Ayla: The Daughter of War (2017)

In 1950, amidst the ravages of the Korean War, Sergeant Süleyman stumbles upon a a half-frozen little girl, with no parents and no help in sight. Frantic, scared and on the verge of death, ... See full summary »

Director:

Can Ulkay

Writer:

Yigit Güralp

Stars:

Çetin Tekindor, Ismail Hacioglu, Kyung-jin Lee

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Çetin Tekindor	...	Süleyman (old)
Ismail Hacioglu	...	Süleyman (young)
Kyung-jin Lee	...	Ayla (adult)
Kim Seol	...	Ayla (child)
Ali Atay	...	Ali
Damla Sönmez	...	Nuran
Murat Yildirim	...	Lieutenant Mesut
Taner Birsel	...	Major Fuat
Cade Carradine	...	Captain Cage
Kim Byoungsoon	...	South Korean General
Meral Çetinkaya	...	Nimet (old)
Johnny Young	...	Lieutenant Lee
Mehmet Esen	...	Colonel Celal
Altan Erkekli	...	Huseyin Dilbirligi
Caner Kurtaran	...	Sadik

Storyline

In 1950, amidst the ravages of the Korean War, Sergeant Süleyman stumbles upon a a half-frozen little girl, with no parents and no help in sight. Frantic, scared and on the verge of death, this little girl captures the heart of Süleyman, who risks his own life to save her, smuggling her into his Army base and out of harms way. Not knowing her name and unable to communicate with her, Süleyman names her Ayla, in reminiscence of the moon on the fateful night during which they met. The two form an instantaneous and inseparable bond, and Ayla, almost effortlessly, brings an uncanny joy to the Turkish brigade in the grip of war. As the war comes to a close however, Süleyman's brigade is told that they will be returning home. Süleyman cannot bear abandoning Ayla, and does everything within his power to take her with him. After repeated failure, he is forced to give Ayla to an orphanage, but doesn't give up on the hope of one day reuniting with her. Will the two ever get back together?

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Plot Keywords:

melodrama | airplane | korean war | reference to marilyn monroe | soldier | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Details

Official Sites:

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Country:

Turkey

Language:

Korean English Turkish Chinese

Release Date:

27 October 2017 (Turkey)

Also Known As:

Ayla

Filming Locations:

Seoul, South Korea

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dijital Sanatlar Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min (original)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Iskenderun, where the turkish part of the story begins, is a cosmopolite southern industrial city of Turkey. The natal city of Suleyman, the main character is Maras, it's most likely a rural city at the southeast of Turkey. So, it gives in fact some kind of a sociological depth to the turkish characters of the story.

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Goofs

Scene of North Korean Ambush; the American officer holding a Beretta sport model pistol ; it should be 45.cal 1911 Colt instead.

User Reviews

One of the most exquisite examples of historical drama movies

I was familiar with the story which is based on true events in Korea before I saw the movie. It was on the TV News a few years back. I didn't pay much attention though but it was intriguing. Who knew the whole story with all the details and documents would become one of the best drama movies I've ever seen. It literally made every single person in the theater misty-eyed. Even the idea of imagining a child left alone in the middle of nowhere with her massacred parents in front of her is horrifying. Being informed about the movie being based on true events makes it much more tragic. And seeing the real footage of actual veterans and people from the brutal war with ending makes it more realistic and goes perfectly with the movie's atmosphere. Also the cast is amazing. Especially Ismail Hacioglu and the little Korean girl (I forgot her name) were astonishing. This being a war movie and all, some people might think that it has a biased point of view but I can assure you it has nothing to do with any military propaganda and ideologies. In fact the objectivity of it is one of the many great idiosyncrasies of the movie that makes the audience feel more empathetic. It doesn't exaggerate heroic acts of soldiers. Instead, it focuses on their emotional state. This is a "must see". Aside from the universality and humanist point of movie, it will be in a very special and exclusive place in hearts of Turks and Koreans. In addition I've been informed that Ayla: The Daughter of War is nominated for Academy Awards in category of "best foreign language movie". I strongly believe that it deserves an Oscar. 10/10