Berlin Alexanderplatz

Berlin Alexanderplatz is a contemporary screen adaptation of Alfred Döblin's novel. The protagonist of this classic of German literature is Frank Biberkopf, a worker who, after serving a prison sentence for murder, is released and wants to start a new life. The book is also a story about 1920s Berlin and its inhabitants, especially those belonging to the lowest social strata and the criminal world. Burhan Qurbani's film also focuses on people excluded from big-city society, functioning in its subcutaneous, often invisible circulation, outside the law or on its border. The film Franz Biberkopf's name is Francis B, he is an African refugee and, like his book protagonist, he is guilty of the death of a loved one. In the contemporary Berlin melting pot of various colors and languages, he tries to build a new, honest life. However, socio-political circumstances and economic conditions deprive the young man of any chance to realize his plans. In a no-win situation appears a man, the personification of evil and violence, who promises to solve all of Francis' problems. The price he will pay for this will be enormous.

Qurbani's film balances between frames of violence and fiesta, between scenes of nightclubs and brothels, robberies and drug deals. The Berlin metropolis, just as it was a century ago in Döblin's novel, is an equal protagonist in the story, and the cinematography, immersed in neon night light, reveals a world not seen in everyday life.