin

    By prams finest

 Collective Voice    0000000000005.00

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Press Reviews

  • Christchurch Press (James Croot)

    4 4 out of 5 stars

    Zinos (Adam Bousdoukos) is torn between two loves and both of them are breaking his heart.
    Click to read the full review

  • NZ Herald (Russell Baillie)

    4 4 out of 5 stars

    A fine foodie German comedy. Yes, really.
    Click to read the full review

  • TVNZ (Darren Bevan)

    There's screwball moments, warmth and heart in this kitchen - and the final result is somewhat of a crazy yet very digestible and insanely enjoyable mix.
    Click to read the full review

  • Urban Cinefile (Australia)

    It's not complete (the ending is rather weak) nor compelling, but it's still likeable enough as light entertainment.
    Click to read the full review

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