Trial of Hein
When a man comes ashore on a remote island claiming to be the native son who left long ago, the mistrustful inhabitants of the fishing village hold a formal, three-day trial to determine his identity.
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Monday, May 11, 2026
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
Wednesday, May 13, 2026
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
A man (Paul Boche) comes ashore on a remote island seemingly lost to time, claiming to be Hein, a native son who left long ago. The mistrustful inhabitants of the fishing village—including the people he claims as his family and closest friends—do not believe he is the boy who ran away fourteen years ago, and they hold a formal, three-day trial to determine his identity. The result is a clear, compelling dramatic structure that recalls Greek tragedy and Ibsen, rendered by first-time director Stänicke with a preternatural command of tension, character, and technique. Fresh from its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival, perhaps the film's most outstanding feature is its settings. The hand-built, weathered village houses and cottages have facades but no roofs or interior walls, evoking Lars von Trier's approach in Dogville but without intellectualism or irony. Rather, on this island, everybody's business is everybody's business, and the walls have eyes and ears. Over time, the film's queer substrate reveals itself as its emotional core: can love make you leave your home and then, fourteen years later, make you return?
—Martin Schwartz
- Original Language Title: Der Heimatlose
- Director: Kai Stänicke
- Principal Cast: Paul Boche, Philip Froissant, Emilia Schule, Stephanie Amarell
- Country: Germany
- Year: 2026
- Running Time: 122 min.
- Producer: Dirk Decker, Andrea Schutte, Dario Suter, Felix von Boehm, Katrin Jochimsen, Kai Stanicke
- Screenplay: Kai Stanicke
- Cinematographers: Florian Mag
- Editors: Susanne Ocklitz
- Music: Damian Scholl
- Awards: Berlin International Film Festival 2026 (Teddy Award)
- Filmography: Debut Feature Film
- Language: German
- Has Subtitles: Yes
- International Sales: Heretic