Westend

The makers themselves describe their film justifiably as a laconic comedy. In the grand tradition of Chaplin and Keaton, they play the lead in their small yet ingenious black and white film. Cinematographic irregularities are more than compensated for by the contagious élan with which they paint the strange adventures of two jobless men in a disconsolate industrial district of Cologne (the Westend from the title).Mike (Markus Mischkowski) and Alfred (Kai Maria Steinkühler) spend their empty days drinking beer in an Imbiss. Halfhearted attempts to find work have not got them anywhere. One day, they take up the proposal of regular drinking partner Rasko to take over a derelict motorway kiosk. It soon becomes apparent that Rasko has not got his business in order. Shady business relations use criminal techniques to pressure him to pay his debts. In spite of the long odds, Mike and Alfred manage to turn their kiosk into a goldmine, but that can’t save Rasko. When Alfred falls in love with a supermarket checkout girl and neglects his work, while Mike turns into a workaholic, disaster cannot be avoided.The turbulence working life puts the friendship of the former jobless Mike and Alfred to the test. It isn’t that easy to get what everyone already seems to have: work, money, recognition and the right woman at your side.