Soul Kitchen (2009)

In Hamburg, German-Greek chef Zinos unknowingly disturbs the peace in his locals-only restaurant by hiring a more talented chef.

Director:

Fatih Akin

Writers:

Fatih Akin (screenplay), Adam Bousdoukos (screenplay)

Stars:

Adam Bousdoukos, Moritz Bleibtreu, Pheline Roggan

4 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Adam Bousdoukos	...	Zinos Kazantsakis
Moritz Bleibtreu	...	Illias Kazantsakis
Pheline Roggan	...	Nadine Krüger
Anna Bederke	...	Lucia Faust
Birol Ünel	...	Shayn Weiss
Dorka Gryllus	...	Anna Mondstein
Wotan Wilke Möhring	...	Thomas Neumann
Lucas Gregorowicz	...	Lutz
Demir Gökgöl	...	Sokrates
Cem Akin	...	Milli
Marc Hosemann	...	Ziege
Catrin Striebeck	...	Frau Schuster vom Finanzamt
Ugur Yücel	...	Knochenbrecher
Udo Kier	...	Herr Jung
Monica Bleibtreu	...	Nadines Großmutter

Storyline

In Hamburg, Zinos has a restaurant serving poor-man's fare; he gets by, but his girlfriend has taken a job in Shanghai, he's hurt his back and can't cook, his feckless brother can be on daily parole from jail only if Zinos employs him (though his brother doesn't want to work), a school acquaintance wants to buy the restaurant property, and the tax authority and health inspector are on his case. Zinos hires a temperamental chef and loses all his customers, signs a power of attorney giving his brother full authority at the restaurant, and buys a ticket to Shanghai. Is this a recipe for disaster?

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Plot Keywords:

restaurant | chef | cook | 2000s | burglar | 

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Taglines:

Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

Germany France Italy

Language:

German Greek Spanish Turkish English

Release Date:

25 December 2009 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Aska ruhunu kat

Filming Locations:

Am Hasenberge, Hamburg, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

€4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$20,916, 22 August 2010, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$274,385, 7 November 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC), Corazón International, Dorje Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Soul Kitchen is a The Doors' song. The protagonist looks like Jim Morrison, the band's vocalist.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Summer Special 2010/11 (2010)

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Soundtracks

Brown Bag
Written by Boogaloo Jones (as Ivan 'Boogaloo' Joe Jones)

User Reviews

Sweet, shaggy comedy from the wildly talented Akin

This frothy, light, slightly shapeless but endearing comedy is further proof of the protean nature of Akin's amazing talents.

While nowhere near as good a film as his great, dark comedy-drama 'Head On' or his complex. philosophical 'The Edge of Heaven', I appreciate that Akin seems more interested in exploring different genres and stories than creating a signature style.

This is the kind of comedy that makes you smile more than laugh, and is stronger on character and acting than on comic set pieces, but even the jokes that don't work aren't annoying.

A shaggy, likable young Greek man living in Germany tries to start his own restaurant, juggling his ex-con brother, his out-of town girlfriend, his slightly insane chef, and a rival who wants to take over his space. It's not an 'important' film, but it captures something wonderful about being young and trying to find your place in the world.