Monowi Nebraska

Somewhere in the north of Nebraska, in the American Mid West, with its sparsely populated wide landscape, between prairies and grazing cows, lies Monowi, a place that seems to have come from another era. At first glance it’s like a ghost town; derelict houses and wild gardens mark the landscape, and ruins which have been reclaimed by nature serve as new homes for birds, rabbits and raccoons. A lively place in 1900, the city went downhill in the 1940s when men didn’t return from the war, big companies bought up small businesses, and it became more attractive to live in large cities. Nowadays, the road sign for Monowi displays the number 1. It refers to the town’s only inhabitant: Elsie Eiler. Over 80 years old and still sprightly, she has been running the Monowi Tavern alone ever since the death of her husband. As both mayor and sheriff of the town, she issues the liquor license herself. In her bar she meets with people from the country. It is a microcosm, a popular meeting spot for this vast area. Elsie Eiler grew up here; she has known some of the guests of her tavern since they were young, and they call her “grandma”. Her Monowi Tavern is a type of public living room for famers and tradespeople, where, tongue in cheek, she serves up “the coldest beer in town” and “the best hamburgers”, although she actually hates to cook. In calm, meditative camera shots, director Lilo Mangelsdorff (Damen und Herren ab 65) catches the mood of the place in the summer of 2016. MONOWI, NEBRASKA is a sensory exploration, a cinematic-topographic approximation of the transient, of rural exodus and a sense of home, and a homage to his protagonist, Elsie Eiler, who, in this town, lives a busy and happy life with her guests.… >>>