Head-On (2004)
"Gegen die Wand" (original title)

In 'Gegen die Wand' Cahit, a 40-something male from Mersin in Turkey has removed everything Turkish from his life. He has become an alcoholic drug addict and at the start of the movie wants... See full summary »

Director:

Fatih Akin

Writer:

Fatih Akin (book)

Stars:

Birol Ünel, Sibel Kekilli, Catrin Striebeck

24 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Birol Ünel	...	Cahit Tomruk
Sibel Kekilli	...	Sibel
Catrin Striebeck	...	Maren
Meltem Cumbul	...	Selma (Cousine)
Stefan Gebelhoff	...	Nico
Francesco Fiannaca	...	Mann am Tresen
Mona Mur	...	Stammkundin Zoe Bar
Ralph Misske	...	Patient 1 (Psychiatrie)
Philipp Baltus	...	Patient 2 (Psychiatrie)
Hermann Lause	...	Dr. Schiller
Karin Niwiger	...	Kassiererin (Psychiatrie)
Demir Gökgöl	...	Yunus Güner (Vater)
Cem Akin	...	Yilmaz Güner (Bruder)
Aysel Iscan	...	Birsen Güner (Mutter)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Monique Akin	...	Kundin im Friseurladen

Storyline

In 'Gegen die Wand' Cahit, a 40-something male from Mersin in Turkey has removed everything Turkish from his life. He has become an alcoholic drug addict and at the start of the movie wants to end it all. Sibel a 20-something female from Hamburg wishes to please her Turkish parents yet yearns for freedom. She has had her nose broken by her brother for being seen holding hands with a boy and yet she can not break her mother's heart and run away. She too attempts suicide and she first approaches Cahit there at the Hospital. Sibel asks Cahit to marry her, as she believes this to be the way out of her parent's house. She promises Cahit that their relationship will be like roommates, not like a married couple. The film follows Sibel and Cahit as they get married, become closer and eventually fall in love.

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Plot Keywords:

turkish | love | roommate | alcoholic | hospital | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong graphic sexuality, pervasive language, some brutal violence and drug content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [de]

Country:

Germany Turkey

Language:

German Turkish English

Release Date:

11 March 2004 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Head-On

Filming Locations:

Fabrik, Altona, Hamburg, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arte, Bavaria Film International, Corazón International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sibel Kekilli was discovered at a Cologne shopping mall.

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Goofs

The psychiatrist at the beginning of the film tells Cahit about a song by the band The The containing the line "If you can't change the world, change your world". The actual quote (from the song "Lonely Planet", included in the album "Dusk") is "If you can't change the world, change yourself".

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Quotes

Dr. Schiller: If you want to end your life, end it. You don't have to kill yourself to do that.

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Crazy Credits

When it comes to Special Thanks, there's a name: Arsen Lüpen. Arsène Lupin is a fictional character, created by the French writer Maurice Leblanc.

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Connections

Featured in Fatih Akin - Tagebuch eines Filmreisenden (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Beim 1. Mal"
(K: Frank Ziegert, 'Mark Chung', Axel Dill, FM Einheit (as F.M. Strauß); T: Frank Ziegert )
Performed by Abwärts
With kind permission from Independent Musikverlag

User Reviews

I was riding in that car with Cahit

This is one of the best love films ever made. Actually I'd call it 'the best' but some would accuse me of exaggerating but trust me it is much better than artificial and unrealistic examples of Spanish, French and Italian romance cinema. This film has a heart inside that pumps blood to every sequence of it. I think Faith Akin did a great job keeping this film organic and earthly.

There is despair, hope, love then despair and hope once again. I could easily relate to the characters. Speaking of characters, Birol Ünel is the most charismatic actor I've seen lately, he dominates the screen along with Sibel Kekilli. Sibel Kekilli is an angel, pure acting, it is unfortunate what she had to go through in real life but she is stronger than most people and she had to prove it many times. In supporting roles there is Güven Kirac, who is one of my favorite actors in Turkish cinema and Meltem Cumbul who provides good acting.

By the way despite of all the tragedy there is also ethnic humor in this film which goes hand-in-hand with the story. Especially the scenes with Birol Ünel and Guven Kirac are quite amusing, especially if you know Turkish.

Anyway, all I have to say is "I feel you, your sun it shines, I feel you within my mind, You take me there, You take me where the kingdom comes, You take me to and lead me through Babylon" ... I was riding in that car with Cahit.

Tebrikler Faith Akin, WE WANT MORE OF THESE!