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Muzaffer Ozdemir,
Mehmet Emin Toprak,
Zuhal Gencer Erkaya,
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Nuri Bilge Ceylan
see all cast/crew...
: Not Rated
: 105 min.
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Winner of the Grand Prix and two Best Actor Awards at the Cannes International Film Festival, Distant, set in a wintry, contemporary Istanbul, is a profoundly beautiful film about detachment and isolation. Mahmut, a relatively successful commercial photographer, has been struggling to come to terms with the growing gap between his artistic ideals and his professional obligations. His workload, coupled with the lingering loss he still feels for his ex-wife, leaves him clinging to the obsessive routines of his solitary life. Without warning, Mahmut's distant relative Yusuf arrives in Istanbul determined to find a job. In need of a place to stay as he searches for work, Yusuf imposes himself on Mahmut, who resents the sudden intrusion, but nonetheless feels obliged to help his family. As the two men struggle to make a connection, communication is slowly reduced to the bare minimum; and their time together must come to an end. Buoyed by comic moments, Distant is an unforgettable and insightful meditation on the human condition and the bittersweet feeling of being alive.
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| Upside: Photography; Downside: Character
by talltale
March 25, 2005 - 8:30 AM PST
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3 out of 6 members found this review helpful
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Some movies you watch for plots, others for shots. The 2003 Turkish film DISTANT falls into the latter category. Photography and cinematography are very nearly all-important: the leading character makes his living via his photos, and director Nuri Bilge Ceylan is clearly fascinated with film. Composition, spatial relationship, subtle color, and so much more: it's all here.
From the first snow-filled vista to an early scene in which the lead actor is caught in sharp close-up while his paramour undresses and beckons in deep soft focus, from marvelous snowfalls to a ship overturned on shore--visuals reign supreme. I can't imagine anyone interested in photography/cinematography not rushing to rent--perhaps own--this film. (Interestingly, for a movie so concerned with the visual, many of the scenes come across as slightly fuzzy--due possibly to the limits of video, budget or a less than stellar DVD transfer.)
Consider all the above to be the upside. Unfortunately, "Distant" features an anti-hero who tries one's patience. Distant vistas may be shown, but it's the main character Mahmut who's most removed--from everything and everyone, including himself. This "distance" grows at last into a tiresome movie. At film's end, the camera closes in (and in, and in) on its lead character, as though trying to get inside his head. It can't. And neither can you. Mahmut remains pretty much a cipher, and ciphers don't make for rich movies. Distant, indeed. |
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 6.26)
34 Votes
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