Western (2017)

German construction workers building a dam near a Bulgarian village interact with the locals, and soon the troubles arise both with the locals and among themselves.

Director:

Valeska Grisebach

Writer:

Valeska Grisebach

Stars:

Meinhard Neumann, Reinhardt Wetrek, Syuleyman Alilov Letifov

18 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meinhard Neumann	...	Meinhard
Reinhardt Wetrek	...	Vincent
Syuleyman Alilov Letifov	...	Adrian
Veneta Fragnova	...	Veneta
Viara Borisova	...	Vyara (as Vyara Borisova)
Kevin Bashev	...	Wanko
Aliosman Deliev	...	Mancho
Momchil Sinanov	...	Manchos Großvater
Robert Gawellek	...	Tommy
Jens Klein	...	Jens
Waldemar Zang	...	Boris
Detlef Schaich	...	Helmuth
Sascha Diener	...	Marcel
Enrico Mantei	...	Wolle
Gulzet Zyulfov	...	Gulzet

Storyline

A group of German construction workers start a tough job at a remote site in the Bulgarian countryside. The foreign land awakens the men's sense of adventure, but they are also confronted with their own prejudice and mistrust due to the language barrier and cultural differences. The stage is quickly set for a showdown when men begin to compete for recognition and favor from the local villagers.

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Plot Keywords:

construction | language barrier | horse | quarry | stream | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Features an entire cast of non-professionals, with the majority of them having this movie as their first credit.

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Connections

References Fata Morgana (1971)

User Reviews

Bulgaria is south and east of Germany

Western (2017) is a German film written and directed by Valeska Grisebach. The title is symbolic, in the sense that, for Germans, Bulgaria is like our "Wild West."

A group of German workers come to Bulgaria for a construction project. It's in a remote rural area, so there's not much opportunity to mix with the Bulgarians. However, one worker, Meinhard (Meinhard Neumann) goes into town and begins to meet the local people, and even to try to learn Bulgarian.

Meinhard makes friends, and obtains the use of a horse. (The horse turns out to be a key plot element.)

The basic outline of the plot isn't unique, but the way it plays out is interesting and unpredictable.

We saw this movie at the wonderful Dryden Theatre in Rochester's George Eastman Museum. It will work well enough on the small screen. It's not a masterpiece, but it's definitely worth seeing.

P.S. The Dryden staffer who introduced the movie pointed out that the language barrier is immense. (German and Bulgarian come from Germanic and Slavic roots, respectively.) We, the audience, get English subtitles whether the speaker is German or Bulgarian. We know what's happening, but often the persons involved do not.

Details

Official Sites:

Komplizen Film [Germany] Official Facebook

Country:

Germany Bulgaria Austria

Language:

German Bulgarian English

Release Date:

24 August 2017 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Western

Filming Locations:

Petrelik, Blagoevgrad Province, Bulgaria

Box Office

Budget:

EUR1,800,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,688, 18 February 2018

Gross USA:

$41,072

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$155,215

Company Credits

Production Co:

Komplizen Film, Chouchkov Brothers, Coop99 Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1