KINO/19 Returns with A Variety of German Films

Description

The festival opens with Balloon (dir. Michael Herbig). Based on the true story of an East German family’s escape to West Germany. To do that, they have made their own hot air balloon with limited resources. Will they arrive safely?

Of special highlight are 3 award-winning films. Gundermann (dir. Andreas Dresen), which won 6 prizes at the German Film Awards, including Best Directing, Best Leading Actor and Best Screenplay amongst others. It charts the life of East German singer-songwriter, hero and anti-hero Gerhard Gundermann. The film was a German box office hit and critics hailed it as an honest portrait of life in an oppressive society.

The Mover was a Torino Film Festival winner, with its lead actor bagging several prizes. The story is about Walter, who is a 60 year old mover for forced evictions. One day, he found out that the stubborn tenant that has refused to move is the son that he has abandoned decades ago.

Chris the Swiss (Best Documentary, Swiss Film Award; Best Film, Zurich Film Awards) is to be screened in partnership with the Consulate General of Switzerland in Hong Kong. Anja has been admiring her cousin Chris since her childhood. His mysterious death in the midst of the wars in Yugoslavia in 1992 still keeps her occupied. Now that she has grown up, she has decided to dig out his story and tells of her journey in a fine mix of documentary and animated film.

More worthy ones are also on: Sweethearts portrays a complicated relationship between a professional criminal, a nerdy hostage and a handsome cop; Roads delineates a friendship between two teenagers from different worlds; A Regular Woman is about a Berlin born and raised Turkish woman being forced into a marriage when she was 16; The Collini Case uncovers a legal scandal stretching back to the World War II;  The Most Beautiful Couple, a harrowing and gripping thriller about a couple trying to come to terms with the trauma of a sexual assault.

Please note that Chinese and English subtitles are provided for the films in German (and other languages).