From making 1970s great classic films to winning at Cannes, Turkish films are giving great competition in World Cinema. The films have rich stories with great diversity and outstanding acting skills. Turkish cinema has surmounted economic problems, legal issues, and the fear of censorship on its way to international acclaim. It is frequently said that cinema is a mirror for its time and place, and the Turkish film industry is no exception. Filmmakers have concentrated on documenting all facets of Turkish culture and daily life.
Below are some of the Turkish films for you to watch.
1. Delibal (2015)
A love story about two young individuals battling their emotions and goals, as well as the pressures of profession, family, and the unknown future. Füsun is a talented student on the verge of a successful career. However, she can’t help but fall in love with Baris, a musician who suffers from a mental illness. As they become closer, they begin to adopt each other’s characteristics, but being overly reliant on one another is detrimental to their relationship.
2. Once Upon A Time In Anatolia (2011)
The local prosecutor, police commissar, and doctor conduct a hunt for a murder victim to whom a suspect named Kenan. Also for his mentally challenged brother confessed in the rural area surrounding the Anatolian village of Keskin. The search, however, is proving more difficult than planned, as Kenan is unsure of the actual position of the body. While the gang searches, its members can’t help but talk amongst themselves about both trivia and their deepest concerns in an investigation that is proving more difficult than any of them anticipated.
3. Miracle In Cell No. 7 (2019)
Joselito (Aga Muhlach), a mentally challenged guy, is falsely accused of sexual assault, abduction, and murdering a little girl. He becomes friends with his other inmates in prison and they devise a scheme to smuggle his small daughter (Xia Vigor) into the cell. Years later, his daughter (Bella Padilla) graduates from law school and vows to prove her father’s innocence.
4. The Butterfly’s Dream (2013)
The last days of summer 1941, the age of Obligation, in the midst of the Second World War’s starvation environment. Muzaffer Tayyip Uslu and Rustu Onur, two poets in their early twenties, live in the midst of all this poverty and unrest. For years, they’ve had tuberculosis germs in their lungs and a love of poetry in their hearts. Two poets, who have a tendency of betting on things they don’t possess, place a wager on a gorgeous girl. They’ll both write a poem for her, and whichever one Suzan prefers will slip from view.
5. The Edge Of Heaven (2007)
Nejat appears to be disdainful of his widower father Ali’s live-in lover, prostitute Yeter. When he learns that she sends money home to Turkey for her daughter’s university education, he develops a fondness for her. Yeter’s untimely demise puts a barrier between father and son. Yeter’s daughter Ayten is missing, so Nejat travels to Istanbul to find her. Ayten, a political activist, has eluded Turkish authorities and is now in Germany. She befriends a young woman named Lotte, who invites the rebellious Ayten to stay with her, a move that her strict mother Susanne does not appreciate. When Ayten is apprehended and her asylum request is denied, she is repatriated to Turkey and imprisoned. Lotte flies to Turkey and becomes engrossed in the seemingly hopeless task of rescuing Ayten.
6. Head- On (2004)
A 40-year-old man from Mersin, Turkey, has eliminated all traces of Turkish culture from his life. He’s become an alcoholic and a drug addict, and he wants to end it all at the opening of the film. Sibel, a 20-year-old woman from Hamburg, wants to impress her Turkish parents while yet yearning for independence. Her brother had smashed her nose for being seen holding hands with a boy, but she is unable to break her mother’s heart and flee. She, too, attempts suicide, and it is at the hospital that she first contacts Cahit. Sibel approaches Cahit and asks him to marry her, believing that this is the only way out of her parents’ house. She assures Cahit that their connection will be similar to that of roommates rather than a married couple.
7. The Girl With The Red Scarf (1997)
A story about a woman’s love and rationality colliding. Ilyas, a womanizer city man, meets Asya, a young girl with a strict mother, and they rapidly fall in love. They overcome their difficulties and have a swift and happy marriage. However, after assisting a guy one night, Ilyas’ life is permanently changed, and he abandons Asya and their son, Samet, for another lady, never to return. After that, Asya leaves with their son, not knowing where she is going, until a familiar hand reaches out to help her selflessly.
