News

*full disclosure: a Blu-ray screener of this film was provided by Artsploitation Films. Director/writer: Nikias Chryssos. Cast: Pit Bukowski, Daniel Fripan, Oona Von Maydell, David Scheller. The always provocative Artsploitation Films delivers in a big way with the off-beat, unsettling yet heartwarming German black comedy, Der Bunker! It's the perfect back-to-school film, whether you're hitting the books, teaching a class or having your little one pried from your hands. Nikias Chryssos's feature-length debut takes you on a bizarre journey into the woods where a family of three resides in their own twisted world, which happens to be contained inside a bunker. When the family welcomes an outsider into their strange circle, things become even more ridiculous and entertaining. This creepy, artsy fairy tale hooks you immediately with its dark yet lively atmosphere, charming originality and intriguing, over-the-top characters. Der Bunker is a captivating gem, loaded with stunning...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]...

German language cinema has made a number of entries into genre fare over the past year, from the horror film Goodnight Mommy to the one-take thriller Victoria, complementing a stable of well-regarded dramatic fare that includes films such as Das Boot, Funny Games, and The Lives of Others. Newcomer Nikias Chryssos, however, is poised to add to the fare with his feature filmmaking debut Der Bunker. The film’s synopsis is as follows.

A young student seeks quiet and solitude to focus on an important work but ends up as the teacher of a peculiar boy who is home-schooled by his parents in an isolated bunker mansion.

Chryssos takes on both writing and directing duties for the film, which made its Us Premiere at the 2015 Fantastic Fest. The cast includes Pit Bukowski, Daniel Fripan, and Oona von Maydell, and the film’s Us trailer has now been released. The trailer can be seen below,...

It’s hard for a mother to remain unemotional when she watches her baby leave the proverbial coop, but Der Bunker is what happens when those feelings manifest into a hostage scenario of sorts. It’s your atypical twisted fairytale about a boy, locked away from the world without any sense of maturation, but that’s only where we begin. Der Bunker then delves into absolute insanity by introducing the likes of a festering wound that oversees the homemade prison like a God, primitive punishments, and questionable breastfeeding practices – a line of brilliance that German filmmaker Nikias Chryssos dances upon with unimaginable ferocity.

Pit Bukowski plays a young academic (referred to as “Student”), who seeks quiet refuge so he can advance the realms of science with his new Higgs particle theory (science-y stuff). Upon entering his newly rented room, the student meets a family who is as frugal as they are strange.

Der Bunker

Written & Directed by Nikias Chryssos

Germany, 2015

Der Bunker is like some abandoned back-alley shopping cart full of fascinating curiosities that don’t quite tell a complete story. The feature debut of German director Nikias Chryssos is a Lynchian labyrinth of disconnected weirdness that still feels oddly satisfying. A horror-comedy that strives to disturb rather than scare, Der Bunker meticulously creates a world of perverse pleasures.

Things start innocently enough with the Student (Pit Bukowski) responding to an advertisement about an apartment for rent… in a secluded bunker. “Didn’t the ad mention a lake view?” he asks the peculiar caretaker, known only as Father (David Scheller). The Student is looking for peace and quiet to finish his tangential research on Higgs particles, so a bunker in the middle of the German wilderness seems like the perfect setting for uninterrupted solitude. Too bad his renters have other plans for him.

A student needs a quiet place to live while he writes a scientific paper, and so he tramps out into the deep, snowy woods to a small, isolated house and takes a look at a small, dank basement room without windows. 'It has no light!' he complains to his prospective landlord, who promptly replies, 'None can get out!' His words prove to be prophetic, for the unnamed young man, referred to as Student (Pit Bukowski), soon finds himself an intimate acquaintance of the other residents of the house. In addition to the landlord, referred to as Father (David Scheller), and his wife, referred to as Mother (Oona von Maydell), there is Klaus (Daniel Fripan), possibly the oldest-looking 8-year-old child in human history. And there is...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Der Bunker Movie Trailer. Nikias Chryssos‘ Der Bunker (2015) movie trailer stars Pit Bukowski, Daniel Fripan, Oona von Maydell and David Scheller. Der Bunker‘s plot synopsis: “A young student seeks quiet and solitude to focus on an important work but ends up as the teacher of a peculiar boy who is home-schooled by his parents in an isolated bunker mansion. The Bunker […]...

For the second year running, a German film wins the grand prize at the 9th annual Mauvais Genre Film Festival in Tours, France. After Till Kleinert’s The Samourai in 2014, Der Bunker, directed by Nikias Chryssos and a sensation at the Berlin Film Festival last February, took two best picture trophies, awarded by both the pro and press juries. Festival director Gary Constant, who selected the films in competition, was not joking when he said prior to its scenting that he had saved the best for last. A unique piece of work, Der Bunker is twisted yet engaging, abstract and parabolic, funny yet flippant. Seeking total isolation to focus on an important research, a student (Pit Bukowski) sublets a couple’s bunker to work without any distractions. Instead, he ends up as the teacher of his idiosyncratic landlords’ son Klaus (Daniel Fripan), a peculiar boy who is home-schooled, is dressed...