West (2013 film)


West is a 2013 German drama film directed by Christian Schwochow and written by his mother Heide Schwochow. The film is based on the German novel Lagerfeuer by Julia Franck. Westen had its premiere at the 25th Montreal World Film Festival and was released in the United States on November 7, 2014.

Plot

The film tells the story of the East German Nelly Senff and her young son Alexej, who emigrate to the Federal Republic of Germany in the late 1970s, three years after Nelly's boyfriend Wassilij was killed in an auto accident. In the west, she wants to start a new life, but at first she and Alexej land at Marienfelde refugee transit camp in West Berlin. There, Allied intelligence agencies interrogate Nelly and demand information about her dead boyfriend, who is suspected to have been a spy.

Cast