Eskiya - Der Bandit

this movie has a great storyline.. for the people that doesn't know Turkish movies highly recommended to watch this movie, its a great drama with Sener Sen (one of the best Turkish actor)who's the last bandit from his old gang. He was in prison because of his backstabbing friend, he gets out of jail and start for seeking revenge and starts finding the real reason of the backstabbing. This movie stays one of my favorites and thats why i wont spoil anything, so i highly recommend you guys this movie !!

10 out of 10

ReZ

I've seen this movie in the cinema ten years ago when I was younger and now, after seeing it again, I'm surprised that I still get the same emotions from it. In my review, I'll try to stay away of spoilers but I'll also give you a good treatment of the plot as well (just the big-picture).

Movie starts as Baran, an old eskiya (a honorable bandit) is getting out of prison after 35 years of jail to find his village and his home under the waters of Firat river. He then learns that his confinement was due to an old comrade's betrayal, and that his comrade took away and married his lover, Keje. Baran comes to the biggest city of Turkey, Istanbul to seek his old comrade and maybe to take revenge...

Due to an unlikely coincidence, he meets Cumali, a young man that has no family and is living in Istanbul, earning his life with criminal acts. Baran the Eskiya is not familiar with the city-life but Cumali is willing to help him because of his debt.

Baran the eskiya has a deep character, despite his criminal past, he looks like a naive person in the metropolitan city of Istanbul. Despite that he is an uneducated person, he may be the most honorable and wise person in this big city. Sener Sen (Baran) and Ugur Yucel (Cumali) each gives spectacular acting performance and their talents combined with an intelligent script breathe life into this "Eskiya" myth. Baran is the last of the Eskiyas !

The movie has a slow start but towards the ending, the mood gets stronger. The movie reaches it's climax at the dramatic scenes to the finish. This is a story about honor and the power of love. This is a story about two strangers that are becoming tied emotionally, like the father and the son. A classic Turkish Action/Drama movie for all to see !

PS. also check out another Turkish movie "Kabadayi" by the same director/writer (Yavuz Turgul) and the same actor (Sener Sen).

And, to tell the truth, HE still is. The filmmakers in Turkey are always claiming about reaching the thing, the unbelievable, the extreme thing that this movie made to the people. With no grand advertising, or big budget, that's just a miracle that movie has made. And to a miracle, points or comments do nothing but you wanted and I give:eternity out of 10 and just love, like the movie gives to you.

From the cinematography to the plot, to the fine acting, this film is a great example of the diversity of film-making outside Hollywood. A triumph from beginning to end, this film is pretty difficult to pigeonhole as it has so many elements to it. Is it a thriller, is it a reflection on one man's life, is it a buddy movie, is it a revenge movie? It's all this and more. It's got a great pace about it and the depiction of city and country is nicely juxtaposed in many of it's scenes. It's a while since I've seen this film, but there are so many scenes which have stayed with me. I love this film, but damn it's difficult to find.

After 35 years in prison, a mountain bandit goes to Istanbul to find the man who betrayed him and stole his lady. Nothing much new here, dredging up a lot of the usual gangster/revenge/fish out of water motifs, but it does a decent job of pulling you in and manages a certain freshness despite the familiarity of the material. Some of the larger dramatic scenes are painfully clichéd, but it's pieced together nicely and has some pretty good character moments. I get the feeling Turgul is a more talented director than a writer. Sener Sem (who I just realized was also in that lousy "Rascals" movie I recently watched) is a likable fellow, and his rapport with Ugur Yucel works well. Overall it's a somewhat mediocre film, but quite watchable with flashes of potential.