It’s a sad fact that racism and neo-Nazi groups are still present in modern Europe, and writer Ozgur Yildrim scores bonus points for his realistic depiction of the troubles faced by immigrants in this occasionally taught gangster drama.
Tracking Chiko (Denis Moschitto) and pal Tibet (Volkan Özcan) as they arrive in a rundown part of Hamburg, the social and cultural interaction around the neighbourhood rings far truer than Scorcese’s Little Italy ever managed.
We follow the pair on their gradual descent into petty, then larger crimes, and the dynamic between the two is at times gripping and always realistic. It’s a pity then that Yildrim , in possession of what could be the worlds first kitchen-sink gangster movie, seemingly had no dénouement in mind when cameras started rolling.
Halfway through things suddenly switch gears, with the introduction of stock psychopath Moritz Bleibtreu, and from this point on cliché is poured on cliché, losing all grip on reality in favour of overly graphic violence. While the direction is sharp and the brutality on screen often conducted with a shocking flair, the promise of a new angle for a somewhat tired genre is lost as the film peters toward an inevitable conclusion.
A promising debut which would benefit from some sharper scripting..
