In the last decade, Turkish cinema has basked in the light of filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan. With Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, the writer-director confirms his stature in a long, slow, hypnotic film that explores the human condition through side glances and offhand remarks. It is a deep and haunting work that lingers in the memory.
Two men are being driven around a remote rural area. The squinting, silent Kenan (Firat Tanis) has confessed to murdering Yasar and burying him, apparently with the help of the other man. Now the police chief Naci (Yilmaz Erdogan) has called prosecutor Nusret (Taner Birsel) all the way from Ankara to witness the discovery of the corpse. The problem is that, as the searchers drive along deserted roads in the dark, Kenan fails to locate the grave.
As in a story by Chekhov, the first half of the film is filled with insignificant conversations that turn out to be highly significant later on. Ceylan’s background in still photography informs every shot, which rings with hidden feeling and a sense of intimacy. Gokhan Tiryaki’s cinematography emphasizes the stark, eerie beauty of the Anatolian landscape. - Deborah Young, The Hollywood Reporter
Co-winner, Grand Prix, Cannes Film Festival
