Günesi Gördüm (2009) Reviews

• A winner

  S_M_G2009-03-19

  I lived in Turkey when Mahsun Kirmizigul was a folk(arabesk) singer then I moved away... I'm a rock/hip hop woman, I never paid much attention to him; always thought his kind of music was "beneath me". How elitist, how inconsiderate of me! I moved back to Turkey 2 months ago from US and I watched "Gunesi Gordum" today... Mahsun Kirmizigul won my respect, my admiration today... Gunesi Gordum is an amazing movie. Every scene in the movie, every actor is spot on. It touches extremely sensitive subjects in Turkey and comes out a winner. This movie makes you cry for the terrorists' family AND for the soldier that died defending his country. A son is a son. That's what this movie shows you without politicizing it. It makes you see the pain of the homophobic brother facing the transvestite brother. It makes you see how "privileged" you are while a big part of your country / world is just trying to HOLD ON.... Thank you Mahsun for this movie. I really hope you get the recognition you deserve.

• it is far far away from being a classic or what so ever

  EchoMaRinE2009-10-31

  I watched the movie yesterday and thought on it for a while. Let me share my humble opinion on some aspects of the movie. The story was crafted to make it as tragic as possible by putting problems of people who were forced to migrate in the focus and spicing it with social adaptation. While trying to point some problems like terror and the social pressure, the choices were too far from each other. If the story was focusing only on the migrating family, it could have been much better. The gay issue didn't fit the whole movie at all and it looks like a patch trying to gain sympathy. So, for the plot, it is over exaggerated tragedy. Acting is good, especially the main characters did a pretty good job. I am afraid, I can't be that positive for the directing and technical aspects. The fighting scene was very clumsy. Overall camera usage was pathetic. This movie is an Oscar candidate by now. I don't think it has the slightest chance. Although the movie is quite good in some aspects, it is far far away from being a classic or what so ever...

• Kurdish issue has never been exposed this way!

  makiratli2009-03-15

  I have to confess that Mahsun Kirmizigul was not a name for me to follow or mention in any atmosphere until i watched Gunesi Gordum (means "I Saw The Sun"). There is a big kurdish issue in Turkey. It's not just in the southeast but in the entire country. This is the point where this film break through: How this problem effects all these people? The story starts in a village in southeast, surrounded by the mountains which are also the permanent residences for the PKK terrorists. Davut and his brothers and their children and grandsons lives there. Davut has three sons. One, is a terrorist, lives on the mountains and fights against the Turkish army, believes that he is fighting for their people. The other one is a soldier in the army. And the youngest one is disabled because of a mine explosion. Even only the structure of this family gives us a spectacular aspect of the district. They have to leave the village and go somewhere else to live. It's not a choice they made, it is a must! The story goes on with their new lives. Some in Istanbul and some in Norway. Are they really their lives or did something or someone take it from them? Did they want it to be that way? In a scene Havar (played by Demet Evgar) says "A man of this land can be a korucu (means village guardian), a soldier or a terrorist. There is no 4th option!" or in another one Davut (acted by Altan Erkekli) who begins to live in Norway says "No matter if here is a heaven, i'd prefer my land". Even the source of the kurdish issue is not the main subject in the film, it still has something to say about how this issue effects people of this country. And there is a solution proposal made by a captain of Turkish army: "What if state gives a hand to the people of this district?". Even some side stories harms the main one, and the film is lacking to answer why there is a such a problem and its involvement with PKK, Mahsun Kirmizigul, the writer and the director of the movie manages to tell his story maybe in the simplest way it could be, like it has never been before. Especially Altan Erkekli and Serif Sezer are shining in their roles. Suggested to the ones curious about the issue...

