“Everything is so complicated,“ sighs 17 year old Yara (Emma Drogunova) from Hamburg. The Wilhemsburger likes dancing hip hop and shooting videos with her friends that they then upload on YouTube. When the clique films a so-called prank video, Yara goes up to a randomly selected person on the street and takes her hand. Tough Kiki (Sara Mahita) reacts in a less than enthusiastic way, but when Yara and Kiki‘s eyes meet, there‘s a spark. Kiki, who comes from a tough environment, invites Yara on a joyride shortly after – and they kiss. Yara has to keep the budding relationship with Kiki a secret because her Albanian father and her brother Bekim (Slavko Popadic) are strictly against it and adhere to conservative traditions. While Bekim tries to lock up Yara and watch over her, her father plans to marry her off to an acquaintance‘s son. Both young women, who call themselves Bonnie and Bonnie in reference to the famous gangster couple, fight for their love and the right to a self-determined life.

BONNIE & BONNIE is the debut of director Ali Hakim and he wrote the screenplay together with Maike Rasch. Hakim, born in Kabul, migrated to Germany in 1989 and grew up in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg. His well-paced and very believable coming-of-age drama navigates the teen‘s environment. Cell phone videos and online posts are part of the film and move the plot forward. Main actress Emma Drogunova, the European Shooting Star of 2019, is very convincing as Yara, torn between her feelings for Kiki and her family. With BONNIE & BONNIE, Hakim takes a strong stand against homophobia and for equality.

Stefanie Borowsky (INDIEKINO MAGAZIN)

Translation: Elinor Lewy