Soul Kitchen

"Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans."

2009 1h 39m DE

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 622

DramaComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In Hamburg, German-Greek chef Zinos unknowingly disturbs the peace in his locals-only restaurant by hiring a more talented chef.

“Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Adam Bousdoukos
Zinos Kazantsakis
Moritz Bleibtreu
Ilias Kazantsakis
Pheline Roggan
Nadine Kruger
Anna Bederke
Lucia Faust
Birol Ünel
Shayn Weiss
Dorka Gryllus
Anna Mondstein
Wotan Wilke Möhring
Thomas Neumann
Lucas Gregorowicz
Lutz

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Fatih Akin
Writers: Adam Bousdoukos, Fatih Akin
Languages: German, Greek
Countries: France, Germany, Italy

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $4.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 4.5× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, Greek.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 3 countries: France, Germany, Italy.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Fatih Akin, shot by Rainer Klausmann. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Andrew Bird shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Adam Bousdoukos and Moritz Bleibtreu and Pheline Roggan carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Fatih Akin directs. Rainer Klausmann behind the camera. Andrew Bird cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in France, Germany, Italy. Dialogue in German, Greek.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $4.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 4.5× over at the box office.
3Released 17 years ago.
4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, Greek.
5International production across 3 countries: France, Germany, Italy.
6Directed by Fatih Akin, shot by Rainer Klausmann. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Editor Andrew Bird shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Adam Bousdoukos and Moritz Bleibtreu and Pheline Roggan carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.".
10IMDB entry: tt1244668 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Rainer Klausmann
Editing: Andrew Bird
Runtime: 99 min · 1h 39m
Status: Released
Budget: $4,000,000
Box office: $18,164,139
Return: 454% of budget
Original language: DE
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Soul Kitchen (2009)

Awards

Grand Jury Prize of the Venice Film Festival

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Fatih Akin

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-11-21
★ 7/10
“Zinos” (Adam Bousdoukos) runs his Greek equivalent of a greasy spoon in Hamburg, doing OK until his girlfriend “Nadine” (Pheline Roggen) takes a job in China which brings things in his life into a sharper focus. First things first, he can’t cook. Add to that he has an herniated disc in his back and needs surgery that he can’t really afford; his wayward brother “Illias” (Moritz Bleibtreu) is in and out (on a daily basis) of prison; the tax man is after him and there is a local businessman (Udo Kier) who wants the site for himself. Bluntly, “Zinos” is at his wits end so he advertises for a cook. Instead, he gets interest from “Weiss” (Birol Ünel) who is rather more of a chef and determines to up the standard of the menu. That doesn’t go down so well with the punters, but it does help him reach out to new, better-heeled, ones and soon the business is proving to be quite a success. Thing is, though, he is pining for his gal and so rather foolishly gives a power of attorney to his brother and decides to head to Shanghai. Needless to say, “Illias” proves to be anything but a safe pair of hands and so now there’s a real risk that our hapless restauranteur could end up with little more than the clothes he stands up in. Aside from a really engaging effort from Bousdoukos, this benefits from a surprising lack of in-your-face predictability. Of course, we know that his successful plain sailing can’t go on for long - there’d be no plot, but the quirky fashion in which his problems are crafted and then played out does raise a smile quite often. Partly because it is funny, but also because some of the scenarios are relatable too. Ünel is also on good form as the typically curmudgeonly kitchen perfectionist, Bleibtreu presents us with a sibling that any one of us would have happily disowned at birth and Kier only has to look at the camera to imbue his character with a degree of tea-time menace. It’s a quickly paced comedy that builds well around a couple of more substantial characterisations, some bumpy romance and just an hint of living life to the full (or fool) and it makes for an enjoyable ninety minutes.

Production companies