• Mahsun Kirmizigul's second film looks as to give birth to even better films.

  selimaksan2009-03-16

  Mahsun Kirmizigul's second film Gunesi Gordum looks as to give birth to even better films.Nobody thought that Kirmizigul was going to be a director.Nobody even did guess he was going to direct the best talents of Turkish cinema and theater like Erol Gunaydin,Serif Sezer,Altan Erkekli,Idiz,Esen,Surmeli....and others. Congrats to Mahsun Kirmizigul. The move talks about dark ages of country.Besides well known political issues it tells dramatical stories of social and individual life of the Anatolian society.The story begins in south east of turkey and ends in Istanbul/Norway.Powerty,education,political power,social security system,homosexuality,violence,peace,war,migration are the sub lines of the story.Many of the actors and talents do their best in acting.Especially Altan Erkekli,Serif Sezer,all kids,Mahsun Kirmizigul and especially Cemal Toktas as an homosexual character deserve special attention.We will be following Kirmizigul's next steps and look forward for technically and thematically even better movies.

• A Bold Film

  tevfikakbasli2009-11-02

  I Saw the Sun is a film of an ongoing tragedy that has claimed the lives of more than 50000 people which has left upwards of 22000 bodies gravely injured. While taking a stand against discrimination and othering of all sorts, this film bravely tells the shattered story of the past 25 years, pointing out warring, fighting and despising what is different as the problem. The story told in I Saw the Sun was inspired by true stories and was shot in 6 different countries. Director Mahsun Kırmızıgül dedicated the film to "hope, peace and children". It was the greatest tragedy for Turkish and Kurdish brothers living in Turkey to kill each other after living together peacefully for 2000 years. Voicing his thoughts on the matter; director Mahsun Kırmızgül embarked on a journey to write the story of the ongoing reality of war. When he began writing the screenplay, he wanted to tell all that people turned a blind eye to. The true story of a 100 year problem, a 25 year war, over 50000 dead, 22000 critically injured, 800 billion dollars spent Kırmızıgül's courage to voice opinions that no one else has dared; did perhaps stem from his sensitivity. Writing and filming such a story was thorny at best in consideration of the current situation of the country. Born and raised in the East, privy to the culture and the trials and tribulations of the area, he began writing the screenplay, drawing from his own experiences and weaving true life stories together. He drew attention to the 2.5 million dislocated people forced into obscurity to be ground in the cogwheels of large cities, as the result of the mandatory relocation policy and shed light on their troubled lives. In his screenplay, he deconstructed a Kurdish family in minute detail, putting the lives of the Southeastern people on display. Creating the parent characters with one son in the military, one a terrorist and another who lost a leg because of a landmine, pretty much laid it all out there about the conjuncture of Turkey. The crux of the story where the tragedy laid was the parents who were caught in between sons who were a guerrilla and a soldier. Two Kurdish brothers that lived in Turkey have each gone to be warring parties. The despair of the father was the reflection of Turkey's quarter century despair. When writing about this family living in the East of Turkey, the director also pointed out the poverty and the lack of education while emphasizing the naivety and sentimentality of those people, their familial devotion and their respect for each other. The peaceful and joyful lives of the village people were disrupted and transformed from heaven into hell. Mahsun Kırmızıgül hasn't shied away from severe discourse against the state and the system and told his story through a critical eye. The character of transvestite Kadri is one of the most significant characters as far as storytelling goes. To conceive of such a character in such a conservative culture is in a way a proclamation of the elimination of prejudices and a call for liberty for all. This screenplay tackled the issue of homosexuality through a perspective that viewed it not as a choice but a way of creation. Kadri's story was also drawn from real life, making an impact on the audience with its astounding final. The story of the Kurdish family going to Norway is also a tragic one where people find the solution of their problems in leaving their country after being repressed under unsolvable problems for a long time. The deal the family makes with human traffickers to go to Norway also offers the audience memorable cinematic pictures.Turkey is the crossroads for refugees and illegal travelers alike. Only 10% of the 2.65 million illegal travelers passing through Turkey en route to hope can be detected. In 2008, 243 thousand people were caught in the process. Each year, Asian and African refugees use this country to go somewhere else. In the film, the Altun family calls for democracy by way of comparison between the democratized nations' standards of living and theirs. Mamo, the main character in the film is a doting father. His interaction with his children makes for sentimental scenes. As the stories and characters come together and flow harmoniously toward the final, the screenwriter reinforces his screenplay with statistical data and draws the audience in on the enormous dimensions of the situation thus taking the he impact to the highest level.