| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Numan Acar | ... | Nuri Sekerci | |
| Adam Bousdoukos | ... | Knacki | |
| Diane Kruger | ... | Katja Sekerci | |
| Denis Moschitto | ... | Danilo Fava | |
| Samia Muriel Chancrin | ... | Birgit (as Samia Chancrin) | |
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Torsten Lemke | ... | Standesbeamter |
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Rafael Santana | ... | Rocco Sekerci |
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Cem Akin | ... | Kunde im Büro |
| Hanna Hilsdorf | ... | Edda Möller | |
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Anke Opp | ... | Streifenpolizistin an Tatort |
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Ina Neerfeld | ... | Kriseninterventionsmitarbeiterin Turnhalle |
| Laurens Walter | ... | Kommissar Fischer | |
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Angélique Mundt | ... | Kriseninterventionsmitarbeiterin Haus (as Dr. Angélique Mundt) |
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Karin Neuhäuser | ... | Annemarie |
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Uwe Rohde | ... | Michi |
Katja's (Diane Kruger) had met Turkish-born Kurdish Nuri Sekerci (Numan Acar) when she bought hashish from him during her student days. They got married when he was still in prison, although their parents were against the marriage. Since her son Rocco (Rafael Santana) is born, Nuri is no longer working as a drug dealer, because he studied business administration in prison and now runs a translation and tax office in Hamburg. One day Rocco and Nuri are killed by a nail bomb, which was deposited in front of the office. This has shredded everything. Because her husband was in prison for drug possession, the police investigated in the red light district. The investigators do not see that the tracks point in a completely different direction. Then they happen to be the real killers on the net. The main suspects are the neo-Nazi spouses André (Ulrich Brandhoff) and Edda Möller (Hanna Hilsdorf). But the trial is developing differently than Katja had hoped. Although her lawyer Danilo (Denis ...
Fatih Akin doesn't need to prove he knows how to direct or that he is a capable director. But if you need another example here it is. One might say he gets back to his roots or rather his first film somewhat with this. But with the spin that he concentrates on the female perspective. You could also argue that the male might come from that world he created with his first movie (which some may argue is his "Mean Streets" - except he didn't stay in that genre).
Diane Kruger is really exceptional in this and very close to real life. So you won't see any over the top and unbelievable stuff happening here. And it all leads to an ending that will either satisfy you or leave quite empty and maybe annoyed. It is tough to please everyone of course, but if you like slow burning drama with thriller elements in it, this is really good. Devastating and painful, but good ...