Hababam Sinifi

This classic Turkish film (although some might wonder at this mainstream movie being called a film) is etched permanently into the psyche of Turkish culture. It's such a shame that there's no kind of film preservation society in Turkey. No One realizes that this film is going to disappear within the next decade or two. If I'm ever successful I've made a promise to my childhood that I'll find a good print of this film and put efforts forward to restore it and preserve it in various formats so that my kids and their kids can one day see it.

Hababam Sinifi is adopted from a novel by . Turkey's one of the most popular artists like Kemal Sunal, Sener Sen, Munir Ozkul, Halit Akcatepe, Adile Nasit, Tarik Akan, Sevket Altug, Perran Kutman played in all series. It's been on Turkish TV channels over and over again and still get high ratings. The whole series is a classic, the best parts go around "Güdük" Necmi and "Inek" Saban. Sener Sen is also great as the gym teacher "Badi" Ekrem. One of the greatest figures of Turkish cinema Münir Özkul and Adile Nasit take their parts as "Kel" Mahmut and Hafize Ana. Adile Nasit with her famous giggling draws a mother figure for the students... Anyways, I wonder if it was released in other countries but if you're Turkish you've already seen it a million times and would watch it again if there is nothing else on TV :)

"Hababam" is a never-aging movie. I just watched it again last night (I don't remember how many times I watched it!) and I was on my knees, laughing with tears in my eyes. Sener Sen, Munir Ozkul, Adile Nasit, Kemal Sunal (Only Ozkul and Sen alive today) are among the greatest comedians in Turkish cinema and watching them in the same movie is undescribable joy! Movie's passing into a sadder region makes the onlooker feel that this is life itself. Before recovering a laugh coma the onlooker enters a sad valley. The original score is a great helper in these transitions. Composer Melih Kibar created one of his best works for Hababam Sinifi.

To sum up, Hababam Sinifi is like a drug when you feel gloomy, blue, sad. You can cheer up within minutes if you sit and watch it.

This is a great comedy but obviously a typical American won't laugh as much as a Turkish person. Kemal Sunal and his classmates play it in the same tradition like Jerry Lewis and Charlie Chaplin. I showed the movie to an American friend, and with some translation, he laughed and enjoyed it, too. So, it is normal for Turks to give it a 10 rating, and non-turks to give a 7.3, and the difference is due to something lost in the translation! The other thing is, the Turks don't laugh at actually what the characters are saying, but HOW they are saying... The facial expressions, the accent, body language.. all contribute... So you have to live for a while in Turkey to fully appreciate this movie...

I think this movie must be translated in all languages on the world. Fabulous comedy from the great director of Turkish cinema. Many of excellent actors are also together in this movie. It is the film which is seen by all Turkish people at least once. This great comedy must be seen by all people in the world. It is even better than all other films in the world which is launched as comedy. There are jokes on all scenes of the movie. Especially, one of the main character's of the movie Kemal Sunal has a great performance. You cannot make anything other then laugh, laugh and laugh. Watch and be full of fun. It is directed in 1975.