Katzelmacher

A group of young people hang around in front of an apartment building in Munich. None of them works regularly; they lean on the wall all day, smoke, talk about each other's relationships, and split up when evening comes. Then a worker from Greece moves into the building: Jorgos. He speaks no German, keeps to himself, and soon becomes the centre of the group's attention. The women are curious, the men feel threatened, and rumours start going round. This is Rainer Werner Fassbinder's second feature, adapted from his own stage play, and he plays Jorgos himself. The narrative barely moves: the camera is fixed, the scenes repeat, and the characters say the same things in the same place. That stillness is the film's method. The title is a derogatory word for foreign workers in Bavarian speech. Hanna Schygulla is among the cast. Who it's for: Viewers who like Fassbinder, early New German Cinema, and minimalist structures. Who it's not for: The pace is deliberately still and nothing happens. None of the characters is likeable either.