Manila

At the international airport of Manila, German tourists are waiting for their flight to Germany. While the flight is repeatedly delayed for no apparent reason, the passengers tell each other about their lives. Under the influence of the alienating surroundings and the many free drinks to compensate the misfortune, the stories get increasingly intimate and humiliating. Under the dim lights of the restaurant and the bright glare of the fluorescent lights in the toilets, façades are demolished and relationships painfully exposed.Scriptwriter Bodo Kirchhoff and director Romuald Karmaker made a film about the most widely travelled people in the world. They chose Manila, because of the fascinating combination of Third-World country, remains of colonialism, Catholicism and capitalism.Just as in his previous feature Der Totmacher and his widely praised documentary Warheads, Karmaker chose to depict people in a situation they had not chosen for themselves, from which they cannot escape. The natural acting of the well-known cast – including Margit Carstensen, Michael Degen, Manfred Zapatka and Sky Dumont – is certainly due to the perfectionist Karmaker, who has a reputation when it comes down to repeating scenes. Another special feature is the unexpected appearance of the aged comedian Eddi Arent, playing himself. Manila was given the Silver Leopard for the best young film-maker at the Locarno festival.