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TURKISH CINEMA ASKS: WHICH HUMAN RIGHTS?
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 10 2012
by Emrah Guler
ANKARA - Hurriyet Daily News
Celebrating global Human Rights Day, the Hurriyet Daily News takes
a look at human rights violations in recent history with a brief
journey through Turkish cinema. Hunger strikes, political prisoners,
war in southeastern Turkey and disappearances in custody are some of
the subjects of these films
Send to friend Â" Share on linkedin The best way to take a look at
human rights in Turkey is to remember some of the feature films that
have brought some of the violations into the spotlight.
Today is Human Rights Day across the globe, the day we celebrate
the proclamation and adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. For many in Turkey there isn't all that much to celebrate
these days considering the hunger strikes, imprisoned journalists,
disappearances in custody and a growing perception that the rule of
law is no longer the norm.
Perhaps the best way to take a look at human rights in Turkey -
or rather the violation of human rights - is to remember some of
the feature films and documentaries that have brought some of these
violations into the spotlight in recent memory.
The obvious first choice is journalist Ruhi Karadag's documentary
"Simurg" (Simurgh), currently on release in theaters. The film focuses
on hunger strikes, an issue that recently made the news, although the
recent hunger strikes were different to the ones shown in the movie.
What's more, the recent ones did not end up with an infamous operation
in which police and soldiers broke into prisons to halt the strikes.
"Simurg" follows six revolutionaries who went on hunger strikes
against the F-type prison cells in 1996, as they react to and support
the strikes in 2000 for the same cause. Karadag lets his camera hover
over the six as they follow the news, talk to one another, and talk
to Karadag himself. We find out that their bodies are no longer able
to carry such a burden, suffering from Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
after having been on hunger strike for over two months.
Alper's take on life after prison
For many Turkish moviegoers, a film that serves as a companion piece to
"Simurg" is "Sonbahar" (Autumn), the 2008 debut feature of writer and
director Ozcan Alper. Taking the audience to the Black Sea region -
the site of Alper's hometown - the film tells the story of Yusuf (Onur
Saylak), a political prisoner released because of his deteriorating
health after ten years.
Returning home to his elderly mother, Yusuf realizes that life has
changed, with all of his activist friends having separated from the
ideologies that once had brought them together. Yusuf's mostly silent
role is taken to a haunting effect with beautiful cinematography,
while a number of amateur actors speak in local dialect, requiring
subtitles for the Turkish-speaking audience.
With his second feature in 2011, "Gelecek Uzun Surer" (The Future
Lasts Forever), Alper moves his camera to southeastern Turkey for a
harrowing journey into the heart of the war. Opening with a quote from
Italian writer and poet Cesare Pavese: "When the war ends one day, we
have to ask ourselves this: What are we to do with the dead? Why did
they die?" the film introduces its central character, a young woman
(Gaye Gursel) who travels from Istanbul to the southeastern city of
Diyarbakır to research Anatolian elegies for her doctoral thesis. Her
research turns into something altogether different, as she talks to
women who have lost their beloved ones to the Turkish-Kurdish conflict
that has claimed thousands of lives over the last three decades.
Freedom of expression, no longer
A plot revolving around the Turkish-Kurdish conflict, along with a
subplot on the burning topic of the Armenian relocation of the last
century, could easily tread the waters of propaganda, or at least
become didactic. However, Alper manages to distance his film from any
political message or emotional drama that could easily have become
the tone of the film. He manages this by shooting the interviews in
a documentary style, with real footage included in the film. Part
road movie, part lament to lost love, and part political drama,
the movie's power to move mostly comes from its heartfelt look at
the consequences of war on individual lives, and mostly on women.
Recently, Turkey has been making headlines with its record number of
imprisoned journalists. However, there is an even darker record in
recent history when, in the early 1990s, Turkey topped the list of
countries with the highest number of journalists killed. In fact, the
number of journalists killed between 1992 and 1994 is a staggering 30,
while the number becomes even more striking when the 17 distributors
and sellers are included in the list. Director and writer Sedat
Yılmaz's 2011 drama "Press" examines the period by following a group
of journalists in Diyarbakır.
The film tells the story of journalists in the Diyarbakır office of
the daily Ozgur Gundem. The first issue of the newspaper was printed
on May 30, 1992, and during its total run of 580 issues in less than
two years it was hit with a record number of 486 lawsuits. While
"Press" is a feature film with a real newspaper in its center, the
characters are fictional journalists inspired by real journalists.
Bayram Balcı, a real-life correspondent for Ozgur Gundem during
it short-lived life, is the script consultant and the name behind
the story.
One final example that goes deep into the heart of a major human rights
violation in Turkey is the upcoming release "Kuf" (Mold), director
and writer Ali Aydın's debut feature. The film won the Future of
the Lion award at this year's Venice Film Festival and tells the
heartbreaking story of a father desperately waiting for news of his
son, who has been missing for 18 years. Aydın's minimalist style
and Ercan Kesal's subtle performance as the father make the film a
touching story of loss, rather than simply an angry political drama.
