My Grandfather's People

"Dedemin Insanlari" ( My Grandpa's People ) is a very successful drama on the people who were forced to migrate from their own lands, as well as a touch to a certain historic period & a town in the western Turkey.

It has always been a drama to hear the stories of both the Greek people & the Turkish people who were forced to leave their origins at the end of the First World War. Millions of them. The Turks who migrated to Turkey were always recognized as Greeks, as well as the Greeks who migrated to Greece were recognized as Turks.

The movie is all around a family whose grandpa is migrated from Crete, and the town they live in. There's always a hope for the grandpa to visit his origins, but he actually doesn't want to, and leave his memories as they are.

You'll also feel the same contradiction in another movie called "A Touch of Spice" from Tassos Boulmetis, but in a different time & place. But both have the same drama buried inside.

Çagan Irmak is one of the most powerful directors of Turkish cinema. There's a resemblance to his family's history too. He's written a very effective scenario with a few twists from the original story, but at the end it is the real story.

The movie had a significant amount of spectators and was shown for weeks, now the DVD gives you the opportunity to watch it all over again.

As Çagan Irmak reminds in the DVD extras, the players are in a perfect harmony that it will be right to justify them as a single "player". Çetin Tekindor, in his third movie with Çagan Irmak is wonderful in every aspect, as he worked really hard and a long time for the preparation. All other players just fits in.

If you've missed "Dedemin Insanlari" on the screen, I suggest the DVD is a wonderful opportunity to watch it over & over again.