German History X
In September 2000, 14-year-old Semiya is woken in her boarding school at 4am. Her father, Enver Simsek, has apparently had an accident. Only in the hospital does she learn that he’s in a coma after being shot eight times. He dies two days later. The police get to work, highly motivated to solve the case as quickly as possible.
There are hardly any clues, but plenty of hints: Enver received a large amount of money in a short time. As a florist, he was often in Holland. Several witnesses get in touch, one claiming to have accompanied Enver with an alleged shipment of drugs. Semiya and her family are summoned to headquarters over and over again, where they’re faced with grueling interrogations. Semiya never doubts her father’s innocence for a second, and nor do her little brother and two uncles. Her mother, Adile, is no match for the physical and mental stress. She is hospitalized, and Semiya takes over responsibility for herself and her brother.
Meanwhile, seven Turkish and one Greek businessmen are murdered with the same weapon as Enver Simsek. A new investigator moves things along with the Simsek case, successfully refuting previous witness statements, but ultimately his investigations come to nothing. The victims’ relatives begin to fight back. During a mass demonstration, Semiya delivers a speech, confidently inviting the police to look for the true culprits. But it’s not until November 2011 that the truth emerges about who the murderers really were.
Züli Aladag, Germany, 2016, 95 min.
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