December/10/2012
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 10 2012
by Emrah Guler
ANKARA - Hurriyet Daily News
Celebrating global Human Rights Day, the Hurriyet Daily News takes
a look at human rights violations in recent history with a brief
journey through Turkish cinema. Hunger strikes, political prisoners,
war in southeastern Turkey and disappearances in custody are some of
the subjects of these films
Send to friend Â" Share on linkedin The best way to take a look at
human rights in Turkey is to remember some of the feature films that
have brought some of the violations into the spotlight.
Today is Human Rights Day across the globe, the day we celebrate
the proclamation and adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. For many in Turkey there isn't all that much to celebrate
these days considering the hunger strikes, imprisoned journalists,
disappearances in custody and a growing perception that the rule of
law is no longer the norm.
Perhaps the best way to take a look at human rights in Turkey -
or rather the violation of human rights - is to remember some of
the feature films and documentaries that have brought some of these
violations into the spotlight in recent memory.
The obvious first choice is journalist Ruhi Karadag's documentary
"Simurg" (Simurgh), currently on release in theaters. The film focuses
on hunger strikes, an issue that recently made the news, although the
recent hunger strikes were different to the ones shown in the movie.
What's more, the recent ones did not end up with an infamous operation
in which police and soldiers broke into prisons to halt the strikes.
"Simurg" follows six revolutionaries who went on hunger strikes
against the F-type prison cells in 1996, as they react to and support
the strikes in 2000 for the same cause. Karadag lets his camera hover
over the six as they follow the news, talk to one another, and talk
to Karadag himself. We find out that their bodies are no longer able
to carry such a burden, suffering from Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
after having been on hunger strike for over two months.
Alper's take on life after prison
For many Turkish moviegoers, a film that serves as a companion piece to
"Simurg" is "Sonbahar" (Autumn), the 2008 debut feature of writer and
director Ozcan Alper. Taking the audience to the Black Sea region -
the site of Alper's hometown - the film tells the story of Yusuf (Onur
Saylak), a political prisoner released because of his deteriorating
health after ten years.
Returning home to his elderly mother, Yusuf realizes that life has
changed, with all of his activist friends having separated from the
ideologies that once had brought them together. Yusuf's mostly silent
role is taken to a haunting effect with beautiful cinematography,
while a number of amateur actors speak in local dialect, requiring
subtitles for the Turkish-speaking audience.
With his second feature in 2011, "Gelecek Uzun Surer" (The Future
Lasts Forever), Alper moves his camera to southeastern Turkey for a
harrowing journey into the heart of the war. Opening with a quote from
Italian writer and poet Cesare Pavese: "When the war ends one day, we
have to ask ourselves this: What are we to do with the dead? Why did
they die?" the film introduces its central character, a young woman
(Gaye Gursel) who travels from Istanbul to the southeastern city of
Diyarbakır to research Anatolian elegies for her doctoral thesis. Her
research turns into something altogether different, as she talks to
women who have lost their beloved ones to the Turkish-Kurdish conflict
that has claimed thousands of lives over the last three decades.
Freedom of expression, no longer
A plot revolving around the Turkish-Kurdish conflict, along with a
subplot on the burning topic of the Armenian relocation of the last
century, could easily tread the waters of propaganda, or at least
become didactic. However, Alper manages to distance his film from any
political message or emotional drama that could easily have become
the tone of the film. He manages this by shooting the interviews in
a documentary style, with real footage included in the film. Part
road movie, part lament to lost love, and part political drama,
the movie's power to move mostly comes from its heartfelt look at
the consequences of war on individual lives, and mostly on women.
Recently, Turkey has been making headlines with its record number of
imprisoned journalists. However, there is an even darker record in
recent history when, in the early 1990s, Turkey topped the list of
countries with the highest number of journalists killed. In fact, the
number of journalists killed between 1992 and 1994 is a staggering 30,
while the number becomes even more striking when the 17 distributors
and sellers are included in the list. Director and writer Sedat
Yılmaz's 2011 drama "Press" examines the period by following a group
of journalists in Diyarbakır.
The film tells the story of journalists in the Diyarbakır office of
the daily Ozgur Gundem. The first issue of the newspaper was printed
on May 30, 1992, and during its total run of 580 issues in less than
two years it was hit with a record number of 486 lawsuits. While
"Press" is a feature film with a real newspaper in its center, the
characters are fictional journalists inspired by real journalists.
Bayram Balcı, a real-life correspondent for Ozgur Gundem during
it short-lived life, is the script consultant and the name behind
the story.
One final example that goes deep into the heart of a major human rights
violation in Turkey is the upcoming release "Kuf" (Mold), director
and writer Ali Aydın's debut feature. The film won the Future of
the Lion award at this year's Venice Film Festival and tells the
heartbreaking story of a father desperately waiting for news of his
son, who has been missing for 18 years. Aydın's minimalist style
and Ercan Kesal's subtle performance as the father make the film a
touching story of loss, rather than simply an angry political drama.
December/10/2012
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress