Lulu & Jimi

It′s the rock ′n′ roll era in Germany – the lust for life and rebellion are in the air. Lulu, the daughter of a bankrupt factory owner, falls in love with the handsome but penniless black man Jimi. The inhabitants of the conservative small town are horrified, and especially Lulu′s mother tries to stir up the prejudices in her friends to fight against this unwanted love affair. She orders her chauffeur Schultz and her doctor von Oppeln to do everything they can to spoil the lovers′ happiness. But Lulu and Jimi won′t let anybody or anything get in their way! They live and love on the run, always one step ahead of their pursuers. Until they fall into a trap …

Oskar Roehler on his latest film, which celebrated its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival: "Lulu & Jimi is a love story and gangster story. A love story pulsing with a huge amount of energy, where there are no limits – the first really big love, with all the pain and overwhelming feelings of happiness, but also with the anxieties. That′s adventure, that′s freedom. These are terms that nowadays you only hear in advertising, but actually they should have a place in the cinema. I′ve been longing for this fairytale-like, enchanted world, where everything is possible and people are innocent, where there′s good and evil, where there are dangers and crime, and death lies in wait around the corner. That′s cinema for me. I love melodrama, I like love stories."

Source: 59. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)