ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA

[Bill Anderson]

A couple of months ago I read Ebert's review of this Turkish film and
knew I had to see it. And now I have, and I don't know quite what to
make of it. I do know I sat transfixed for two and a half hours as it
all unfolded, but ... why? Well, it's a police procedural unlike
anything I've ever seen before.

All I remembered from Ebert's review is that his enthusiasm made me want
to see the film. I'd totally forgotten the details he revealed, and
actually I'm glad, because not knowing what would happen next kept me
enthusiastically apprehensive for nearly two hours. I mean, I've seen
enough police procedurals to know what to expect...right? Haven't I?
Well...

It's got a 93% rating at Rotten Tomatoes; just look at this page of
fresh vegetables from the top critics:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/once_upon_a_time_in_anatolia/reviews/?type=top_critics

But should I recommend it? I dunno. I mean, I am certain there are a
lot of people who would find this thing a long, hard slog full of banal
conversation, and they'd pretty much be right.

But I was riveted start to finish. And I hope somebody else around here
sees it because I'd really like to talk it over.

--
Bill Anderson

I am the Mighty confident somebody will tell me a tomato is a fruit Favog

[wlah...@gmail.com]

On Wednesday, May 23, 2012 5:37:20 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

> A couple of months ago I read Ebert's review of this Turkish film and
> knew I had to see it. And now I have, and I don't know quite what to
> make of it. I do know I sat transfixed for two and a half hours as it
> all unfolded, but ... why? Well, it's a police procedural unlike
> anything I've ever seen before.
>

I finally got around to seeing this film and hadn't read any reviews -- just word of mouth made me aware of the film -- and going in cold was -- I think -- the best way to see it. I don't want to get all metaphysical and say that it isn't what it is, but I did and I'll stick with that for now. It's probably the best film I've seen in a while and I have a tendency to really like films where nothing seems to be happening and at the same time every little thing is revealed. Would love to delve into the whys and wherefores but I really don't want to ruin the film for the probably one other person here who might see it. All I can say is that the film is absolutely brilliant and if you want to have a conversation about it, I'm there.

[moviePig]

On Bill's enthusiasm way back when, I tried this, and couldn't hack it, giving up early on. But you remind me there's been too much prostration at it to let it remain unseen. I shall return...

- - - - - - - -
YOUR taste at work...
http://www.moviepig.com

[wlah...@gmail.com]

On Saturday, September 14, 2013 9:19:04 AM UTC-4, moviePig wrote:

> On Bill's enthusiasm way back when, I tried this, and couldn't hack it, giving up early on. But you remind me there's been too much prostration at it to let it remain unseen. I shall return...
>

They say all films should be seen on their own terms and this is a classic example. It doesn't follow a formula so seeing it as a police procedural -- a natural reaction because that's where it starts -- is what will frustrate the viewer as those expectations are never met. Where I finally grokked the film was in the discussion of yoghurt and whether it's sold at the market that may or may not be near the police station. This stuff borders on Sam Beckett as the set-up is merely only that and what is really happening is happening within that set-up. This is really character-driven as each one continues on and only the viewer gets what is happening, if that viewer is paying attention. What frustrates a lot of people -- I think -- is that the film takes some work to see.

[gtr]

On 2012-05-23 21:37:20 +0000, Bill Anderson said:

> But should I recommend it? I dunno. I mean, I am certain there are a
> lot of people who would find this thing a long, hard slog full of banal
> conversation, and they'd pretty much be right.

Same has been said for "My Dinner with Andre", but similarly it kept me
interested throughout.

> But I was riveted start to finish. And I hope somebody else around here
> sees it because I'd really like to talk it over.

That's enough for me to drop it into my queue, though I'm not sure when
it will be arrive at the top...

[wlah...@gmail.com]

On Saturday, September 14, 2013 12:30:28 PM UTC-4, gtr wrote:

> That's enough for me to drop it into my queue, though I'm not sure when
> it will be arrive at the top...

It bears little -- if any -- relation to "Andre" and -- if you pay attention -- the conversation isn't really banal. All I can suggest is that you just let the film happen without any expectations about what it's supposed to be. That's true, I guess, of many films that aren't sequels, or prequels, or part of a franchise, but it's mo' truer in this case.

[Bill Anderson]

I'm currently reduced to typing in Google Groups from my iPhone. Give me a few days to get my computer set up in my new place and I'll get back to you. I'm glad and not surprised you liked it.

--
Bill Anderson

I am the Mighty Favog

[wlah...@gmail.com]

On Saturday, September 14, 2013 2:33:43 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

> I'm currently reduced to typing in Google Groups from my iPhone. Give me a few days to get my computer set up in my new place and I'll get back to you. I'm glad and not surprised you liked it.
>

Here's what I really liked about it and I'll minimize my comments to the first scene so not to spoil it if mPig wants to see it again or if gtr gives it a go. It's the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere and the suspect can't remember where the body is buried. Three cars are driving aimlessly based on the suspect's recollections. When they find the body, they learn that the ambulance is broken down and won't be coming. Nobody thought to bring a body bag. There's a conversation between five police officers in a car about buffalo yoghurt that seems "banal" and yet if you pay attention to how it flows, it is basically a "who's on first" routine updated much as Sam Beckett integrated the old vaudeville switching hats routine into "Waiting For Godot."

It was at that point that I asked myself: Why isn't this a comedy? The answer seems to be that the film has far more ambition than that and what is intentionally misleading about the film is how it keeps what it is doing in the guise of a dramatic procedural. At one point the prosecutor wants to document where the body was found and his assistant takes out the laptop for dictation and the prosecutor knows that they are either in this county or that county and asks the local constable who -- pointing to landmarks and such -- says we're in this county and then the prosecutor dictates that we're in that (the other) county. There isn't -- to the film's credit -- a lone shot of the prosecutor against the barren background suggesting some kind of existential quandary or implications of alienation or anything "arty" like that. There are no "big" statements in the film, it's a series of small epiphanies that are sometimes almost lost in the banter of the dialog.

I can easily understand why some would find the film annoying or pointless. In a way, it says something about how people deal with life's stuff and it doesn't matter whether it's in Turkish or Thai or English. To me, that's one of the signs that the film borders on being great. It's one of the best films that I've seen recently and I'm going to see it again. Soon.

[wlah...@gmail.com]

And there's the wonderful bit where the police officers are discussing whether to break the bones of the corpse to get it in the trunk of the car.

[Bill Anderson]

I knew it was a police procedural, of course it was, it had to be. I
knew everything would soon start to fall into place, eventually the
prisoner would erupt in the back seat and there'd be plenty of blood and
a chase across the countryside in the dark of course, and several deaths
and a shootout of course, of course a shootout. But no, not at all, my
expectations were upended, leaving me puzzled, attentive, hanging onto
every word, every gesture, every little development. Where was this
going? I'd never seen anything quite like it and I wanted to know more
about these men who could deal so matter-of-factly with a crime and a
prisoner whose utter banality began at puzzling and slid toward
horrifying and fell into heartbreaking by the end. Comedy? Sure, the
human, unfunny kind.

I think you nailed core of the movie's brilliance when you observed it
says something about how people deal with life's stuff. That's exactly
what it's about. Life's horrible and absurd: deal with it.

[wlah...@gmail.com]

On Thursday, October 31, 2013 5:17:50 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

> I think you nailed core of the movie's brilliance when you observed it
> says something about how people deal with life's stuff. That's exactly
> what it's about. Life's horrible and absurd: deal with it.
>

It's one of those films that I will see again and I want a clear moment so I can just slip into it and float along . . .