teb@stat.Berkeley.EDU (Thomas E. Billings) (11/07/89)
DRAGON CHOW
A film review by Thomas E. Billings
Copyright 1989 Thomas E. Billings
Synopsis:
In modern West Germany, a young man from Pakistan, a "gastarbeiter" or guest
worker, tries to gain legal residence. He eventually gets an illegal job in a
Chinese restaurant. Later he and a Chinese waiter from the restaurant try to
open their own restaurant. A human interest story detailing the difficulties
faced by guest workers in Germany; a good (but not great) film.
West Germany (English subtitles), black-and-white, 1988, 75 minutes.
Director/Writer: Jan Schutte
The film is centered on Shezad, a personable young man from Pakistan, who
is in Hamburg, West Germany, trying to gain legal residence via political
asylum. He is receiving welfare while his application is being processed. He
lives with his friend Rashid, also from Pakistan and also applying for
political asylum. They live in a seedy "welfare hotel," with immigrants and
guest workers from other third world countries.
Eventually, with the help of a con man, Shezad gets an illegal job at a
second-rate Chinese restaurant. The restaurant is owned by a Chinese man; the
staff includes a Chinese waiter, Shezad and two other guest workers for kitchen
help, and a tyrannical German cook. The cook has a very high opinion of
himself and his cooking, and is very critical of his kitchen staff; he
frequently refers to them as "wops."
Shezad and the Chinese waiter, Xiao, become friends. They share a common
dream - to open their own restaurant. Xiao can satisfy the all the regulations
necessary to open a restaurant under the German Restaurant Law, save one - the
requirement of 5000 marks capital. Shezad and Xiao team up to pursue their
dream of owning a restaurant, and the story continues from there.
This film appears to have been done on a low-budget, and is mostly a human
relations study. It principally deals with the aspirations of third- world
immigrants and guest workers in West Germany. These immigrants are depicted
as forming a lower (economic) class, with limited interaction with German
society; a society that is indifferent and sometimes hostile to them.
The major attraction of the film is the characters; as the film progresses
you begin to identify with the main characters and understand the difficult
situation they face. Gaining legal residence in West Germany is difficult;
many apply but few are chosen.
Overall, this is a good film (it has won many awards at film festivals all
over the world). However, it has a slow pace and is oriented towards human
relations; it is not an "action" film.
Print Source: New Yorker Films; no information available on release plans.
Reviewer: Thomas E. Billings, Department of Statistics
University of California, Berkeley
Reviewer contact: teb@stat.Berkeley.EDU