Journey of Hope (1990)
"Reise der Hoffnung" (original title)

The story of a turkish poor family who tries to emigrate illegaly to Switzerland.

Director:

Xavier Koller

Writers:

Xavier Koller, Feride Çiçekoglu

Stars:

Necmettin Çobanoglu, Nur Sürer, Emin Sivas

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Necmettin Çobanoglu	...	Haydar Sener
Nur Sürer	...	Meryem
Emin Sivas	...	Mehmet Ali
Erdinç Akbas	...	Adama
Yaman Okay	...	Türkmen
Yasar Güner	...	Haci Baba (as Yasar Gner)
Hseyin Mete	...	Selçuk
Yaman Tarcan	...	Ilyas
Selahattin Firat	...	Grandfather
Meryem Çaki	...	Grandmother
Mustafa	...	Children
Mehmet	...	Children
Fatma	...	Children
Sükran	...	Children
Zeynep	...	Children

Storyline

In a village in eastern Turkey, tales of the economic success of Turks in Switzerland inspire Haydar to convince his wife Meryem that they must go. He sells their livestock and small plot of land in exchange for passage for two. He wants to leave their seven children in the care of the eldest and his parents; his father advises him to take one son to be educated in Europe, as economic insurance. The three set off for Istanbul, Milan, and Switzerland, stowing away on a ship. At Lake Como, they pay the rest of their money to unprincipled men who abandon them at an Alpine pass before a blizzard. Father and son are separated from Meryem. Will anyone reach the land of promise?

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Plot Keywords:

switzerland | lake como | dead child | turkey the country | snow | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Switzerland Turkey UK

Language:

Turkish Swiss German Italian

Release Date:

26 April 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Journey of Hope

Box Office

Gross:

$261,718 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Antea Cinematografica, Catpics, Channel Four Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

[To the Swiss truck driver]
Haydar Sener: I would have liked to become your friend.

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Connections

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007)

User Reviews

Hardships & Inspiration

How many Turkish movies have you seen? This was my first. I found this movie a little better than "fair." The story was a bit depressing but the cinematography was very good. There was some beautiful night-time photography.

It's the story of a Kurdish man and his wife making a trip, with one of their seven children, to Switzerland in order to find a better life. Hardships abound, thanks to unscrupulous "sympathizers" and they wind up having to travel on foot with other people over the long journey. That journey includes walking up and over snowy mountains.

A tough but inspiring story, which is what it was meant to me.