Abluka is a Turkish foreign language film set in present day Istanbul.
It follows the story of Kadir - a man released from prison on parole after 20 years behind bars. After returning to society he has to come to terms that modern day Turkey is a very different place now.
The film touches on many issues surrounding including political violence in the region, the enormous control the government has over their citizens and complications between the traditional and more contemporary aspects of modern day Turkey.
Synopsis
Compared to other films Abluka is a film that can be categorized as a "slow burner." Meaning that the plot line and overall story slowly develops of the course of the entire film.
Abluka's main character Kadir is two years away from completing a 22 year prison sentence and is brought in by officers to discuss a prospective return to society under parole.
However, Kadir learns that this parole can only be accepted if he works for the police to find and dismantle bombs across Istanbul left by anti-government terrorist groups.
Kadir accepts the terms and is released from prison where he re-connects with his younger brother, Ahmet.
Kadir soon starts to live a semi-normal life in an unrecognizable, modern day Turkey. He learns first hand just how different things are 20 years later.
The remaining part of the film follows Kadir and Ahmet as the point-of-view of the film shifts between the two.
Telling two different stories of how future events unfold as political violence rises around them.
Important Themes
The film does a good job of captivating the viewer, as both brothers struggle to understand the realities of the world around them.
Altogether, Abluka is a film which depicts the fragility of Turkish democracy.
Today, Turkey is a country caught in between not only Europe and Asia but also in between time periods. The country is run by a very controlling government and struggles to find a footing between traditional ruling periods and modern, present day nuances. As a result the current Turkish political atmosphere is riddled with much uncertainty and polarization.
When interviewed at the 2015 Venice Film Festival, director Emin Alper went on the describe the message of the film, saying:
"I think mainly it's about how the political atmosphere can drive people paranoid and crazy and create the destruction of the society... The political polarization, the political tensions and the idea of a polarized society between enemy and friends can destroy our identities, our confidence" to Reuters correspondents.
Additionally, Abluka touches on many points surrounding the control the government, police forces and military have over the country.
Throughout the film images of all three said groups can be found talking about the ideals of Turkish culture and the direction they want the country to follow.
In recent history, the Turkish government has come under massive scrutiny by many international organisations, other countries and their leaders.
In 2016, a failed military coup was attempted by forces opposed to the current government, throwing the country into political turmoil along with it's prospective future.
And earlier in 2017 Turkey held a referendum which gave President Erdoğan considerable powers over the state, dismantling the separation of powers and taking legislative authority away from the national parliament. Thereby essentially putting all the power in the hands of Erdoğan. Which has led many in the political world describing the referendum and the reign of Erdoğan as an "elected dictatorship", "autocracy" and "democratic suicide". With statistics favouring that most of those siding with Erdoğan did so to stop civil unrest like the 2016 failed coup from happening again.
Furthermore, Turkey has the largest population of jailed journalists around the world. It is estimated that around 250,000 journalists are being held by government, military and policing forces.
Since the 2016 coup attempt, many who have been critical of the government have been targeted.
156 media outlets have been closed within the country, with Amnesty International describing the detaining procedures as being "clearly disturbing". Elaborating onward to state that the Turkish government's repression of media is unlawful and is the "death of journalism".
Conclusion
Altogether Abluka is a tremendously well put together film and speaks to many issues pertaining to the current climate of Turkish politics.
The film does a fabulous job of creating a fitting life-like atmosphere.
It tells a story of two brothers who have had two different upbringings and outlooks on what modern day Turkey is.
Abluka succeeds in capturing the attention of the audience despite the fairly slow tempo of the film. It is a film you should definitely consider watching.
At first it seems to be a simple thought out film. But, slowly it develops into a story that leads you to question the relationship between the reality you are told to believe and forming your own thoughts about events through your own experiences.
