BE MY STAR

“Will you be my girl?” That simple phrase, in diverse languages and cultures, opens the doorway to a universe of complications, delightful and pain-stricken, for adolescents everywhere. In the brief, bittersweet BE MY STAR, the naturalistic and semi improvised approach will make you forget right from the start that you're watching a film. Nicole, 14, dwells in a Berlin high rise, gets a job at a bakery “because it smells good” and hangs out with a casual circle of friends. Christopher, who aspires to be a clerk or a tiler, soon becomes Nicole's boyfriend. Thanks to her mom laboring on the night shift, Nicole and Christopher often have an apartment suite left all to themselves (when Nicole's kid sister isn't underfoot) to dress-rehearse domesticity and a mature relationship. They wrestle, cuddle and host a couple of like-minded friends who stage a DIY mock-wedding ceremony for cohorts Paul and Monique. Then the disillusionment stage sets in, spoiling the idyll and sending Nicole and Christopher gravitating towards others in a cycle of hesitant breakups and makeups. When Christopher finally gains an apprenticeship and a flat of his own, the pair must make a decision about where to go with their relationship. While the title derives from a popular song, “I Will Survive” might also be appropros here. Youthful romance has rarely been captured onscreen with such refreshing truth and ease. (In German with English subtitles)