FREE ON CINEGEEK.DE THE BEST MOVIES IN OUR VIDEO STORE! Ramin Bahrani - Chop Shop 

Chop Chop has an immediate feeling for space and time. What a shock that the time told is NOW! We are in a place with car spare parts. A run-down place where twelve year old Ale works and lives. The boy is adventurous and optimistic. In return for his work, he lives in a plywood housing provided by his boss. A slum. He gets five dollars for every passing car he smuggles into this area. Ale also sells DVDs, pirated copies or sweets in the subway. Or he steals handbags and hubcaps. But the boy is not a criminal. He is a survivor. He taught himself everything. The innocent nod. To come to the goal. Are we in a classic American novel? No; still in the here & now. Ale stands in the long tradition of those who come to New York with nothing. He has an immensely strong will, but is also a vulnerable child. An orphan boy, as we may assume. His sister Isamar is four years older. She shines for Ale. He built his "house" just for her. Ale is happy; he has a fridge and a microwave. Isamar will also be happy (he believes). Director Bahrani himself lived in the area for a while. He cast almost all roles with non-actors. But they play so poignantly that they embarrass professional actors! Chop Chop saves everything unnecessary, concentrates on the story in three acts. But every picture looks like a composition! The dialogues seem to be real. So the real language of the teenagers. They seem completely unbiased, as if they don't appear in a film at all. Chop Chop is about how hard it is to grow up. Ale saves every dollar. For his sister he is not only a brother, but also a husband. But Isamar finds his own way to increase her income - which breaks Ale's heart. He works even harder. In vain. He learns to accept. One day they will own a taco truck. but not now. Reality triumphs over the American dream. For the time being.