arjantin78 Reviews

A Round of Applause (2024– )

Honest effort deserving a chance

[12 March 2024]

I started watching the first episode without any intention of binging it. However, I finished the six episodes in a few sittings. So, it was not a bore for me. However, it might not be everyone's cup of tea, especially if they seek linearity in fiction.

There are laughing moments, there are quasi-substantial moments etc.

I liked the 4 year old kids' take on love and life.

I did not like playing with the fourth wall moments all that much.

Berkun Oya seems to have found more familiar waters to swin in this time though, in terms of socio-economic class familiarity with the characters, events, life-styles etc.

The series is as good as this review: It deserves a chance in the desert of Turkish culture.

The Art of Getting By (2011)

how do they leave reviews shorter than 600 chars?

[21 February 2023]

This movie is beyond pointless. It is privileged teenage delusions presented as something substantial and relatable. I do not want to talk about the technical aspects of the movie as they are not important compared to the pointlessness of the story and characters. It is soo pointless that I would have liked to stop this review three sentences ago if it were not for the minimal length requirement. The writer of the movie must be a privileged no-lifer to think that this story and these characters would mean anything to people with real problems in life.

Yeah buddy, you are so cool that you do not know what cosine is, we get it.

Looper (2012)

Full of ridiculous ideas including the fundamental one

[7 February 2018]

Why don't the mob send the people to a single place, like a warehouse owned by the mob in the 'present' and deal with them in bulk? That would reduce the needed labor greatly.

Why do the loopers have to finish their own future versions? To invite unnecessary complications or so that there can be a movie about it?

Why 30 years? Aren't future loopers a threat to the mob 29 years 11 months from 'now'?

I've watched the first 15 minutes and the movie is garbage in terms of story. Acting, directing, atmosphere bla bla... So it got a 3 from me instead of 1. The idea itself is fundamentally flawed even after you are ready to accept the idea of time travel.

Kedi (2016)

Playing to the western gaze

[18 December 2017]

I am Turkish and I live in Istanbul (and cat lover). Watching this film, I couldn't help but feel I was watching something scripted, staged etc. It does not feel relevant to me as it focuses on select parts of Istanbul for its background and select people as its interviewees. Most people living in Istanbul are much more indifferent to cats and many are even abusive.

The filmmaker passed on a chance to tell a relevant, strong and controversial story (believe it or not, cats are sometimes a reason for conflict among different strata of the Turkish society, search for "kedi besleme kavgasi" and watch the videos) for the sake of making a feel-good advertisement of Istanbul for the western and westernized audiences.

Execution of the film is good, and it has cats in it. Hence 6/10.

Little Evil (2017)

good intentions yet confused

[1 September 2017]

I am writing the review in the middle of the movie, but I don't think the second half will change anything in terms of what I want to say. I found the idea interesting and decided to watch the movie. It has its perks. It has nice ideas like people going on with their everyday stuff although they know it's the end of the world and the kid actually is the Antichrist etc. However, the execution somehow misses something. It's not scary when it intends to be scary, neither it manages to be funny when it intends to be so. I wouldn't call it a waste of time, but it's not as good as Tucker & Dale vs Evil by the same writer/director. After finishing the movie: It would have been badass if the kid were not saved and actually brought about the apocalypse.

Mustang (2015)

For the western gaze

[23 June 2016]

I am Turkish. I know how people behave in rural parts of Turkey. This movie is so ridiculously bad I would not waste another sentence for it if it wasn't for the minimal review length requirement of IMDb. So here it is, 10 lines... Actors do not even come close to give an authentic depiction of how people living in a village in İnebolu act and behave. The story is a disaster. The general attitude of the movie is tastelessly didactic. Don't you ever think that you get a somewhat accurate representation of anything regarding Turkish society from this excuse of a movie. The director/writer does obviously not know how things work in rural parts of Turkey. One of the writers is not even Turkish. So, go figure... The fuss around this movie (oscar nomination etc.) is a textbook case of westerners appreciating narratives about the rest of the world which justify their ideological preconceptions.

The Act of Killing (2012)

banality of evil

[25 November 2013]

First of all "the Act of Killing" is not everybody's cup of tea. If you seek closure, justice, puppies etc. In a film you might be better off skipping this one. This film is a testament to what human beings are capable of under the 'correct' circumstances. What makes this film great is not only how it handles its brutal subject but its style. There is no other film like this one, you can be sure of that. If you are interested in subjects like social psychology, nature of social authority or psychodrama you might find this film lethally interesting. It is a must see provided you have the stomach.