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Turkish Film 1 (Released in 2006 afterwards)
İki Dil Bir Bavul 
English Title: On the Way to School
Directed by: Orhan Eskiköy, Özgür Doğan
Running time: 1h 21min
Released in: 2009
This film is a documentary, featuring a year in the life of a Turkish teacher who is a new university graduate and has been appointed to work in a remote Kurdish village in Turkey. New pupils can't speak Turkish and the teacher can't speak Kurdish. So, their conversation was incoherent at first. The teacher was from western Turkey. He struggled to get used to the lifestyle and the culture of the community, and he tried to get along well with the villagers. Slowly but surely, the children show some progress, and the teacher himself seems to be growing as a person with his students.
There are no dramatic events in the story, but this is a very likeable piece.
Güneşi Gördüm
English Title: I Saw the Sun
Directed by: Mahsun Kırmızıgül
Running time: 2h
Released in: 2009
The story is about a Kurdish family that has no choice but to leave their hometown in the southeast region of Turkey, where the battles between the government and the guerrilla have been continuing for 25 years. As the war intensifies, the family is forced to move to Istanbul. Some people decide to immigrate to Norway, and some try to settle in Istanbul. However, extreme hardships await them.
Ethnic problems, a significant economic gap, discrimination, transgender issues, family ties and struggle to be free from social conventions... This film deals with many serious and sensitive subjects in current Turkish society. It is a thought-provoking film, but I got fed up with all of the tragedies. Also, there is undeniable sense that the themes are scattered.
Üç Maymun
English Title: Three Monkeys
Directed by: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Running time: 1h 50min
Released in: 2008
A wealthy businessman, Servet commits a hit-and-run one night. He asks his driver, Eyüp to take the blame in exchange for a great deal of money. Eyüp accepts the deal. While he is in jail, his wife Hacer is tempted by Servet and has an affair with him. One day, her son İsmail happens to witness it. He is shocked but can't say anything to his father. Soon, Eyüp comes out of jail and he senses something is wrong with his family, but can't find what it is. Amid the uncertainty of family relationships, İsmail kills Servet, and Eyüp tries to protect his son in exactly the same way that Servet did in the past...
This film depicted the stupidity and weakness of people. It's well-directed as a movie, although I don't like the story.
Tatil Kitabı
English Title: Summer Book
Directed by: Seyfi Teoman
Running time: 1h 32min
Released in: 2008
The story takes place in a Mediterranean town, Silifke, in summer.
Ali is a school boy and lives with his father Mustafa who is an authoritarian agricultural merchant, and mother Güler. As the summer vacation starts, his elder brother Veysel who attends military academy in Istanbul comes back home. Apparently, they are a normal family in a small town, but each member has their own concern inside. Ali is bullied at school and one of the classmates took away his summer book. Güler suspects that Mustafa has a lover. Veysel wants to quit military school and enter a civil university, but Mustafa does not approve of it. They get into a quarrel one night, and Veysel runs away to his uncle Hasan's place. Hasan, who once went to Istanbul to seize an "opportunity" but ended up returning home after his failed marriage, leads an idle life as a butcher.
Meanwhile, Mustafa collapses from cerebral hemorrhage during a business trip, and he is carried into a hospital. This silently changes the roles and responsibilities of all the family members.
This is not a heartwarming family drama told from the perspective of a child. Actually, the story is not simple and the theme is deeper than expected. Although it lacks climax or excitement and is created in a minimalist style, it is not boring to the end. I like the subtle overtones of this film.
Devrim Arabaları
English Title: Cars of the Revolution
Directed by: Tolga Örnek
Running time: 1h 55min
Released in: 2008
This film is based on a real story.
In 1961, when Turkey was under a military regime, President Cemal Gürsel gave an order to manufacture the first domestic automobiles in order to prove that Turkey had enough potential to build its own industry. High-caliber 23 engineers were brought together for this important national project. The period given to them was extremely short. They were requested to develop a car named "Devrim" (Revolution) within 4 months, which seemed to be impossible to achieve. They didn't have a second to losec
I saw the film as a part of lesson during Turkish class. I remember that it was difficult for me to catch the lines without subtitles, but all the classmates enjoyed it to the end, feeling nervous about "Can they make it or not?!" The story has quality and depth, depicting the engineers' struggles together with various family events. It has a bitter-sweet ending but is quite moving. The acting is also good.
Saklı Yüzler
English Title: Hidden Faces
Directed by: Handan İpekçi
Running Time: 1h 56min
Released in: 2007
Handan İpekçi is a director who has been making socially relevant films. In this film, she was bold enough to deal with one of the darkest issues that Turkish society (and other conservative Islamic societies) still has; "honor killing." This is not a fun movie but certainly is worth watching.
A girl named Zühre, living in a conservative village, falls in love with a young man and she gets pregnant not being married. Her father and uncles hold a family council and decides to kill her and her baby to clear their family name... She loses her baby but she manages to escape death with the help of a government attorney. Zühre's death is faked and she begins to live as a different person away from the village. Some years later, her cruel uncle sees a movie which deals with "honor killing" and happens to learn that she is still alive. He insists that she must die because she brought disgrace on her family. He finds out where she is and tries to complete "the mission."
The story is not narrated in neat chronological order. Frequent flashback scenes force viewers to wait till the last 15 minutes to put the whole picture together. I think the plot is good but the direction is not skillful enough.
Yaşamın Kıyısında
English Title: The Edge of Heaven
Directed by: Fatih Akın
Running Time: 2h 2min
Released in: 2007
The film depicts the fragile lives of six people connected with a death and their emotional journey toward forgiveness and reconciliation, featuring parental relations of three pairs.
