Crossing Istanbul

This is the best movie I have seen lately. It is perfect in every way. For me, the acting and the story-building is great. The story is simple, yet it is a complex movie with many layers. On the foreground, there are lots of events and characters. On the background, the charming Istanbul, yet expressed very subtly. Most of the story takes place in the backstreets of the Beyoglu district, where hard lives are intertwined with human warmth and friendships. Underneath it all, is a layer with all kinds of emotions that grip you from the beginning of the movie until the end. And all those emotions stay with you long after the movie. Please go and see it!

There's something entirely plausible about the performance from Mzia Arabuli in this poignant drama. She is the retired school teacher "Lia" who is determined to track down her niece now that her sister has recently died. She lives in Georgia, likes a drink or two, and thinks that "Tekla" has fled to neighbouring Turkey where she is able to live her life more freely. She is trans - and that's not a situation encouraged at home! "Lia" hasn't a word of Turkish, though, so she agrees to take local wide boy "Achi" (Lucas Kankava) with her as a sort of guide-cum-translator. The seedier side of Istanbul beckons for both of them, but what chance of tracking down one person in a city of millions? Fortunately, the young man can't sleep one night and goes out to explore. He makes some new friends and these friends lead them to newly qualified lawyer "Evrim" (Deniz Dumanli) who promises to try to help... Now it would have been very easy for auteur Levan Akin to do this the A+B=C way, but he doesn't. He doesn't make the film about the search for "Tekla" so much as about a search by this woman to find herself, to reignite her sense of purpose and to to put into perspective issues that drive families apart leaving everyone bereft of affection and understanding. It's that role that Arabuli plays with an honesty that really works. There's an almost maternal chemistry between her and the young "Achi" and as they search, we see a city that really is a potpourri of just about every aspect of humanity - some friendly, so less so. I found this to be quite an effective film about live-and-let-live in a city where poverty and wealth exist side by side and where there appears to be a largely prevailing degree of tolerance and, to an extent, generosity of spirit. It's hopeful but not unrealistic, and proof that there's plenty of life in the old girl yet!

This is a fantastic movie: the story, the actors, the places, everything is there in the right dosage, and the whole time, I felt like I was part of it. For anyone who felt lost or did not belong, for whomever had been always looking for someone dear, family or friends, this movie has it all. A special mention to the main characters; they were so well-played that I could swear they were real, even the children.

A special mention for not engaging in violence and sexual abuse. The story was so well written that the power of suggestion was more than enough to let the viewer have his own impression.

Levan Akin is a brilliant filmmaker and this film is flawless. Istanbul is beautiful and inviting yet can feel terribly lonely at the same time for a foreigner and this essence is so well captured in the background of this road movie. Every role is perfectly cast and the acting is superb. Multiple themes are addressed: Longing for family, regret, and the humanity in the diversity of all people.

The three main actors (in fact all the actors) gave nuanced performances that were so believable. There is very little sex and violence here. Great writing can imply it without graphically showing it. These types of interior films shot on location are not easy to produce but after seeing this, I need to see every film made by Akin.

I really liked how the title explains perfectly what this film is about. It's about people who crosses to a different country, whose own lives crosses with characters that are nothing like them, and finally about people who are crossing genders on a quest to find themselves. The acting was superb, specially Evrim's character played by Deniz Dumanli. All the characters are complex and extremely interesting and I really loved how the movie has a slight twist making you expect one thing and delivering another. Istanbul depiction was beautiful but not in a postcard touristy way and it really showed the vibe of this huge, exotic, amazing city. What I liked the most was the connections that we could see forming between people who are unlikely to be hanging out. The music and cinematograpghy were also both very good. I strongly recommend this movie to any film lover.