Turkish-German director Fatih Akin filmed the postpunk romance Head-On, full of rage and lust, and the emotional flick The Edge of Heaven. Then he chose to have a little fun. So his latest, Soul Kitchen, is a playful slapstick comedy, an homage to the directors own carefree days as a bartender and DJ.
In the film, Zinos opens a restaurant thats really just a debauched hangout for friends where the occasional frozen fillet of fish is fried. Its a grungy snapshot of bohemian subculture in Hamburg, Germany, but this nightlife purgatory has plenty of American soul. Its soundtrack is heavy with funk classics from Ruth Brown, Burning Spear, Artie Shaw, the Isley Brothers, and Kool & the Gang. The film also stars top German actor Moritz Bleibtreu, of Run Lola Run and The Baader Meinhof Complex. Soul Kitchen screens this Friday at 6:50 p.m. at the Tower Theater. Tickets cost $6. Call 305-642-1264 or visit mdc.edu/culture.
Sat., Oct. 9, 6:50 p.m., 2010