Weltstadt is the ironical title of a film that is set in an anonymous town in former East Germany. Here the often unemployed and badly educated youth wrestle with themselves and with the limitations of a society that has not experienced the changes that were so hoped for after the fall of the Wall.
The film is based on a true story. Several years ago, two kids set fire to a homeless man for reasons that have never been clarified. They were sentenced to lengthy prison terms. Film student Christian Klandt investigated the background to the gruesome act, but did not reach any clear conclusions. That does not make the grey and hopeless story of Karsten and Till any less intriguing.
There is boredom. The pecking order among the kids, the necessary sacrifices. The lack of control. And the underlying frustration of being stuck in a sad town for lack of personal opportunities and social chances. Klandt allows the young actors to introduce lifelike characters who, despite their individual traits, seem interchangeable with countless kids elsewhere. This realisation gives Weltstadt its universal message and reveals important social themes such as education and youth guidance. Klandt presents several adults who have either lost grip on the kids or have themselves been their victims and that makes the future look even bleaker for their children.