Kuzu

The film introduces a small family of four living in a rural area on the Turkish countryside. The family is planning a feast to celebrate the son’s circumcision, but they do not have enough money to buy the traditional lamb to serve the guests. Ismail (Cahit Gok) makes little money working in a slaughterhouse, and the amount his wife Medine (Nesrin Cavadzade) manages to scrape together is not enough for the celebration.

The beautiful film explores topics such as bottomless poverty, enormous pride, and the importance of cultural traditions in the little village. It is a brutal world we experience on screen, but this is also a film with comic elements that first and foremost are visualized in the scenes between the two siblings in the family. The sister, Vicdan (Sila Lara Canturk), manages to terrify her little brother Mert (Mert Tastan) by telling him that if they do not find the money to buy a lamb before his celebration, they will cook him instead. What else could be the reason for his parents calling him “a little lamb”? The terrified Mert puts together his own plan to fetch a lamb before the feast. The chemistry between the two siblings is mesmerizing and well performed by the young actors.

Ataman has also chosen to focus on the dynamics between men and women, something that gives the film an interesting gender perspective on the different opportunities for the two sexes within the Turkish society. This is a story mainly told from a child’s perspective, but that contains serious themes. To watch Kuzu is a fun, sad, and powerful experience.

The Turkish director and artist Kutlug Ataman (b. 1961) made his writer-directorial debut in 1994 with the film Karanlik Sular. He has, since then, directed film like Lola+Bilidikid (1998), 2 Girls (2005) and Journey to the Moon (2009). His films have participated in many film festivals and won several awards.