Yumurta - Ei

I liked Semih Kaplanoglu's last film "Melegin Dususu" which had a really great performance by Tulin Ozen. However, his latest film "Yumurta" goes absolutely nowhere.

Nejat Isler is a very charismatic actor who can command the screen as we have seen in "Barda", but in this film he is given little to do other than stare into space. There is very little dialog and even that is stilted and boring. This can't hold a candle to the greatness of last year's Golden Orange winner "Kader". There are few redeeming qualities about the film, namely the cinematography and soundtrack. Otherwise this is a real letdown.

The problem with Egg is not that it is rotten. It is not. It is just that it does not feel organic. The director's own admission that he is interested in film-making as an exercise in philosophy is evident in every scene. However, those that need a lesson in elementary existentialism will be bored by the film and those that would not mind a bit of thinking for thinking's sake will be bored by it, too – for different reasons. The lonely poet that left his roots but couldn't grow new ones goes back home because mom dies… Then, he looks at the young woman that never left and smiles to himself knowingly. Then, he looks at the confused young man that looks at the same young woman and he smiles to himself knowingly, again… Then he faints, then he is stopped by a big dog from leaving the village and then…

Nothing. See, it is all about the post-Sartre, tainted with Camus but no need for violence thingy. The universe, like, has no innate meaning other than the one we give to it – like, egg, get it? When I grow up, I will become a nihilist, but for now I believe in nothing much…

It is still watchable. For one thing, it has Nejat Isler, the actor that is fast proving himself as one of the best thespians of his generation in Turkey. In the flawed but much more meaningful film, Barda, he was a mesmerising presence, doing a lot with some that was written for him. Here, he does a lot with nothing. The issue is that doing a lot with nothing still comes to nothing. We feel for him when he cries, but also feel like slapping him in the face: Get over it, buddy, this wasn't all that interesting even when Antonioni made Marcello do it…

My two pennies for the director – you got the cinematography right, you got the actors under control, sound is above average… How about some story for the next one?

Egg is one of those films which can be called either boring or meditative, depending on which end of the spectrum you are at. The first scene itself should separate these two disparate groups. A woman walks past a murky landscape in towards the camera and then walks out. It is a terribly slow scene. As the film moves forward you get a clearer understanding of that scene and it appears as a very important part of the experience.

The story follows a man who returns to his village after his mother dies. He has been so long away that he doesn't know the girl who looked after his mother. He is eager to get away from the village and its many associated memories. He wants to keep his distance, but cannot.

This is a very poignant little film. Depending on the sort of viewer it has, it demands varying levels of patience.

it is of course a bit boring because it is a psychedelic kind of film and it is so contemporary..nowadays these kinda movies are a lot, not in Turkey but in everywhere around Europe.. I hate psychedelic movies and cant even watch but this movie had something and it kept me going. Cinematography was good for an independent film. İt was a very low budget film so I think before making any comment , should consider these kinda points. Shouldn't have a point of view before watching the other 2 movies which complete yumurta ,as a series movies I thing the other ones will be so much more meaningful because this one was about death..the darkest theme the darkest topic. one of the other ones topic is birth so..

Actually the movie is in a natural life perspective. I'm sure that the movie inspired Manchester By The Sea because it was produced in 2007. The starring man Nejat Isler is one of the best sample of Turkish act and definitely he would win an Oscar only he were an American.