Dvd
Soul Kitchen
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 | Official Site »
- Trailers
- Reviews
-
- SHARE:
- SHARE:
The Talk
No votes / No comments
Flicks review
-
3
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.SHARE:
The people's reviews
3 reviews
Press Reviews
-
Christchurch Press (James Croot)
4
Zinos (Adam Bousdoukos) is torn between two loves and both of them are breaking his heart.
Read full review -
NZ Herald (Russell Baillie)
4
A fine foodie German comedy. Yes, really.
Read 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.
Read 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.
Read full review
View more trailers close window
-
Loading the player ...
Search For a DVD
I beg your pardon?
- Flicks.co.nz is serving the great nation of NZ with all things cinematic. Question about a movie or cinema? Thoughts on the site? Quips, gripes, advice for our own personal self-development?
- Get in touch with us by email at ED@ FLICKS.CO.NZ,on TWITTER oron FACEBOOK.
Want to see it
What say you? Yes No
Be the first to comment!