Sev Beni

Cemal is from Istanbul, Turkey and he is about to get married to a bride his family have found for him. His loving uncle and brother decide that he must know how to treat his new woman properly, in the bedroom department that is, and so take him for an 'educational' tour of the fleshpots of Kiev, Ukraine.

Once there they go to a 'sexy' night club, where the ladies are all 'professionals'. Into the club walks the effortlessly beautiful Sasha. She is living the life of a trophy wife - without the marriage - to a rich businessman. It happens to be her birthday and she feels let down by his no show, so has decided to go out and pick up a man. She is drawn to Cemal and he is most definitely drawn to her and so he jumps into her Range Rover and they head off into the night. What follows is a touching, sometimes funny but mostly very human affair of the heart.

Now this is billed as a comedy drama with culture clashes and the endearment of the kindness of strangers. I thought it was almost like a 'Love Story' without the longevity but also demonstrating that language does not have to be a barrier to love. This is a beautifully shot film, with Kiev sparkling in the winter snow - this is juxtaposed with the broken high rises where Sasha's mother lives - all graffiti and plastic covering the broken windows.

The kindness of strangers part is well realised, but it is the central relationship that holds this together and provides the impetus to make you want to watch more - so much so that the ending comes too soon. It is a film I really enjoyed; it is in Turkish, Ukrainian, Russian and the international language of tourists and air line pilots - English. A film for those who want their movies to be less predictable and who appreciate a quality production - absolutely recommended.

This is a story about a young, soon-to-be married Turkish tourist, Cemal, and a beautiful, troubled yet graceful prostitute, Sasha, trying to make the difficulties of their life mesh with their dreams of finding love. It is a Moulin Rouge-esque romantic comedy set in a cold and bitter Kiev, Ukraine.

The two meet in a star-crossed nightclub on the evening of Cemal's bachelor party. Cemal, dragged by his Uncle and brother to the brothels of Kiev to learn the 'ways of women', is caught up in Sasha's beauty as she stands out in the night club against the run-of-the-mill girls on the floor. Cemal pays the usual fee to follow her home at the encouragement of his uncle and begins a series of unforseen events which draws the two lovers together. Though the rest of the people in their lives doubt their relationship, Cemal and Sasha try desperately to discover if their love can exist despite extremely long odds.

The movie has significant social and political undertones that reflect the realities of life in Ukraine. This is a rare Ukranian/Turkish movie where the city of Kiev is presented through monuments and scenes with iconic thoroughfares and statues. Shots include common streets and people who, in the past, have been censored from Ukranian films due to their reception to Russian audiences. In this way, the movie challenges post-colonial prejudices.

The movie incorporates many different languages well while keeping the action moving along. Naturally, Cemal the Turkish tourist, and Sasha the Ukranian prostitute, speak different languages. Additionally, Sasha alternates between Ukranian and Russian in order to reflect the post-colonial realities of her homeland. The two can roughly translate between eachother with a few choice English words. "Help", "stay", "love".

The action of the movie keeps a quick pace and the nature of their relationship seems more authentic than many Hollywood movies of the same genre. Emotions run high as Cemal's chivalrous nature clashes with the cold reservations of Sasha's complicated life. Frequently, arguments divulge into violence as the desperation of balancing life, money, and dignity come to a head. In this way, I felt a deeper connection to the movie for addressing hard truths, and was more impressed with the film's project for reflecting difficult themes.

This is an ambitious and well executed Ukrainian film project. I highly recommend this film to those who are interested in a romantic comedy which develops in a patently western-European manner. The deliberate dialogue, dark setting, and overt dedication from the main characters make this move an icon of foreign film in the recent decade.

The two leads had great natural chemistry. I enjoyed the beautiful cinetography that involved Ukraine. You get to experience Ukraine as a viewer and also the culture. The movie also offers a glimpse of Turkish culture. It is a bittersweet love story like its setting cold at times but beautiful

"Love Me" (2013 co-production from Ukraine and Turkey; 90 min.) brings the story of Sasha and Cemal. As the movie opens, we see Cemal participating in a family celebration ceremony in Istanbul, and along the way we learn that he is engaged to be married. But Cemal's uncle convinces him to come along for a "lost weekend" in Kiev. Meanwhile, we get to know Sasha, a beautiful woman who is stuck in a deeply unhappy relationship with a married man. To vent her frustration, Sasha one night heads out to a local night club, where by coincidence she spots a rich-looking foreigner, Cemal. At this point we are about 15 min. into the movie, but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: first, even thought this is a Ukraine-Turkish co-production (and co-written/co-directed by a Turk and a Ukranian), 90% of the movie plays out in Kiev (or Kyiv, as the movie's subtitles insist). The movie is set in the dead of winter, and as such, Kiev becomes a third leading character in the movie. There are numerous gorgeous shots of the barren winter cityscapes, shrouded in early morning fog/frost/snow. Second, the relationship/interaction between Sasha and Cemal is very interesting. Two complete strangers meet and start what could be "the beginning of a very meaningful relationship" (sorry, couldn't help the Seinfeld punt). In that sense I was reminded of Richard Linklater's 1995 movie "Before Sunrise" (like that movie, the first half of "Love Me" plays out over the very first evening/night that Sasha and Cemal meet). But to complicate matters even further, neither speaks the other's language, and their broken English is limited at best. Third, a striking feature of living in Ukraine, at least if you are a woman, is that the most important feature in looking for a mate is that he's got money, and lots of it. When Sasha's money gets wind of the budding friendship between Sasha and Cemal, she snorts with barely contained contempt "Is he at least rich? You're so selfish if he's not!", wow. Last but not least, the movie makes some pointed observations on the challenges for the many Turks living in Kiev, and it ain't always a pretty picture. All that aside, "Love Me" kept my interest from start to finish and the movie simply flew by in no time.

This movie was the January, 2015 release in Film Movement's "DVD of the Month" club of foreign and indie movies. As is always the case, the DVD comes with a bonus shortie, and this month we get "The Queen" (original title: La Reina; 2013 release from Argentina; 19 min.), an interesting documentary regarding a young girl's struggle with competing in beauty pageantries while wanting to live a 'normal' live. Definitely worth checking out. Meanwhile, "Love Me" is a worthy addition to the ever-growing Film Movement's library of foreign and indie movies. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!