In den Gängen

In the Aisles

Christian is new to the superstore. He mutely plunges into this unknown universe: the endless aisles, the eternal order of the warehouses, the surreal mechanicisms of the forklift trucks. His colleague Bruno from the drinks department takes him under his wing, showing him all the tricks of the trade and soon becomes a fatherly friend. Marion from the confectionary department likes to have a bit of a laugh and a joke with Christian. When he falls in love with her, the entire warehouse is rooting for him. But Marion is married, albeit unhappily by all accounts. All of a sudden she goes on sick leave. Christian falls into a deep hole, so deep in fact, that his miserable old life threatens to engulf him once more.

In his film "In den Gängen" Thomas Stuber opens a window on the world of an ordinary worker in the east German provinces. A choreography of people and things, reality, desires and dreams unfolds in precisely framed images. The everyday is transformed into a magical realism which transcends this tender love story to point tentatively towards the concept of hope.

Source: 68. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)