This film is highly-evaluated internationally and received favorable remarks. I agree that its plot development is well-directed. Yet, the story does not pull my heartstrings. I could not feel empathy toward any characters in the film. Especially, the relationship between Ayten and Lotte seemed to be a little too sudden and not convincing. The best part of this film is that the story ends with signs of hope, while Turkish films tend to have hopeless endings.
Yumurta
English Title: Egg
Directed by: Semih Kaplanoğlu
Running Time: 1h 37min
Released in: 2007
The opening of this film is not bad.
Yusuf is a lonely poet who runs a bookstore. One day he receives a phone call and learns about his mother's death. His hometown is a small village in the countryside, and he comes back home for her funeral after many years of absence. There, he meets a young woman named Ayla who is one of his distant relatives. Ayla conveys to Yusuf his mother's pledge to sacrifice a lamb after her death and tells him to carry out his mother's wish. He hesitates to do this at first, but he set out for a saint's tomb with Ayla for the religious sacrifice ceremony. They stay at a lakeside hotel that night and return to the village the next day. At the end, Yusuf remains in his hometown village instead of going back to the city.... That's all...
To be honest, it was akin to torture for me to see this film to the end. With a great deal of patience, I waited for something to happen in the story. In fact, nothing happened!! Yusuf and Ayla are the main characters but they didn't even talk much. Of course, everything does not have to be described in a film, but I could not understand anything!! What's the point of this film??? What did the director want to express???
Semih Kaplanoğlu is a famous director, and Yumurta (Egg) is a piece of his "Yusuf Trilogy." The trilogy comprises the films titled Yumurta (Egg), Süt (Milk) and Bal (Honey). The latest film Bal (Honey) won the prize at Berlin International Film Festival, but I do not feel like trying it. I also have to admit that I gave up seeing Süt (Milk) because I felt ill to see the first some scenes. Perhaps, I don't like the style of his films.
Sözün Bittiği Yer
Directed by: İsmail Güneş
Running Time: 1h 55min
Released in: 2007
Turgut is an entertainer mainly performing at elementary schools. He is a single father and lives with his son Umut. Umut's mother, Simay, who was "not ready" to be a mother, left them many years ago. They are happy though poor, but one day Umut is diagnosed with leukemia. Turgut struggles to earn enough money for the medical expense, and he even thinks of committing a robbery. Meanwhile, Simay returns to Istanbul and learns that her son has leukemia. Her maternal instinct is awakened by the shocking news. She is offered marriage by a wealthy man she encountered by chance. She accepts the offer and wants to get custody of Umut whom she abandoned a long time ago for very selfish reasons. At a court, Turgut speaks through tears that he is "not ready" to give up his son, but on the other hand he is aware that Simay's partner can provide Umut with the best possible medical treatment that he can't afford to pay for...
The plot is simple and has nothing new. A child with bad disease and his father's financial struggle. Contrast between a dedicated father and a bohemian mother. Parent-child attachment and the pain of separation. The film deals with these well-worn themes in a classical soppy style... Having said this, I myself felt close to tears in the end.
İklimler
English Title: Climates
Directed by: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Running Time: 1h 37min
Released in: 2006
İsa and his young girlfriend, Bahar are taking a summer holiday in Kaş. İsa pays little attention to Bahar and doesn't notice that she is bored and frustrated. Bahar is in a bad mood at dinner and he blames her attitude. At the beach the next day, İsa tells her that he wants to break up. Autumn comes, and Isa goes back to work in Istanbul. He doesn't seem to forget Bahar, although it's himself who offered breaking up. He has an affair with one of his ex in a rough way but can't ease his feeling. Winter arrives, and he flies to Ağrı, the snowy eastern town of Turkey, as he heard that Bahar is there. They meet again for the first time in several months. He tries to win her back, but she rejects it. Yet, she comes to his hotel room late at night and stays overnight. In the morning, she becomes painfully aware that all he cares about is his own matter. İsa flies back to Istanbul alone, while Bahar hears the plane sound overhead in snow.
This is a nice film for adults. Subtleties of feeling and estrangement between man and woman are depicted with the changes of seasons in quiet tones. Both the story and the theme are clear and focused, which is rare for Turkish movies. Also, I found that Nuri Bilge Ceylan is not only a great director but also an excellent actor! In this film, he plays the role of İsa. He is superb in portraying the insincerity, selfish arrogance and indifference of urbane middle-aged man!!
Beş Vakit
English Title: Times and Winds
Directed by: Reha Erdem
Running Time: 1h 51min
Released in: 2006
I think this is a great film although it feels a little depressed.
The story takes place in a small village in the mountain. The life there is simple, and people live in accordance with the rhythms of nature and the time divided into 5 parts by ezan (call to prayer). Ömer is a son of imam, and he dreams of killing his father who is strict and favors his younger brother over him. Yakut is in love with his young pretty teacher (unrequited love, of course) at school, but he happens to see his father peep into her house one day, and he develops a feeling of hatred for him. Yıldız is a girl who works very hard helping house chores and taking care of her baby brother, but she dislikes her mother who pushes her around and shows favor to her brother...
The film mainly follows the lives of the three children with a detached tone. Irritation and confusion that everyone at the awkward age faces are skillfully expressed, featuring their affection and hatred for the father and the mother.@At the end of the film, Ömer weeps filled with indescribable feelings, and the dawn breaks over the village. The last scene is really beautiful.
