Wednesday, March 18, 5:00pm
Student Union Movie Theater, UNC Charlotte Main Campus
A Coffee in Berlin
Director Jan Ole Gerster
Germany, 2012, 83 min
In German with English subtitles
Sponsored by the German Club
Introduction by Kai Werbeck, Assistant Professor of German, UNC Charlotte. Discussion will follow screening.
Jan Ole Gerster’s wry and vibrant feature debut A COFFEE IN BERLIN (originally titled OH BOY), which swept the 2013 German Oscar Awards, paints a day in the life of Niko, a twenty-something college dropout going nowhere fast. Niko lives for the moment as he drifts through the streets of Berlin, curiously observing everyone around him and oblivious to his growing status as an outsider. 
Then on one fateful day, through a series of absurdly amusing encounters, everything changes: his girlfriend dumps him, his father cuts off his allowance, and a strange psychiatrist dubiously confirms his ’emotional imbalance’. Unable to ignore the consequences of his passivity any longer, Niko finally concludes that he has to engage with life. Shot in timeless black and white and enriched with a snappy jazz soundtrack, this slacker dramedy is a love letter to Berlin and the Generation Y experience. Winner of six 2013 German Film Academy Awards, including Outstanding Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Screenplay
Reviews:
“A Coffee in Berlin” veers confidently from melancholy to absurdity and back, and then back again. It’s amazing that it hangs together as well as it does. The film is both silly and profound, a rare combination.” (rogerebert.com)
“A snappy, quirky indie that will thrill fans of early Jim Jarmusch.” (Empire magazine)
Social Media Links:
A Coffee in Berlin on Youtube
A Coffee in Berlin on Facebook
Sponsored by the UNC Charlotte German Club
