Í ágúst 1992, þremur árum eftir fall Berlínarmúrsins hófust miklar óeirðir gegn innflytjendum í borginni Rostock í Austur -Þýskalandi. Árásir voru gerðar á flóttamannabúðir í jaðri borgarinnar. Þremur dögum eftir árásarnir náði þessi ólga hámarki þegar 3000 mótmælendur, ný-nasistar kveiktu í búðum þar sem 150 Víetnamar hófust við.
Myndin er byggð á þessum atburðum, en fylgst er með degi í lífi þriggja ólíkra persóna. Um er að ræða afar sjónræna reynslu, en um svarthvíta mynd er að ræða, leikstjórinn leyfir hverju skoti að lifa, þar sem senurnar ná að skila reiðinni og kraftinum sem undir býr. Myndin hefur unnið til fjölda verðlauna.
Myndin er sýnd á Þýskum kvikmyndadögum sem haldnir eru í sjötta sinn dagana 11. – 20. mars 2016 í Bíó Paradís.
English
1992—the former East German city of Rostock is still coming to terms with the aftermath of the recent fall of the Berlin Wall. Youth unemployment is high, and migrant workers are housed in Soviet-era high-rises on the outskirts of the city. The Roma and a sizeable Vietnamese minority have become targets of the locals’ discontent, which escalates into hostility and violence during the course of one day.
Director Burhan Qurbani plunges us headfirst into this world and we watch events unfold through the eyes of Stefan, a youth intrigued by the local neo-Nazi movement; his father, Martin, an aging Social Democrat politician; and Lien, a Vietnamese factory worker. As generational, ideological, and racial tensions build, the camera swoops through the city bringing characters together and forcing them to see each other and their surroundings in a new light. All culminating in a night that will change the city forever. The tasteful black-and-white cinematography embraces the period setting while at the same time making each shot feel alive and bursting with an angry energy. The meandering camera and the intertwining narratives makes for a very visceral experience.
The film is screened on the sixth edition of German Film Days in Bíó Paradís, March 11th – March 20th 2016.
