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Uzak (Distant)

Tiscali (UK), May 2004

Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan's third feature is a meditative study on the solitude of contemporary society, but if that sounds dull don't worry, because this is a startlingly engaging and amusing work which has won prizes at over 25 international film festivals, culminating in the Grand Prize at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. And deservedly so, because the accolade of masterpiece is one which should be awarded to this film.

The first fifteen wordless minutes show Yusuf (Emin Toprak) arriving in Istanbul on foot from the country, and hanging about outside an apartment block where his cousin Mahmut (Muzaffer Ozdemir) lives. Yusuf is a bubbly but slightly awkward and chubby twentysomething, who hero-worships his older cousin as the country boy made good and living in the big city. Somewhat reluctantly Mahmut agrees that Yusuf can move in for a short time while he looks for work, and so begins an Odd Couple-relationship.

Mahmut is the opposite of his younger relative, being a cranky forty, and working as a photographer of bathroom tiles. His main interests appear to be masturbating in front of porn videos and avoiding any responsibility for his ailing mother. Yusuf's arrival, his smoking and his relentless cheeriness all start to drive Mahmut to distraction.
Beautifully acted by both central performers, this is a striking example of two actors understanding their characters and their relationships together. Yusuf's failure to get any sort of job and his incessant hanging about the house are wonderfully played by Toprak, and his inept attempts to pick up women in shops or parks form a very amusing running gag. Mahmut, on the other hand, is a perfect depiction of isolation and misery - when the two cousins go on a trip to the beautiful countryside around the city, Mahmut declares it all too depressing to photograph and immediately returns to take some more pictures of his tiles.

The film is superlatively shot, with director Ceylan using frames within frames to great visual and comic effect: another highlight being when Yusuf sets off a car alarm to the chagrin of the whole narrow street he is in, with all of the actors popping out of windows to chastise him.

Tragically the younger actor Emin Tuprak died in a car crash shortly before the film was screened and triumphed at Cannes, where both performers also shared the prize for best actor. It's a tragedy for film in general as his charming naivety is readily apparent on screen. The minor solace for his death is that his final appearance will always be remembered as a major work, and Ceylan now confirms his status as one of the world's greatest living film-makers.