Gangsterläufer's primary photo
  • Gangsterläufer (2011)
  • 90 min | Documentary
Gangsterläufer (2011)
90 min | Documentary
A knife in the pocket, adrenaline in the blood and only one dream in mind: to be a gangster - and the biggest one at that. Yehya was 15 years old and close to realizing his dream when he met the filmmaker Christian Stahl in the stairwell. ...See moreA knife in the pocket, adrenaline in the blood and only one dream in mind: to be a gangster - and the biggest one at that. Yehya was 15 years old and close to realizing his dream when he met the filmmaker Christian Stahl in the stairwell. Yehya wasn't just the nice boy from next door, he was also "the Boss of Sonnenallee" - one of the gangster runners of the Berlin borough of Neukölln. And gangster runners want to make it in the gangster world. In the eyes of the authorities, he is an "intensive offender"; in his own eyes, Yehya is "one of the top ten of Neukölln. I got my own prosecutor!" Yehya: the son of Palestinian refugees from Lebanon, a Rütli school student with straight Fs - and a jailbird doing time. At the age of 17, Yehya was convicted of robbery and sentenced to three years without parole. The director Christian Stahl followed Yehya through the years in prison and, at the same time, his family in Neukölln. The viewer is there as Yehya's image of the world and gangsterism wobbles, as he quickly goes up the ladder in prison hierarchy, as he turns to Islam, and as he suddenly himself becomes a victim while in prison. His father tries to solve the family problems with a pilgrimage to Mecca, Yehya's brothers follow in his footsteps, and the government wants to deport Yehya or send him back to the refugee camp in Beirut. His parents, who as refugees in Germany were not allowed to work for 14 years and stayed in their own world, are in despair. Gangster runner presents an impressive portrait of an "intensive offender" whose charm, criminal energy, and reflexivity astound and shock. Between Muslim traditions and gangster dreams, macho image and mosque, the ever-present war in the foreign homeland of the parents and the battle to survive in Europe. Written by Christian Stahl See less
Read more: Plot summary
Director
Christian Stahl
Producers
Burkhard Althoff (producer: ZDF) | Gunter Hanfgarn (producer) | Manuela Jödicke (producer: RBB) | Sören Schumann (producer: RBB / Arte) | Andrea Ufer (producer)
Composer
Tilmann Dehnhard
Editors
Johannes Fritsche | Gines Olivares
See all filmmakers & crew
Trending

Become a member to see MOVIEmeter and news information about Gangsterläufer.
Status
Edit Released
Updated Nov 28, 2011
Release date
Feb 2, 2012 (Germany)
Awards
1 nomination

Contacts

+ Add

Become a member to see contact information for Gangsterläufer.

Cast

 + Add Cast
1 cast member
Name Known for
Hayat primary photo
Hayat
Self Self   See fewer
Gangsterläufer (2011)
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.
There was an issue loading this tab.

MOVIEmeter

Members only

Become a member to access additional data

Ratings Breakdown

5 external reviews & 15 more links