Discussion about Fatih Akin's ribald comedy

KINO! Film Salon is a monthly online club to discuss films from Germany.
 
How it works: Each month we choose a German film or series currently available to stream on U.S. platforms, watch it independently, and come together for a hosted conversation with other fans of German film.
 
For our first session of 2024 we picked Fatih Akin’s Soul Kitchen, a film that sees the acclaimed director of dark dramas like Head On and In the Fade in an unusually vivacious mode. Akin’s ribald comedy draws from the real-life restaurant experiences of his co-writer Adam Bousdoukos, providing a sense of authenticity that grounds the laughs in a real sense of gravitas.
Register Successfully balancing sociopolitical weightiness with an earnest appreciation for good food, good company, and an unapologetic appreciation for good old-fashioned belly laughs, Akin’s surprising film is a deeply satisfying romp that is as intelligent as it is funny.

Soul Kitchen won the Grand Jury Prize and the Young Cinema Award at the Venice Film Festival, among others.

Hosted by Jim Kolmar

Jim programs for SXSW and Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival, and was a founding committee member of Festival Internacional de Cine Tulum (FICTU). He has participated in numerous international festival juries, panels, and committees.
 
KINO! Film Salon is a production of Telescope Film, in partnership with the German Film Office.

Soul Kitchen
Dir. Fatih Akin
Germany, 2009
99 minutes
With Adam Bousdoukos, Birol Ünel, Moritz Bleibtreu, Anna Bederk