Yusuf (Mehmet Emin Toprak) is a rural dweller, desperate to find work. Realising that a move to the city represents his only chance of winning gainful employment, he ventures off to Istanbul. Upon his arrival in the city, he crashes with his bitterly divorced cousin Mahmut (Muzaffer Ozdemir), a succesful but aloof photographer. Determined to wallow in self-pity at the breakdown of his marriage, Mahmut finds the uncouth presence of his cousin disrupting, to say the least.
While the premise sounds about as inviting as a wet Tuesday night in November, there's a rich and vividly etched portrait of the foibles of humanity at the heart of the film which gently seduces the audience. Ceylan's technique is frills-free and the minimalist style of filmmaking - music is almost non-existent, while the dialogue is used very sparingly - is both contemplative and oddly compelling. Thematically, Ceylan seems most interested in the topics of alienation and loneliness but the rich sense of humour and the healthy sense of the absurd which envelops Distant means the picture never becomes reflective of its title.
