The Edge of Heaven
The winner of the Best Screenplay award at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, director Fatih Akin's deeply humanistic, multi-layered drama follows the stories of six people -- four Turks and two Germans -- as they realize the meaning of love while facing the harsh realities of the world we live in. Nejat is a second-generation Turkish immigrant living in Germany. His father Ali is a retired widower. When lonely Ali invites pretty prostitute Yeter to move in with him, Nejat makes no attempt to mask his disapproval. Nejat's opinion of Yeter begins to soften a bit, however, when he learns that she regularly sends tuition money to her daughter Ayten in Turkey. Suddenly, Yeter is dead, the unfortunate victim of Ali's violent temper. In the wake of Yeter's death, Nejat is determined to do the right thing for Ayten, and prepares to travel to Turkey to find the girl. But Ayten is a political activist who has recently fled from Turkey to Germany, where she befriended a German student named Lotte. Lotte's conservative mother Susanne isn't comfortable with her daughter's decision to invite a fugitive to live with their family, and when Ayten is arrested by German police and deported back to Turkey, the rebellious daughter rejects her mother and sets out in search of her friend. Later, in Istanbul, Nejat and Lotte are brought together by fate and Susanne is prompted to reexamine her values while searching for her daughter and being confronted with life on the other side. more..
Director: Fatih Akin
Starring: Baki Davrak, Nursel Kose, Tuncel Kurtiz, Nurgul Yesilcay, Patrycia Ziolkowska
The best approach is to begin with the characters, because the wonderful, sad, touching The Edge of Heaven is more about its characters than about its story
The experience of seeing this film is cumulative, sober and profound.
Oropelled by memorable performances by mostly unknown actors. The most famous of the ensemble, Hanna Schygulla, delivers a by turns serene and shattering performance as a mother struggling with loss, conscience and the first glimmers of unexpected connection. She's only one essential and unforgettable part of a flawless whole.
With impeccable skill, Akin has made a film roiling with cruelty but guided by tough political optimism. No, we can't all get along, but some us of are trying.
Hopping from Germany to Turkey and back again, Akin is out to capture the ways that a globalized world can tear up our hearts, and repair them, too.
Andrew Bird
Ankara International Film Festival (2008)
Best Director
Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival (2007)
Best Foreign Film, Not in the Spanish Language (Mejor Película Extranjera)
Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards (2010)
Best Film
Bangkok International Film Festival (2007)
Best Director (Regiepreis)
Bavarian Film Awards (2008)
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