Mutluluk (2007)

Condemned to death to salvage her family's honor, a young rape victim escapes to a seaside town with the man tasked with her execution.

Director:

Abdullah Oguz

Writers:

Elif Ayan, Zülfü Livaneli (novel)

Stars:

Talat Bulut, Özgü Namal, Murat Han

15 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Talat Bulut	...	Irfan
Özgü Namal	...	Meryem
Murat Han	...	Cemal
Mustafa Avkiran	...	Ali Riza
Emin Gürsoy	...	Tahsin
Sebnem Köstem	...	Döne
Meral Çetinkaya	...	Münevver
Erol Babaoglu	...	Yakup
Lale Mansur	...	Aysel
Emel Göksu	...	Gülizar Ebe
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Alpay K. Atalan	...	Selo (as Alpay Atalan)
Leyla Basak	...	Serap (as Lena Leyla Basak)
Ali Ciftel	...	Old Shepherd
Ugur Izgi	...	Ali Reza's Man #2
Sevgi Onat	...	Lady in the Ferry

Storyline

Condemned to death to salvage her family's honor, a young rape victim escapes to a seaside town with the man tasked with her execution.

---

Plot Keywords:

rape | tradition versus modernity | forced suicide | honor killing | women's rights | 

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Turkey Greece

Language:

Turkish

Release Date:

16 March 2007 (Turkey)

Also Known As:

Aperanti eftyhia

Filming Locations:

Bodrum, Turkey

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,039, 9 August 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$39,203, 31 January 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

ANS Production,Highway Productions,Eurimages

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

Gün Olur
Composed by Zülfü Livaneli
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra

User Reviews

Three Ruined Lives, three Opposite Characters wandering Off-shore Waters

With fathers from different families, Meryem and Cemal are each other's country cousins. For Meryem has violated moral law of the village they live in, Cemal's father sends them to Istanbul for Meryem's execution. Despite everyone in the village indicts Meryem for adultery, she keeps telling that she's innocent. But the actual offender is hidden.

Cemal remains reluctant to kill Meryem, even when they came to Istanbul. So he visits his brothers, to ask for their advice. He finds his brothers are not aware of their moral law of the village; so that they can't help him make a decision. When he talked to his younger brother, he advises them to stay at a holiday camp near a fish farm. Cemal learns fishing from a native man. Away from the rules, punishments and cruelty of the world; anyhow Meryem waits for the day she'll be executed. She is in respect to her father, family, moral law and to Cemal; accordingly she obeys whatever Cemal says to do.

One night time fishing at the offshore, Cemal meets with an adventurer vessel master. Next day the adventurer invites Cemal and Meryem to his sailing boat. After a bit talking, he likes Cemal and hires him to work at his vessel, supposing that he's married to Meryem. That adventurer who is a former university professor, suddenly enters into their life; although their cultural background doesn't fit to each other at first.

From Elif Ayan's adaptation of Zülfü Livaneli's novel, covered with spectacular views of Aegean Sea coasts, Mutluluk offers an escape to the sea, and to search for candid friendship. Talat Bulut's excellent portrait of the adventurer leads the cruising. He, and only himself, saves this movie from ending up as a failure. He saved the film from Yesilcam clichés. Abdullah Oguz uses basic formula of starting with dragging up our emotions to end with rat race material. Oguz's plot manipulation works like a magic. We find ourselves in a moral dilemma first, then in a mystery and finally with a happy ending, in which mystery solved in a surprisingly successful way. Even though the main production is weak other than the cinematography, acting and plot manipulation saves the day.