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KEBAB CONNECTION
Directed by: Sinan Akkus & Anno Saul.
Produced by: Stefan Schubert & Ralph Schwingel.
Written by: Faith Akin, Ruth Toma, Jan Berger & Saul.
Director of Photography: Hannes Hubach.
Edited by: Tobias Haas.
Music by: Marcel Barsotti.
Released by: Lifesize Entertainment.
Country of Origin: Germany. 96 min. Not Rated.
Language: Greek, Turkish & German with English subtitles.
With: Denis Moschitto, Nora Tschirner, Güven Kirac, Hasan Ali Mete & Adnan Maral. DVD Features: Subtitles. Scene selection.

When you first start watching this comedy, you might think you’re viewing an atypical Stephen Chow film populated with Turks and Germans rather than the usual embittered Hong Kong fighters. Lanky and sporting a mullet, Ibo (Denis Moschitto), whose ambition is to direct the first German kung fu movie, has made a theatrical commercial, the hottest piece of martial arts kitsch in Hamburg, for his uncle’s cheap Turkish eatery, King of Kebab, which becomes mobbed after screenings are let out. But even after Ibo’s multicultural kung fu ad opens Kebab Connection, you may still find yourself thinking about Stephen Chow’s films. His trademarks are all here: quick-paced wacky jokes, physical humor, amusing dilemmas of family honor, the struggle to prove yourself to the world, the absurd things you do for love, ethnic infighting, the mob, dueling cookery, and even unassuming men who can safely catch infants hurtling through the air like a football.

Ibo is a first generation Turk in Hamburg, whose German girlfriend, Titzi (Nora Tschirner), has found herself pregnant. Of course, the only person who thinks Ibo (short for Ibrahim) is too childish to father a baby besides Titzi (short for Patricia) is himself. (But to be fair, neither his parents nor Titzi’s mother are too thrilled about the paternity either.) Not only does Ibo have to figure out whether he wants to be involved in his child’s life, he has to prove to Titzi he’s capable of that responsibility.

The goodhearted My Big Fat Greek Wedding nature of the film should tell you how that plotline turns out, but it’s a fun road to parenthood, nonetheless. Tschirner and Moschitto are charming as Titzi and Ibo; both actors have a knack for humor while striking dramatic poses. Fortunately, so does the film’s team of four writers and two directors. There’s a balance between angst and fun here with neither overpowering the other. The mountainous pile of jokes doesn’t hinder the couple’s journey nor does it take too much away from their struggle to become parents. Kebab Connection’s definitely worth renting if you’re in the mood for a romantic comedy with an offbeat edge. Zachary Jones
December 6, 2006