Deadly Leaks

With a star-studded cast, the explosive thriller "Deadly Leaks" makes the fears surrounding the controversial TTIP free trade agreement tangible: Nina Kunzendorf and Anke Engelke take on the battle with an overpowering corporation as courageous journalists from a news magazine in crisis. Katja Riemann is convincing in the role of an equally dazzling and ice-cold entrepreneur who is a master of the art of deception. Directed by Sherry Hormann, the film succeeds in getting to the heart of current issues thanks to the terrific performances of the actors and Florian Oeller's screenplay, which is based on detailed research: what dangers TTIP poses to democracy, consumer protection and many areas of life, and how difficult it is to rebel against it. To interview a whistleblower, journalist Rommy Kirchhoff (Nina Kunzendorf) travels to Brussels. Paul Holthaus (Oliver Masucci), a lobbyist on behalf of the agricultural group Norgreen Life Inc., is ready to report on the background negotiations on TTIP, which he himself played a major role in influencing. No sooner does the explosive interview get underway than Rommy is lured out of the hotel room on a pretext and overpowered when she returns. When she regains consciousness, there is no trace of the informant and his contact Arne Gentner (Johann Jürgens). During the restless search for Holthaus, Rommy meets his son Max (Leonard Scheicher), who is in deep mourning: his mother has just died of cancer. From the journalist, the young man learns why his father was missing from the deathbed of his cancer-stricken wife. Only now does Rommy realize what a story of unimagined proportions she has become involved in - which also explains the fact that she is obviously being bugged and monitored in the meantime. For her editor-in-chief and closest confidant Karin Berger (Anke Engelke), there is no doubt that Lilian Norgren (Katja Riemann), CEO of Norgreen Life Inc. is behind all this, because she has no interest in Holthaus' revelations becoming public, which is more than enough reason to make the lawyer, who has become dangerous for her, disappear. Surprisingly, however, the head of the company personally invites Holthaus to a confidential meeting at her country estate. And this only to let Rommy know what Holthaus means to her, and that she also fears for his life. While Rommy continues to search feverishly for the missing man, someone else is obviously after the incriminating material that Holthaus has hidden somewhere.

Some flashing lights sequences or patterns may affect photosensitive viewers.